In 10 Preparedness Items You Should Be Buying Every Month, I focused on items you needed to have on hand now just in case something happened. It is a pretty great list and I was very happy with the list. However, you all had some great suggestions in the comments about what else you felt people needed to buy.

Thank you for your ideas! I actually read them and came up with a secondary list for the first list. I added some of my own because these are things I pick up on a regular basis. I try once a month depending on my budget and how many I have already in stock.

Just like the first list, these are items I think every prepper should have on hand. These are items you should never be low on. We still need to have stuff on hand when SHTF happens.

10 More Preparedness Items You Should Be Buying Every Month

1. Toothbrushes and Toothpaste: Your oral health can really impact your overall health. Having good teeth means you can eat whatever you want without having to worry about how hard something is to chew. In addition to toothbrushes and toothpaste, I would get floss and mouthwash. I also keep a dental cleaning kit on hand.

2. Feminine hygiene products: Whether you use pads, tampons, or menstrual cups, these are important to have on hand. If you have wives, daughters, sisters, mothers, girlfriends, friends, aunts, and/or cousins who may be staying with you when something happens, you need to have this stuff on hand. I would also stock up on liners, douches, and wipes to stay clean and healthy.

3. Fire starting materials: I buy lighters every time I go to the dollar store. I keep the waterproof, long stick, and regular matches on hand. I have a magnesium starter and a flint in my preps too. You will have to light candles and lanterns, burn trash, have an outdoor fire for warmth, an indoor fire if you have a wood stove or fireplace, light torches, and anything else you will need a flame for. I keep a myriad of different devices for starting a fire in case of moisture or a faulty lighter.

4. Fuel: We have gas cans we use for the mowers. We have propane cylinders for the camp stove, grill, and heaters. Keep these full at all times. If you worry about how long the gas will last, buy the premium gas and/or use Sta-bil in the gas cans to prolong the life of the gas. Propane and butane will last indefinitely as long as the containers do not leak. I would also stock up on more of the one-pound propane cylinders and replacement hoses/regulators. If you can find gas cans and propane cylinders for free or dirt cheap, I would pick them up and keep them full. These are things you don’t want to run out of!

5. Batteries: In all sizes and shapes. You need to think outside of the AA and AAA box too (although not too far – you will need plenty of those too!). You will want C and D batteries. You will want 9-volt batteries since that is what a lot of the smoke detectors take. You may want replacement batteries for watches. You may also want to think about batteries for mowers, tools, flashlights, vehicles, and whatever else you have on hand. I would recommend getting rechargeable batteries and a solar-powered charger, but get whatever you can that fits your budget.

6. Tools, fasteners, glue, and tape: One of these, every month. Good hand tools will make a fix-it or building job go a lot easier. Screws, nails, and whatnot are always needed. Glue and tape will always be needed. I keep wood glue, regular glue, crazy (quick drying) glue, and craft glue on hand for repair jobs. I keep almost every variety of tape you can imagine on hand. I don’t think you can have too much tape or glue on hand! Repair jobs will be easier if you keep these things on hand!

7. Material (Fabric) Goods: Stay on top of your family’s and your clothing needs. Anticipate what they might need and buy them in good quality at garage sales and thrift shops. I frequently would buy 1-2 sizes ahead of my kids’ clothes when they were little so I wasn’t caught unaware. I still buy heavy blankets and quilts for the beds and any guests we might have. I keep a good stash of towels, dishcloths, and rags for personal use and cleaning.

8. Paper products: I know I covered toilet paper in the previous post, but I think it is important to have a good stash. I also like to buy paper plates and bowls, napkins, plastic silverware, paper towels, and paper shop towels (blue kind). I know it is not environmentally friendly, but if the power is out, it would save on water to use these things. You can burn most of it when you are done using them.

9. Trash bags. Trash bags have so many uses besides holding trash. They can be used to line buckets for emergency toilets. They can used to keep you and valuable items dry. They can used to cover broken windows or to black out windows. I get the small kitchen, 13-gallon kitchen, 33-gallon black, contractors’ heavy black, and lawn and leaf trash bags.

10. Pet food and extra cat litter. Most of us have pets or animals in some form. If you don’t, someone who is bugging out to your house might have pets. Some abandoned pets might find their way to your property. I have pets. I like to keep canned food on hand because it lasts longer. I do keep dry food on hand too, but we keep that in metal trash cans and/or five-gallon buckets with lids. Canned food will last longer than dry food unless you put the dry food in mylar bags. We also keep extra treats and a bag of cat litter too.

What else would you add to this list?

Thanks for reading,
Erica

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