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!

I think if there are fuel shortages (diesel) then the lorries that deliver to the supermarkets will be stuck. Thus empty shelves. So for that reason I would buy anything you would need for 2 weeks ie toilet rolls as well as the food/water things.

Also with the lack of fertiliser getting through plus the dry summer I'm expecting fruit and veg and cereals to show shortages. Obviously can't stock up on fruit/veg but I've bought a whole lot of tinned fruit and tinned veg. Not ideal I know but better than nothing. Frozen would be better but then if there is a powercut I am screwed again. Cereals - I bought enough to last for a few months. If there is no power cereal and long life milk is tasty and easy.

If we have anything that cuts off the internet then we are all going to be bored out of our minds. I've downloaded a good number of books onto my kindle that I haven't read. At least that way I will have something to read if I can't download anything new because the internet is gone. I have a powerbank for charging up my kindle among other things. Plus it's got it's own light so easy to read.

I bought a battery operated kettle. Didn't even know such a thing existed. I have a gas hob and have bought the manual lighters. However if gas is interrupted then I refuse to not be able to make tea. The world can end but I need my cup of tea.

Fun times. Just waiting to see what happens first.

@IWishIWasASquirrel love your username. Didn't know battery kettles were a thing. Can you imagine if we had no Internet. Would we start writing letters again? Good thinking about kindle books to keep you occupied.

Costa coffee latte sachets!

if I have Coffee, I am human and all you need for this is hot water.

I have stored bottled water, I'm going to order a single gas burner With canisters,

I looked into small power storage units with solar panel charging, but it seems that running a kettle off of One is asking a bit much of them so I think I'm just gonna go down the gas route

I do actually have all kinds of boring things in stock Too like a good first aid range and food.

I do need to get a few more bits to add to it,

Ooh battery operated kettles? I'll definitely look into this tomorrow.

Government is saying gas wouldn’t work in the scenarios they’re envisioning.

prepare.campaign.gov.uk/be-informed-about-hazards/power-cuts/

Tinned fruit and veg or frozen fruit - if power goes out you can eat the defrosted fruit atleast
longlife products
dry food easy to eat - certain cereals, crisps, breakfast bars, nuts

If you are going down this route of thinking, what products are high energy to produce, high diesel to transport (either weight, distance or volume) or contain petrochemicals that might end up in short supply?

The list I came up with, when I went down that rabbit hole was interesting. It gets scary quickly.

There were rumours (unsubstantiated I might add) that some ships in east Asia were being turned away from refueling due to a lack of fuel. I am keeping an eye of this for reputable sources.

That said, the fertiliser shortage is one that makes me nervous in ways the diesel one doesn't.

Three days supply sounds a lot more fear inducing.

Some of us have a gas hob. Many preppers and anyone who camps usually has a camping stove.

If you know there is going to be a power outage you can also fill flasks with hot water.

You can put pasta and hot water in a bowl, better if you have a lid or a plate on top it takes about 10 mins to cook.

I have a wind up radio that is also a torch and has USB slots. I do have a power bank.

Food wise, I have a cupboard full of tins and quite a few jars, some I generally use eg baked beans but others like mince with gravy I would probably not use unless I was stuck inside. The same for powdered mash, as I said on the other thread a tin of mince and instant mash isn't a shepherd's pie but it will do at pinch.

I'm disabled, my mobility scooter can't deal with snow and ice so for me the 'emergency' might be a snow day for everyone else.

I have had a few colonoscopies, I don't do well on the day before prep so I have a 'low residue diet' for a week and one thing recommended was tinned fruit so I have a few tins in.

Again a repeat of the other thread, WearyWolfAdventures on YouTube does some prepping, he gave the tip of using the water from tinned veg to cook with. So you heat op your peas or carrots and then drain the pan(s) into a jug that you then use for your pasta or cous cous.

@BIWI I once spent a week on an RAF base in Germany, the married quarters ovens were tiny, apparently it was not unusual at Xmas to see people popping out to their BB to baste the turkey. The type of BBQ had a lid so I think that might make a difference.

What?? I don't need to hear that!. I might be burning the fence on the fire pit then

We have frequent power outages. Our gas hob still works if you use a match to light it, but not the heating system, which needs electricity. Obviously that's a more local failure. If the grid goes down I expect everything fails.

what kind of things were on the list?

Electric Travel Kettle,Portable Battery Powered Kettle with 27000mAhBattery | USB-C Charging, 45℃-100℃ Fast Boiling One Cup Kettle with 6 Temperature Settings for Camping, Holiday, Office & Travel : Amazon.co.uk: Home & Kitchen

This is the one I bought last week but it has sold out now (also the price went up from when I bought it).
There are lots that are called travel kettles but they need plugged in. This one you plug in and the battery charges up. I've been checking mine to see if it is holding it's charge and it seems to be for the most part. Assuming power cuts will be sudden I needed a kettle which was charged up and ready to go.

Still on the lookout for a trivot so I could cook/boil water on my log burner. Not having much luck so far.

My parents got a couple from Amazon that they use on theirs. I searched for them using ‘trivot cast iron for log burner’ you should get a few come up, might be the wrong shape depending on what log burner you’ve got though.

When we had a log burner we used to cook our food inside it - good baking tray on a trivet (with legs to move it out of the ashes). Just moved hot ashes out of front left corner to do jackets, chops etc covered with foil and the taste was great.

@MakeItMyself just checked Amazon have nice ones in stock thanks. Will check my measurements tomorrow and hopefully buy them.

@FishPie2 we could do that if push came to shove. I would be scared of having the door open though when the fire was on.

I have to admit I'm feeling slightly envious of my neighbours who got a wood burning stove a few years ago. Up to now I have been less than impressed with the wood chopping and smoke related to it.

Now I'm thinking they might have been really smart getting it.

I wonder if companies selling and installing these are doing a roaring trade just now. I mean it is heading into winter anyway so probably normally busy but I wonder if this year orders have gone through the roof?

Don't people keep these basics anyway. Do people go shopping each week for these things! I always have plenty of tinned food,dried goods, herbs, fruit.No, I don't have a big kitchen,it's tiny, open plan at the end of the sitting room, then a door into the conservatory where the store cupboard is.

Well you'd think, apart from the people who have no spare money at all, of course. But so many people say that they buy for the week and having nothing spare.

I was surprised at the beginning of COVID that there were people who would buy a small pack of toilet rolls every week rather than a big pack every month, the same for canned goods. One tin of tomatoes a week, instead of a multipack once a month. Which is strange, because you can save so much money by buying like that, as well as using special offers.

Chocolate and crisps and nuts would be useful.

Cash, tall candles, matches, batteries, torches, camping stove, power banks, paper with phone numbers written down, cards etc to keep kids entertained with no screens!

Baby wipes for washing yourself

Yes but I have increased my stocks and have also bought tinned fruit which I don’t normally have.

I live in the Caribbean so we’re always stocking up for hurricane season, in case a storm hits.
There are great supplies lists available online that can guide you.

This is not new, but certainly relevant if you have not already watched it.