Traveling for vacation or business can be a challenge no matter how you shake it. Packing your luggage and getting through security top the list of most people as things they would rather not do. The reality of dealing with the TSA screening process is the key culprit. If you’re not careful, adding certain items to your bags can draw increased scrutiny towards your luggage. These are ten things you want to avoid packing in your checked luggage if you don’t want any extra attention.
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Wrapped Presents
If you are packing gifts for your trip, you may want to wait until after you land to wrap them. Wrapped gifts are not prohibited. However, if the inspectors can’t see what’s in your luggage, they might be unwrapped.
Cordless Curling Irons
Cordless curling irons are powered by butane, which can be explosive. Pack your corded curling iron instead.
Matches and Lighters
You are allowed to pack a lighter or one pack of safety matches in your carry-on bag. In your checked luggage, though, you cannot have any matches at all.
Additionally, lighters must be without fuel or in a Department of Transportation or DOT-approved case.
Lithium Batteries
Lithium batteries have been known to explode mid-flight, so they must be contained inside a device that offers protection. This means your camera and electric toothbrush are fine in checked luggage.
Unprotected batteries, like a spare laptop battery or a power bank for cellphones, must go in your carry-on bag.
High Proof Alcohol
Alcohol is permitted in your checked luggage per TSA rules. However, you may not pack alcohol that is 140 proof or higher.
Alcohol with that high of a proof is highly combustible, so it is not allowed. You are limited to five liters or 1.3 gallons of alcohol per person.
Ammunition
Ammunition for firearms is not prohibited by the TSA, but there are certain restrictions on how it must be packed. To avoid additional scrutiny, it might be easier to pick up some ammunition once you arrive at your destination.
E-cigarettes and Vapes
E-cigarettes and vapes are allowed in your carry-on bag, but they are under no circumstances allowed in your checked bag. This is because they contain lithium-ion batteries, which could spark a fire.
The reason you can have them in your carry-on is that they would be easy to extinguish in the cabin if they were to spark a blaze.
Aerosols or Compressed Gases
Does your final travel destination include camping, or helping someone update their home? If so, that bear spray for your remote camping trip or spray paint may draw your bags some added attention.
When anything like insect repellent, sprays, and the like goes off it impacts anyone around the bag. If you don’t want the extra scrutiny, consider purchasing the items once you reach your final destination.
Fireworks
This one should be pretty self-explanatory. You don’t want anything explosive in the bottom of the plane. The ban on fireworks includes small ones like sparklers and pop-its.
Ammonia and Bleach
While you may feel the need to clean your hotel room or Airbnb before you can relax, you will need to pick up your cleaning products after you land.
Ammonia is explosive when it is mixed with other chemicals, and bleach can start a fire that spreads quickly. Both are prohibited from checked luggage.
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I’m John Schmoll, a former stockbroker, MBA-grad, published finance writer, and founder of Frugal Rules.
As a veteran of the financial services industry, I’ve worked as a mutual fund administrator, banker, and stockbroker and was Series 7 and 63-licensed, but I left all that behind in 2012 to help people learn how to manage their money.
My goal is to help you gain the knowledge you need to become financially independent with personally-tested financial tools and money-saving solutions.
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