$20 Prep budget..

[2ADMNLOVER]

TP & COFFEE

Along these lines , baby wipes with aloe vera .

They're great for getting clean in the field when a shower / bath isn't practical .

 

[RAMBOCAT]

TP & COFFEE

Those little blue flowers you see growing at almost every interstate exit ramp or along the roadside are CHICORY. if the roots are processed right, they make a great coffee substitute. check for processing and roasting tips on the NET.

 

[shortkd]

This is a great thread thanks!

 

[jbrooks19]

I forgot about this thread!

A little update on how my budget for prep has shifted over the years. I now have 3 little kids and a pregnant wife.

The budget is now $40 a week and alternates weekly.

Week 1..
Baby wipes $5 ( approx 2 packs of them unless on sale)
2 boxes of .223 $12
1 500rd brick of .22LR $20
2 case of water $6
3 cans of soup $7

Week 2...
2 boxes of 9mm $20
2 case of water $6
12 baby food $24

Week 3...
Toilet paper $10
Dawn dish soap $3
2 case of water $6
5 Mountain House meals $30ish

Week 4...
2 case of water $6
Misc storable foods with remaining budget

Now this does change occasionally but I try to stick as close as I can to the above...

 

[JeepHammer]

I have to go with the old stand-bys, canning jars, all kinds of rice, all kinds of beans, oven heat (to kill critters & evacuate moisture) to seal up jars.

Also, can Up salt, sugar, flour, grain meals, pepper corns, etc. all cheap in bulk.
Small containers means your entire stockpile doesn't get contaminated at once, and nothing goes to waste when the container is opened.

Canning jars are cheap, common, and REUSEABLE.

Commercially canned meat. You will need proien of some kind.
Long term pre packaged yeast is a REAL good idea if you don't know how to keep yeast cultures alive long term.

All the guns/ammo in the world don't do you a bit of good if starvation has you so weak you can't fight...
Just like having your food stocks fail and poison you, you can't fight.
Don't kid yourself, nothing is worse than starving...

What about all the 'Free' stuff you walk by every day?
Sugar, salt, pepper, napkins, straws, plastic/styrofoam cups, plastic table wear, etc.
Napkins as 'Snoties', toilet paper, bandages.
For salt/pepper/sugar, canning jars and a pass through the oven to dry & seal.
Cups, table ware, 'To Go' covered plates don't need much other than cleaned & kept clean/dry.

Buy a little extra of what you already use, a well stocked pantry with what you already eat & use is the best policy if you don't home can.
Home canning allows you to replenish your stock, but you will need that salt, sugar, vinegar,
Dry Sodium Chloride is easier to store than bleach and you aren't paying for
water. Try the swimming pool/hot tub supply section.
Chlorine is particularly good for water treatment, and has endless uses for cleaning & sterilization.
Baking soda has been used for centuries as deodorant, tooth paste, cleaning, wound care, etc. And its CHEAP.

Its up to you, what do you use now?

 

[stocknup]

Glad to see this post resurrected ........
Don`t forget Medicines, Medical Supplies , Anti- Diarrhea, .....Staples such as Plastic, Duct tape , rope , wire , nails ,buckets ,lighters, candles , etc. can be quite handy items to have also .
I know you can make your own mouse traps , but I still have several store bought varieties on hand ( Mice could and can ruin a lot of food preps or your paper products if not stored properly )

 

[JeepHammer]

I'm not sure I can 'Live' without coffee, grease, sugar & salt.
I'm well addicted...

When I was younger, I was hyper active, and my grandparents/parents boiled coffee, so it was murky & bitter.
(Some people like their women that way... )
16 years in the Marines I didn't drink lifer juice, Marine coffee was cooked in a WWI pot, with WWII surplus coffee, started in January and ready about August... You put a cup under the spigot and came back a couple hours later to cut off what oozed out.

Now with actually GOOD tasting coffee, and knowing you don't BOIL coffee, and being older and using it for 'Liquid Ambition' I'm solidly addicted.
There is a reason there is about a years worth at any given time in cold storage, it lasts for years when it's sealed up correctly.

 

[10-32]

I had no clue this thread existed lol. I was thinking about starting at $20 budget prepping thread and showing things you can get like a single burner propane stove.

https://www.amazon.com/Stansport-Single-Burner-Propane-Stove/dp/B001EHKQ2A

 

[rhino]

If I were limited to $20 per week and I was intent on stockpiling, I would store water from the tap instead of buying bottled water. I'd also be buying Ramen noodles in bulk to extend other food items in the cache. And I'd be adding jars of peanut butter as often as possible. It's tough to do better than peanut butter for calorie density per dollar, it stores indefinitely (unopened), and everyone (who is sane) likes it.

 

[JeepHammer]

If I were limited to $20 per week and I was intent on stockpiling, I would store water from the tap instead of buying bottled water. I'd also be buying Ramen noodles in bulk to extend other food items in the cache. And I'd be adding jars of peanut butter as often as possible. It's tough to do better than peanut butter for calorie density per dollar, it stores indefinitely (unopened), and everyone (who is sane) likes it.

You forgot to mention what peanut butter does to the digestive tract.
Like in 'Gilligan's Island' they never told you coconut is a natural laxative...
I would suggest fiber tabs or something with high fiber if you plan to eat pressed starch (Ramin) & peanut butter nearly exclusively.

There is a reason I suggest a well stocked pantry of the things you eat now.
Pantry is shelf stable foods, what you eat/drink now keeps you from digestive tract issues from sudden change.
There is going to be plenty of sugar/starch, salt, caffeine & fats (grease) withdrawal without adopting a diet immediately that will cause digestive tract distress.

If it were very long term, consider...

Sugar, the 'Average' American consumes more than 60 pounds a year currently,
Artificial sweeteners are worst since they don't trigger the 'Full' or 'Bloated' feeling real sugar does, making you crave/consume even more.
Simple starches fall into the category of sugars, since finely ground 'White Bread' flour immediately turns to sugars in the digestive tract.

The 'Average' American consumes 70 times the salt they need for survival daily.

Stimulants (predominantly caffeine) will be a crippling withdrawal, some caffeine tablets to ease caffeine withdrawals would be a good idea...

Alcoholics/heavy drinkers will hit withdrawal the quickest, and detoxing is never pretty.

Tobacco users will loose their minds. Few things are worse than tobacco/nicotine withdraw.
Ask any former smoker, they NEVER loose the cravings...

We won't even get into huge range of psychoactive drugs, mood elevators, SSRIs (anti-depressants/mood stabilizers), lithium, and all the underlying disorders are going to be magnified.
Keep in mind that some estimates for the US are almost 50% of Americans are on anti-depressants/mood stabilizers, so many in fact that it's becoming a serious concern in public water systems since it's VERY hard to filter out.

I have my well water tested twice a year, and testing for opiates & psychoactive drugs is now part of standard water testing.
That's a BUNCH of people taking these things that will be cut off cold turkey in less than a month, 30 days worth being the average prescription on hand...
(And people think I'm nuts for sitting on doses of antibiotics!)

Just something to think about with your 'Preps'...

 

[stocknup]

If I were limited to $20 per week and I was intent on stockpiling, I would store water from the tap instead of buying bottled water. I'd also be buying Ramen noodles in bulk to extend other food items in the cache. And I'd be adding jars of peanut butter as often as possible. It's tough to do better than peanut butter for calorie density per dollar, it stores indefinitely (unopened), and everyone (who is sane) likes it.

I agree on storing water from the tap . I have several 7 gallon Aquatainers that I keep in rotation ( you have the initial investment in the containers ) but cheaper in the long run .
I don`t think you can go wrong with Rice and Beans .............You can get 100 lbs rice for about $35 or less . That can last one person over 80 days easily ( if one does the 2000 calorie a day plan )
( and you won`t have to look too hard to find some Peanut Butter in our stashes also )

 

[jbrooks19]

Oh man how this list changed over the years.. I now have 4 kids and that budget and list has changed sooooo much.

Now if i HAD to do a $20 budget it would be the following:

Baby Wipes $1
Case of bottled water $4
box of 9mm (tula) $7
Spaghetti noodles $1
Spaghetti sauce $2
Canned tuna (2 cans $1ea) $2
1 gallon gas $3

I now don't so much buy to prep, I study ways of filtering/purifying water and have been working on hunting skills (although I am not a great hunter)

 

[bdybdall]

In TEOTWAWKI scenarios, most normal game is going to be gone in a short time. Fish traps, conibears, rat traps, and snare material might be good to keep a supply of and you could get a couple of above per week.

 

[regulator1175]

Aldi's has been a great source of canned goods for me. You can go in there with $20 and come out with 5 years worth of veggies. Of course I am exaggerating a bit, but it is cheap enough that we add an extra pallet of veggies (25 cans) and don't notice at the register.

 

[churchmouse]

In TEOTWAWKI scenarios, most normal game is going to be gone in a short time. Fish traps, conibears, rat traps, and snare material might be good to keep a supply of and you could get a couple of above per week.

This. In that same scenario you might be hunted. People are going to eat.

 

[Vigilant]

You could always use .22 to barter with....
M
Also, if you haven't tried it, I enjoy mixing peanut butter into my ramen noodles.

How long were you down?Wowza oops, didn’t read the date.