What to order online
As more people are starting to realize the gravity of the COVID-19 pandemic, it's becoming more difficult to purchase supplies from physical stores. Most items that preppers should have on their shelves are usually sold out, like emergency food kits.
If you're worried about not having enough supplies when things take a turn for the worse, you can order these items online:
- Aloe vera gel (can be used to make DIY hand sanitizer)
- Baby wipes
- Basic first aid kit
- Bidet toilet attachment
- Canned black beans
- Canned peas
- Face masks
- Handheld bidet
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Lighters
- Liquid soap
- Quick clotting gauze
- Reusable menstrual cup
- Toilet paper
- Water filtration straws (e.g., LifeStraws)
- Water purification tablets
- Wild rice in storage buckets
Emergency supplies from other stores
If you're a non-prepper and you still don't have a survival stockpile for a coronavirus lockdown, don't worry. You may need to look for items at several stores, but you can still get prepared for what is still coming.
That said, you may need to settle for alternatives that are subpar in nutrition or quite pricey. If local grocery stores are cleaned out, look for supplies in other locations, such as:
- Discount stores
- Dollar stores
- Hardware stores
- Large pharmacies
- Office supply stores
Below are some alternatives for common survival supplies, from food to cleaning products.
Food
Some suggestions for alternatives to popular food items include:
- Canned food – Look for less popular but still nutritious items, like canned baked beans, canned fish, canned potatoes and canned refried beans.
- Dairy milk or nut milk – Powdered milk.
- Packaged food products (e.g. Hamburger Helper) – Prepare regular pasta or rice, beef or chicken, spices (e.g. Italian spice blend) and half a jar of marinara sauce. To make a creamy dish, use garlic powder, onion powder and cream of mushroom soup.
- Ramen noodles – Buy angel hair pasta, cook as directed, then add garlic powder, onion powder and a bit of soy sauce.
- Rice – Buy smaller bags of rice. While more expensive than getting bigger bags, it's better to spend more than you intended than not have any rice when you need it. Alternatively, you can buy other grains like amaranth, barley or quinoa.
Shelf-stable food
Some shelf-stable food items that would be good to stock include:
- Applesauce
- Granola bars
- Jerky
- Peanut butter
- Pouches of precooked rice (with beans and other vegetables mixed in)
- Pudding
- Veggie chips
Toilet paper alternatives
When all else fails, search for toilet paper at an office supply store or a janitorial warehouse, or you can buy these alternatives:
- Baby wipes or "flushable" wipes. Don't flush baby wipes to avoid backing up your toilet.
- Facial tissues. Avoid facial tissues infused with Vicks.
- Paper towels. You should also avoid flushing paper towels.
Cleaning supplies
If the grocery stores are out, look for cleaning products at a dollar store, the hardware store, or an office supply store.
You can make bleach using pool shock (calcium hypochlorite). Purchase pool shock at your local swimming pool and jacuzzi store, but don't buy products with additions like algaecide.
Entertainment
While you're following stay-at-home orders, you may be able to manage your boredom, but if there are children in your family, they will need a lot of distraction.
Kids will be entertained with new toys and coloring books, and it will help them have a sense of normalcy while everyone's stuck at home for weeks or even months during a lockdown. If you have pets, make sure to buy them treats and toys as well.
Get fiction, prepping and self-help books for the adults. To quell boredom, you can also get a deck of cards and board games for a fun game night.
You may have lots of free time while social distancing, so you might as well try learning a new skill or hobby. Buy craft supplies for knitting or crocheting and exercise your brain muscles to stay busy.
As a prepper, you must be adaptable and creative. Find alternatives for the supplies you need, or buy them in other stores if groceries and supermarkets are out of stock.
Make a list of these alternatives the next time you run out supplies. Organize your survival stockpile and before you know it, you'll be prepared to face this pandemic, as well as other emergencies.
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