So, slowly I’m transforming into one of those quixotic and sometimes slightly weird SHTF-doomsday guys, right? Well, no. Not really.

I just want to be reasonably prepared for the mishaps of life and I like to have a backup for my wife and me if things go down the drain for a couple of days. At the end of the day it is (without overdoing it) not much more than what was ordinary household management for my gradmother’s generation back in their time: A little stockpiling, a little preparation and some common sense of not relying entirely on the everyday civilizational amenities.

Even the german government (!) recommends some disaster precautions (Frankly, I think they’re talking shit – hoarding bananas is not the first thing on my mind when thinking about disaster preparation…). Anyway, here’s what I think is useful and unexcitedly reasonable for two people in a calculated 72 hours of utter darknesssss:

Equipment:

  • Battery-Radio
  • Flashlight
  • Spare Batteries for everything, possibly a Solar Charger for Cellphones etc.
  • Stove + Fuel
  • Basic Cookware and Cutlery
  • Sturdy Knife, Multitool and Sharpener
  • Several Lighters
  • Pen & Paper
  • Candles, Gas Lamp
  • Rope or Cord, Zip-Ties, Wire

Food:

  • 4 Servings of Canned Food per Person
  • 2 Servings of Noodles, Dried Mashed Potatoes, Rice each
  • Matching amount of Seasonings for the above Items
  • Instant Coffee, Teabags and Beverage Powder
  • Salt, Pepper, Sugar
  • Cooking Oil

First Aid and Sanitation:

  • Soap/Shower-Gel
  • Dish Soap
  • Dental Care Stuff
  • Enough Toilet Paper to fill a Jawa™ Sandcrawler
  • Hand Sanitizer
  • Tampons
  • (Water Filter or Sanitizing Tabs)
  • Basic First Aid Kit (more on this here)

Tools of the Trade:

  • Sleeping Bags/Blankets
  • 2 5-l Water Containers
  • One set of warm Clothes for changing
  • (Firewood)
  • (Power Unit)

 

That should really easily do everything the government and, much more important, common sense recommends and all of this easily fits into one shelf of my cellar storage. It’s easily expandable and adjustable. And to make it even more convenient for my thousands of devoted and frequent readers out there, I’ve also made a 72-hours-bug-in-checklist for downloading! 

Read some more thoughts on the topic of prepping if you like.