What would you keep at home for a few days' emergency supplies?

[Somewhereovertherainbowwewillmeetagain]

Day off today and I’m doing a big clean/declutter of the house… and apparently I’ve decided to prepare for the apocalypse 😂

I’m a hope for the best but plan for the worst type of person, so while I’m sorting the house I thought I’d also get my emergency supplies organised.

So far I’ve got:

12L water
5 tins of soup
2 tins of tuna
16 toilet rolls
1 hand soap
1 shampoo
1 conditioner
1 tin of rice pudding 😂

What am I missing from my list?

I’m going to have a good search around the house first to see what I already have, then buy anything I’m missing.

I’m thinking food, water, toiletries, household stuff etc. Basically things that would be useful if we had a few days without being able to get to the shops.

What would you make sure you had? And what things have you got tucked away that you’d never normally think of? 😆

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst!

There is a difference between
not getting to the shops
and
no power
no water
no power/water

UHT milk. When we were stuck at home due to snow, I was grateful to have it as an emergency back up.

Uht milk. Batteries, torch, radio, pasta, tinned fruit and vegetables

In worse case scenario of no power/no water
torch
radio
batteries
water - rationed
cans of Coke Zero because caffeine is required and will need something except water and have teenagers
tinned fruit
crackers/oatcakes
long life milk and cereal
tinned fish
wine
nuts/seeds/honey
biscuits

I mean I would envision if power cut we would have some fresh stuff in like bananas anyway which would last because it would be cold

Portable power pack for your phone, first aid kit, wet wipes and hand sanitiser,

Oh and a manual tin opener

A camping stove and gas, pasta/couscous/rice. Chopped tomatoes, pesto, herbs and spices, chickpeas, lentils. But remember to rotate your supplies, ideally you have 4-6 in your cupboard and use in date order replenishing when they drop below 4. £100 or so in cash in useful for a cash machine/ banking issue they quickly resolve them but we’ve had outages for a few hours)

cup a soups, canned stew etc are useful for winter storm power outages but where you live matters - in major cities you don’t need to worry as much as in rural areas

Surely if there’s no power and water what’s the use of a bag of pasta - I’m always baffled this is on the list

It depends on what the situation is. If it's just that you can't get out or there are supply chain issues and the shops have run out it will be useful. Couscous and noodles take less water and fuel so I tend to keep those in too.

We got rid of our camping equipment a while ago 🙄 what camping stove do people recommend? Ive heard the 'suitcase' ones can be unsafe?

@frozendaisy love your list - wine! I also have gin and tonic, rum and whisky, crucial for a crisis.

we have a water purifier because we live opposite a river, pretty clear too but not bothering to stockpile water we will simply fetch it and boil or purify

Basically foods that you can eat that don't require heating up. So tins of fish/meat/veg/beans.

I always have cool blocks in the freezer, so could keep stuff like cheese and cooked meats cool and fresh for a few days.

Water. Also, if it's raining, some means of collecting rainwater so that you can flush the toilet.

Gin, obviously! With plenty of tonic. If you can keep lots of bags of ice in your freezer, they should keep you going with ice for at least a few days. I've found, when we had parties, that freezing water in take-away plastic boxes gives you blocks of ice that take days to defrost.

It depends on how many people you have in your family and how much storage you have. Only buy stuff your family eats anyway so when the apocalypse/cyber attack hopefully doesn't happen, nothing goes to waste.

Plan for 2l of water to last 1 person for 1 day. (1 litre per day as an absolute minimum)
Maybe have enough in to last everyone for a week.
Also consider water purification tablets since they're small. If you get a warning, fill the bath first

Tinned food that doesn't need to be cooked (unless you also want to store gas, camping stove, firewood or coal). Think about a mix of protein, carb, fruit/veg.
Examples corned beef, Tinned tuna/salmon, tinned mackerel in tomato sauce, Baked beans, Chickpeas, tinned fruit... Plus tin opener

Dry carb food that doesn't need cooking like biscuits, cereal, chocolate, nuts

Baby wipes, hand sanitiser, disposable period products, toilet paper, plastic bags to store waste if the toilet doesn't flush

Nappies and milk etc if you have a baby

Painkillers, any perscription meds

Wind up/solar radio/charger, full power bank, battery torches plus spare batteries.

Things to keep you busy and children distracted. Books, toys, card games etc

pasta
rice
tinned tomatoes
chickpeas
baked beans
cereal & oats

Biscuits. Loads.
fortified breakfast cereals and uht milk.
multivitamins with iron.
water.
wipes for washing without water.

Family of 5 we already have most of this:

way way more water - it needs to be used for drinking, washing, cooking…probably 100l or as much as I could store
rechargeable torches & radio
mini gas stove plus cylinders
gas heater with gas
camping sauce pans, plates & cups
thermal flask
fire extinguisher & blanket
decent masking or insulation tape
Way way more toilet roll ( I have ibs)
enough medication for everyone for a week, that’s over the counter paracetamol, cold & flu, cough syrup and prescription including inhalers, EpiPen…
decent first aid kit including burn kit, mini oxygen container, water sterilising tables, emergency blankets, masks
electrolytes
candles
multitool

Food supplies
At least 3 tins each per person of the following: beans, soups, corned beef, potatoes, carrots, peas, corn, mixed stews, fruit, rice pudding
Again at least 3 packets per person, rice, pastas, cereal
UHT milk at least 3 per person
oxo cubes
honey
chocolate
any other foods needed

Hygiene
washing up liquid
hand wash
hand towles
baby wipes & antibacterial wipes
washing up bowl
toilet bowl with lid
white vinegar
baking soda

Everything needs keeping together not spread around the house

Go bags

Porridge and UHT milk
Honey or syrup or jam
Yeast and bread flour
Jars of Bockwurst sausages
Tinned curries
Pouches of cooked rice / grains
Tinned beans
water purification tablets

Generally we have ‘stores’ in the garage of everything we use so when the one in the house runs out, you get the one from the garage and then add to shopping list. That way there is always a back up. Stock pots / garlic tubes / condiments / oils / vinegars / soups / tomatoes / rice / ground almonds / pasta / flours / sugar etc etc

@frozendaisy this is for what the Government have recommended in case the shit hits the fan.

I have a log burner so heat and cooking would be fine. Would I need to to buy a trivot to put on top of the burner for pots? Camping stoves freak me out after that poor couple sadly passed away in their tent.

There is me, dh and teen dd in the house. Oh I didn't think of wine, gin excellent suggestions. It's meals I'm really struggling to think of.

Depends what sort of emergency you’re thinking about.

A gas hob can be lit with a match. So if you’ve got water and no power, you’re fine, and things that don’t need the fridge and that you can cook on the hob are useful.
If bad weather eg being stuck in snow is a realistic prospect where you live, you might be fine for water and power but need a few days of food until the road clears.
A single parent who also has limited support might also prep for no external emergency but being stuck in bed with the flu, or stuck at home with a profusely vomiting child, and want some easy meals in the cupboard if they can’t get to the shop - pasta fits the bill for older children to cook themselves.
Pasta is also good for supply issues - your village road is blocked with snow, the village shop is running low (I could turn that into the first two lines of a preppers poem…)

Yes it’s not good if water is your issue, but a lot of things won’t cover all bases.

Also, a store of charcoal would mean that you could always use the barbecue to cook/heat stuff. Even better if you have gas cylinders for a gas barbecue.

Ah yes I see if you’re rural and not near a shop. We are in the centre of a south London Town so shops on almost every road and 3 superstore supermarkets in walking distance.

It really depends what you are planning for.
If you are genuinely planning for the apocalypse, you will need way more stuff.
I just have a few things in for less serious, but more likely events.
When we lost power in a storm, I wish I'd had more food that was nice to eat cold, so I didn't need to mess with the camping stove.
A thermos flask was really useful, because the power kept coming on for a short time, so I could boil the kettle before it went again.
Hot water bottles.
A radio that runs on batteries because the WiFi and mobile signal went.
Films/tv downloaded on the ipad.
Chocolate.

Books / games
Lighter / matches
Power banks fully charged
First aid kit and book
Torches and head torch
Pet food if you have pets
Uht milk
Multi vitamins just in case you are limited in diet
Tin opener
Multi tool

You can't use a charcoal barbecue indoors. The most likely reason for a power outage is a storm, when an outdoor barbecue would be no good either.

Isn’t that the least of what you have at home normally? I’m not doing anything extra for an ‘emergency’ but I have plenty of rice/pasta/sauces in jars, tinned tuna, oatmeal, beans etc etc. could feed us for a week (boring, but we wouldn’t starve). I think to your list add a light source and first aid kit.