Preparing for a power outage, severe storm, or longer emergency doesn’t have to mean spending hundreds of dollars at once. You can build a useful supply stash a little at a time, and discount stores can be a good place to find many of the basics.
Dollar Tree carries plenty of inexpensive items that can come in handy during an emergency. Some are obvious, like flashlights and batteries, while others are easy to overlook until you actually need them.
Here are some affordable supplies worth picking up the next time you’re at Dollar Tree.
Flashlights
A flashlight is one of those things you don’t think much about until the lights suddenly go out.
Keep several around the house instead of putting all your trust in one. One can stay in the bedroom, another in the kitchen, and another in an emergency supply bin. Check them from time to time and keep spare batteries nearby.
Having a flashlight within reach is much easier than searching through a dark house for one after a power outage.
Garbage Bags
Garbage bags have plenty of uses beyond taking out the trash.
During an emergency, they can help with cleanup, storing dirty clothing, keeping supplies dry, or containing waste when normal garbage collection isn’t available. Larger bags can also be useful for covering items or handling bigger cleanup jobs.
A few rolls take up very little storage space, so there’s little reason not to keep extras around.
Batteries
A flashlight isn’t much help without working batteries.
Keep batteries in the sizes used by your flashlights, radios, clocks, and other emergency equipment. Store them somewhere cool and dry, and check them periodically so you don’t discover that your entire supply has gone dead when you need it.
Buying a few packs during regular shopping trips can build up a decent reserve without a large expense.
First Aid Supplies
You don’t need an elaborate medical kit to deal with many everyday cuts and minor injuries, but you do need the basics.
Bandages, gauze, medical tape, antiseptic wipes, antibiotic ointment, and disposable gloves are all useful additions to a household first aid kit. Dollar Tree can be a convenient place to pick up some of these inexpensive supplies.
For anything serious, seek professional medical care when it is available.
Over-the-Counter Medication
A small supply of commonly used over-the-counter medicines can be helpful during an emergency, especially if getting to a store becomes difficult.
Depending on your household’s needs, this might include pain relievers, fever reducers, allergy medicine, antacids, or other basic products you already use.
Check expiration dates and follow the directions on the package. Don’t stock medication simply because it’s cheap if nobody in your household has a reason to use it.
Canned Fish and Meat
Canned tuna, chicken, sardines, and other meats can provide an easy source of protein without needing a refrigerator.
They can be eaten straight from the can or added to meals with rice, pasta, beans, vegetables, or whatever else you have available. They’re especially useful during a power outage because they don’t require cooking before eating.
Check cans before storing them and discard any that are leaking, bulging, or badly damaged.
Canned Vegetables
Canned vegetables are an inexpensive way to add variety to an emergency food supply.
Corn, peas, carrots, and green beans can be eaten as side dishes or added to soups, rice, pasta, casseroles, and other meals. They also make it easier to put together a meal when fresh produce isn’t available.
Choose vegetables your household will actually eat. There’s little benefit to filling your pantry with cans that will sit untouched.
Soap
Soap is easy to overlook during emergency planning, but staying clean becomes even more important when regular water service or sanitation systems are disrupted.
Bar soap has the added benefit of lasting a long time and taking up little storage space. Keep a few extra bars in your household supply rather than waiting until you’re down to the last one.
Personal Hygiene Products
Toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, feminine hygiene products, razors, combs, and other personal-care items are worth keeping in reserve.
These aren’t exciting purchases, but running out of basic hygiene supplies during a prolonged emergency can make an already difficult situation much more uncomfortable.
Dollar Tree can be a convenient place to build a small backup supply without spending much.
Candles
Candles can provide backup lighting during a power outage, although they should always be used carefully because they are an open flame.
Keep them in a safe location away from curtains, bedding, children, and pets. Never leave a burning candle unattended.
For everyday emergency lighting, battery-powered or rechargeable lights are usually easier and safer to manage, while candles can serve as an additional backup.
Canning and Fermenting Supplies
If you grow a garden or buy produce in bulk during the harvest season, preserving some of it can help stretch your food supply.
Small jars and containers from Dollar Tree can be useful for certain storage jobs. Just make sure any jar or lid you use for food preservation is appropriate for the specific canning method. Proper canning requires the right equipment and procedures; ordinary storage containers aren’t a substitute for canning jars.
Extra containers can also be useful for storing dry goods, homemade mixes, or other household supplies.
Related: Canning Supplies
Duct Tape
There is a reason duct tape shows up in so many emergency kits. It’s handy for quick fixes around the house, securing loose materials, covering small tears, bundling items, and making temporary repairs.
A roll won’t solve every repair problem, but it can buy you some time until you can make a proper fix.
For jobs that require a strong, long-lasting repair, keep better-quality tape in your toolbox too.
Toilet Paper
The toilet paper shortages of recent years showed just how quickly an ordinary household item can become difficult to find.
Keeping a few extra rolls at home means you won’t have to make a last-minute store run every time you’re running low. Dollar Tree can be a convenient place to add a few packages to your reserve.
Just keep your supply somewhere dry and away from anything that could cause water damage.
Paper Towels
Paper towels are another basic item that disappears quickly when you use them for everyday cleanup.
They’re useful during power outages, storm cleanup, spills, and household messes. If storage space is limited, consider keeping reusable cloths or old towels on hand too. They can handle many cleaning jobs without using up your paper supply.
Aluminum Foil
A roll of aluminum foil can serve plenty of purposes around the house.
You can use it to cover food, wrap items for storage, line certain cooking surfaces, or create temporary barriers. Some people also use foil for emergency cooking projects or window coverings.
It takes up very little room, so keeping an extra roll or two in your supply cabinet is an inexpensive way to give yourself another useful household material.
Rope
Rope is one of those supplies that seems unnecessary until a job comes up that requires it.
It can be used to secure tarps, tie down loose objects, bundle materials, hang items, or make temporary repairs. Paracord is another lightweight option that takes up little room.
Keep some rope with your other household tools so it’s easy to find when you need it.
Related: Basic Homestead Tools
Cleaning Supplies
Keeping your home clean becomes more difficult during an emergency, especially if garbage collection, water service, or regular cleaning routines are interrupted.
Basic cleaners, sponges, scrubbers, gloves, and disinfecting products can help you keep surfaces and living areas sanitary.
You don’t need to buy every cleaning product on the shelf. A few versatile supplies can handle many routine jobs.
Bleach
Plain, unscented household bleach can be useful for certain cleaning and disinfection jobs, but it needs to be handled carefully.
Never mix bleach with ammonia, vinegar, acids, or other household cleaners because dangerous fumes can result. For water treatment, don’t guess at the amount to use. Follow the product label and guidance from a reliable public-health authority, since the correct amount depends on the bleach concentration and the situation.
Bleach also loses strength over time, so check the label and replace older bottles rather than assuming they will work indefinitely.
Matches and Lighters
Matches and lighters give you another way to start a fire if you need one for an appropriate outdoor cooking setup, fireplace, or other approved use.
Keep several fire-starting options stored in a dry place. Waterproof matches can be useful around wet conditions, while ordinary lighters are convenient for everyday tasks.
Store all fire-starting materials safely away from children and anything that could catch fire.
A Few Extra Storage Containers
Small plastic containers and zipper bags may not sound like emergency supplies, but they can become surprisingly useful.
They can hold small hardware, seeds, toiletries, first aid supplies, batteries, or opened packages of dry food. Keeping supplies organized also makes it easier to find what you need when you’re in a hurry.
Dollar Tree often has inexpensive containers in different sizes, making them an easy addition to a growing emergency stash.
Work Gloves
A pair of sturdy work gloves can protect your hands during cleanup, gardening, moving debris, handling firewood, or doing basic repairs.
After a storm or other emergency, there may be broken branches, sharp materials, or rough surfaces around the property. Gloves won’t replace proper protective equipment for dangerous jobs, but they are useful for routine work.
Keep at least one pair with your household tools.
Tarps
A tarp can come in handy for all kinds of temporary jobs. It can cover outdoor equipment, protect firewood from rain, keep supplies dry, or provide temporary protection from the weather.
Choose a size that fits your storage space and consider keeping more than one if you have room. Tarps are inexpensive compared with many of the things they can help protect.
