Couponing For Disaster And Survival

Disaster can strike at anytime and come from a variety of sources.  We all know that preparing in the present can save us in the future.   Knowing how to use coupons can help you create a stock of non-perishable emergency food and other household goods that can enable your family to weather the tough times that can follow in the wake of a disaster.

In the 1950's America prepared for "the bomb" and it wasn't unusual to run across someone who had a few month's worth of canned goods and dry milk stocked up just in case.  In today's world we tend not to worry too much about most things and always assume that no matter what, things just won't get that bad.  Even as I write this there are thousands of people recovering from the tsunami in Japan who probably thought much the same thing.  In the days and weeks that followed the tsunami there were real concerns about getting food and supplies to people in areas that were cut off, that does not have to happen to you. 

If you look at the FEMA website they recommend having a three day supply of food and water, but if you look at how disasters really go down like they did in Katrina, three days is probably short of what you should have on hand.  Once again lets consider the current crisis in Japan, a country that had a much better emergency system in place than FEMA ever even thought of putting in place; those folks went short of supplies in days and people were still stranded and cut off from easy reach of rescue for nearly two weeks. 

Using Coupons Will Create Surplus

Just by using coupons to save money on a regular basis you will find that you have a surplus of a good number of things.  If you take a few of the non-perishable foods and other supplies and stow them in a sealed container here and there you are gradually moving toward assembling a food locker that can sustain you for days, weeks and in some cases months.  The best part is that you are not spending extra money to build your food locker, you are saving more money than you would have if you were still buying groceries and paying full price like everyone else!

Keep Your Eye Out For Stuff That Counts In An Emergency

Not all of the things that you can use a coupon on are things that you will need or can even store for an emergency but many of them are.  Here is a short list of things that every survival oriented person will recommend that you have, please bear in mind that this is not necessarily all that you need but it is a list of things that you will commonly find coupons for right here on Coupon Flea Market.

  1. Bottled Water - This is a no brainer.  FEMA recommends that a person drink about a half gallon of water per day depending on their size and climate.
  2. Canned Food - Once again a no brainer.  Look for coupons for canned items that do not need much or any preparation. 
  3. Dried Foods - Not all dried foods are worth storing for emergency.  Water being precious in a disaster, you may not want to place things that require a lot of water to cook!  Chips, granola bars, cereals, dried fruits and the like are all non-perishable foods that you don't need water to prepare.
  4. Toothbrushes
  5. Toothpaste
  6. Soap
  7. Bandages - Look for variety packs.
  8. Toilet Paper
  9. Razors
  10. Deoderant - not a survival necessity but certainly goes a long way toward making cramped qaurters more pleasant and keeping up moral.  If you have space available, a little deoderant is good.
  11. Antiseptics - Alcohol, Hydrogen peroxide
  12. Ointments - Neosporin, Bactine and other ointments for treating wounds and burns
  13. Pain Relievers - Tylenol, Advil and other household pain relievers have a place in any emergency kit.
  14. Batteries - AA, AAA and 9V batteries operate most of our modern electronics.  For disaster situations go alkaline... rechargeables not so much
  15. Pet Food - If you have a pet then they need to eat something too.  Consider the pet in your water supply as well.  Sure dogs can drink all sorts of stuff that would probably do you in but there could be serious contamination after a disaster and even dogs have a limit.
  16. Diapers
  17. Baby Food
  18. Baby Formula

Save A Neighbor, Save Yourself

One of the most wonderful things that I have seen come out of the Japanese disaster is the incredible spirit of good will toward neighbors.  Families are helping one another when and if they can.  With the huge surplus that couponing can help you to accumulate you may be in a position to help others in need if your own needs are not so severe.  The houses just down the street could be flattened while your own is just fine, their needs could be extreme while you may need little or nothing, if that's the case why not help out!  Also food becomes extremely valuable in a crsis, someone may not be willing to give you a can of case for $100.00 but they may well take a case of canned corn in trade!

Rotate Your Stock

One of the important things to remember is to keep refreshing your cache of supplies. Yes canned foods and dried foods last a long time but they don't last forever.  Cans can rust, packaging degrades so when you bring new stuff into your home go ahead and rotate out older items from your emergency store and consume them today.  If packaging has become compromised dispose of the item!

Store Items Safely

You don't want to store your vital emergency supplies on the floor. Place items on raised shelves in case of flooding!  While most of the food and sundries that you will be able to stock up on will cost you little or nothing it owuld not hurt to take some of that savings and invest in sturdy, water tight containers.  If you have to move containers make it easier to grab and go as well as keeping your supplies safe from water damage and other contamination!

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