Monday, November 19, 2012

50 Items to Stockpile Before the Next Winter Storm

It's only mid November so it is a pretty good bet that there will be a few more big winter storms before spring rolls around.  Instead of waiting until the newscasters start telling you to hunker down for the next major weather emergency before running out to the store to stock up, how about starting with this week's shopping trip to begin stockpiling items that you will set aside for use in an emergency?  Here's 50 items you should buy ASAP (and don't forget to put them aside in your garage or under a bed so they don't get used up in the normal course of living).

  1. Toilet paper (get one of those big 24 roll packs).
  2. Gasoline (three or four 5-gallon cans of gas if you can safely store it, like in a well ventilated out building in a cans made for gas storage).
  3. Diapers and formula (if you have infants, babies, or in the case of diapers, elderly family members at home).
  4. Bottled water (five cases per person).
  5. Plywood and nails (if you live in an area where you need to board up your windows during a storm).
  6. Firewood (if you have a fireplace or wood stove).
  7. Bleach (the unscented kind for water purification).
  8. Camp stove and lots of fuel for your camp stove.
  9. Matches.
  10. Candles.
  11. Blankets and sleeping bags.
  12. Warm clothing (long underwear, socks, boots, jackets, gloves, hats, etc).
  13. Chocolate and candy.
  14. Powdered milk.
  15. Quick cook/no cook food (MREs, canned meat, canned soup, breakfast cereal, energy bars, etc).
  16. Snack food: crackers, peanut butter, jelly, dried fruit, jerky, nuts, etc.
  17. Instant drinks (instant coffee, hot chocolate, tea, etc).
  18. Firearms and lots of ammo.
  19. A really well stocked first aid kit.
  20. Spray paint (I thought the sign in New York spray painted on a piece of plywood warning looters that they would be shot was particularly effective).
  21. Rope.
  22. Tarps and sheet plastic of varying sizes.
  23. Flashlights (at least one per family member).
  24. Rechargable batteries.
  25. A solar battery charger.
  26. Spare non-rechargable batteries.
  27. AC/DC converter for your car.
  28. Car cell phone charger.
  29. Bicycles.
  30. Large pots (for boiling water over a fire on on your camp stove).
  31. Buckets and food-grade water containers.
  32. Outdoor solar yard lights (can be brought in at night to provide light in your home).
  33. Chemical hand warmers, hot water bottles.
  34. Paper plates, paper towels, plastic silverware.
  35. Handiwipes and waterless hand sanitizer.
  36. Garbage bags and ziploc bags.
  37. Books, games, other non-electric entertainment items.
  38. 50' heavy duty electric extension cords.
  39. Duct tape.
  40. Spare important items: glasses, hearing aid batteries, prescription medication, oxygen tanks, etc.
  41. Indoor propane or kerosene heater and lots of spare fuel.
  42. Work gloves and tools.
  43. Fire extinguishers.
  44. Cleaning gear: dust masks, rubber boots/hip waders, rubber gloves, protective clothing, etc.
  45. HAM radio/2-way radios.
  46. Kitchen/cooking items: non-electric can opener, aluminum foil, spices, etc.
  47. Hand crank/solar radio.
  48. Vitamins.
  49. Siphon/hand pump.
  50. Shovel.

2 comments:

  1. I'd suggest a lithium battery-powered drill with an extra battery and charger and screws instead of a hammer and nails for putting up plywood, and also that the plywood be cut into manageable sizes.

    Our new Makita (no commercial plug, it's just what we bought) drives screws NOW. Very easy to use, very fast, much easier on the hands and wrists than a hammer and nails.

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  2. Very true. My battery powered drill is a critical tool for home and workshop projects.

    ReplyDelete