new to stockpiling...need help

[ttistin]

I have never had a stockpile, Never really thought about it before finding this site. We are moving into a new house tomorrow and it has plenty of room for stockpiling things. I was wondering where to even begin.

I know that to only buy things on sale, and only buy things we will use. I also know that it is better to buy staples...like flour, sugar, bread flour etc...

Now I was wondering about how much I should have on hand of each?

I also was wondering about toilet paper, paper towels etc...

I am wanting to have at least 3 months on hand. Any help you guys could give me would be great.

[frugalfranny]

Part of it depends on how many are using the products. Do you have a freezer? How much room is in the freezer? You stated that you had plenty of storage, but will it handle large packages of TP, tissues, baggies, along with canned goods/boxed goods?

If I feel I can afford it, I buy toilet paper, paper towels, etc. (baggies..if you use them, napkins, etc) whenever they are on a 'good' sale. Good being 'the cheapest I have seen them in awhile'....This stuff is great to buy when you can save money as it doesn't go bad. Other things you will learn as you go along, according to how much you use. I don't buy much 'boxed food' as I don't use it that often.......that said, I do keep three to four boxes on hand for those 'quicky needs.'

You kind of have to sit down and think through 'your system'......what do you use the most of? and stockpile that first.....then what will keep the longest or forever? and watch for good sales on those as money permits.
I also don't eat that much meat......or it doesn't take that much for me.......so I don't have to concentrate on that part too much either. What sort of needs do you have that are 'out of the ordinary' for the holidays (nuts for baking? spices?) and watch for sales on those items. Also watch for coupons on the things that you use, this helps the $.

I have been doing it for so long that it is just 'second nature' to me and hadn't given much thought to explaining it until I joined FV. Am sure you will get some good advice from others.......

[Grainlady]

-Some people set aside a certain amount of their grocery budget (say $5-$10) and use it specifically for stockpiling. Lets say you find a bargain on canned tuna. You purchase as many as you can fit into that $5 budget amount.

-Keep in mind seasonal "specials".

* If you don't bake much in the spring/summer months, you may want to use those stock-up $$$ for flour and other baking ingredients when they go on sale close to the holidays.

* I wait until after the holidays and stock-up on nuts when new-crop nuts are half-price.

* New-crop apples will soon be appearing in the stores. When they are on sale I buy as much as my budget will allow and dehydrate them. I also find free-for-the-picking fruit and dehydrate it, as well garden produce.

* Back-to-School sales are here. I look for coupons for "soft" Kleenex/Puffs and wait for a good sale on them this time of the year, and get a few boxes to have during cold/flu season. I normally use Clarissa brand tissue from Aldi, but those easy-on-the-nose brands are a blessing if you have a cold and are generally a good bargain this time of the year.

I also restock my 72-hour Emergency Kit this time of the year. It includes foods that don't require heating or refrigeration, usually in single-servings, which seem to be on sale during Back-to-School for lunch-box foods.

-How many do you REALLY use? We typically use one 16-oz. jar of peanut butter each month. Knowing that number will help me judge how many I can reasonably keep in storage. On-sale peanut butter is also nortorious for having use-by dates that are typically in the near future, so check those dates. I keep track of my inventory of PB (and other foods) and the farthest-out use-by date in my Price Book to know if or how many jars I can buy the next time there's a sale.

If you aren't familiar with a Price Book, here's some information that may be helpful. http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/20...food-spending/

Using a Price Book helps me to track the going price for foods I frequently purchase.

- I purchase ALL food from my $50/week food budget because that is the first and best way to save on food purchases. I don't spend extra or "borrow" from next month, just because something is on sale. There's a sale on something EVERY week... I've developed a large amount of food in storage from that budgeted amount of money. I generally don't spend all the budget amount each week because I'm generally only purchasing things that are on special/clearance/reduced that will replace items I've used from storage.

For instance, this week I have $31.21 left. As that leftover money accumulates (I keep it in my Price Book along with my running list of what I need to buy and my coupons), I'll make large purchases. I purchased 100# of wheat in June ($43). I have already purchased a years worth of a whey-based milk substitute we use (Morning Moo's - www.moosmilk.com OR www.bluechipgroup.net). By October, I'll have enough "extra" money in the food budget to make a large purchase of grass-fed beef from a friend, to put in the freezer. I don't spend very much money from the food budget while the garden is in full swing, so I always know those leftover $$$ will go for beef.

-Be sure to stockpile a wide variety of foods from all the food groups (fruit/vegetables/dairy/grains/meat and meat alternatives). It's better to have 2-3-months of a wide variety of foods rather than to have a year's worth of rice on hand.



I never purchase a large number of items with the same use-by date. Can you realistically use 24-cans of tomato sauce before Feb. 2010? I tend to purchase in ones or twos. If you have a large family to feed, your numbers will be entirely different than mine, which are for 2 adults.

[Jakk]

Its second nature to me also. Here is what I suggest to friends that ask me how to get started..

First, recognize that you will feel overwhelmed at first. Its natural to feel this way if you have not grown up with food storage being a way of life.

2. Figure out WHY you want to start a food storage system in your home. Emergencies? Saving money? Loss of employment? All of the above?

3. Figure out what TYPE of food storage you want to have. Do you want long term storage or do you want to have a large "pantry" stocked with several of each items or both?

4. Keep a list of items that you use each week. This will give you an idea of how much you need for 3 months. OR, write out a sample food plan for a month, then triple what you need. This will give you an idea of the amount that you need. Write out every ingredient for each day, including salt, corn starch etc.

5. Make a budget. Figure out how much you can spend on items dedicated to your food storage from each paycheck.

6. Make a master list of those items and keep it with you. When you go shopping, buy X number of one item on your list. OR, pick up one extra of 5different items. After a while of shopping you will be able to see which way works best for you. For me, I started by buying different items, now I am at the point where I only get 5 items per trip, but I might buy 10 of each item.

7. Sit back and watch your food storage build! It takes time, you cannot get 3 months of food in your house overnight (unless of course you can afford to do so). But it will add up. Every can, every box adds to your security.

8. Where are you going to store all your stuff? 3 months of stuff might not be too hard but .. once you get the "storage sickness" you are going to be looking at 6 months.. then a year. That much toilet paper takes up a LOT of room. Trust me, if TP had a nutritional value my family would be able to survive for year off it!

I have had to keep my kids out the pantries. They seem to think just because I have three cases of pudding that means they can help themselves at any time. That is one way to deplete your storage in a hurry.

Btw, I do not like the word stockpile. I grew up with food stored, not stockpiled. To me it sounds too close to the word hoarding, which food storage is NOT.

[Debbie-cat]

Here is some good reading to start up.

http://coffeeteabooksandme.blogspot....-stock-up.html

and part II

http://coffeeteabooksandme.blogspot....ock-up_31.html

Hope this helps a little.

[LastDragonfly]

I use this site:

http://www.trackmyfoodstorage.com/default.aspx

you can plug your information in and it will tell you how much you need.

[Cricketlegs]

I just spend $150 a month on my stockpile and $150 on groceries. After a while the groceries you buy end up in the stockpile and the stockpile gets so big that you just always have food but if you keep spending your budgeted amount you will always have an excellent store of food.

I don't just buy things on sale. I shop for a years stockpile so if I need to get up my quota I just buy the best deal on the item every month so my dates are staggered and my count is right.

For me it is about putting up a good amount of money each month, watching the sales, and just BUYING what I need. $150 a month makes for a large pile of food.

[ttistin]

Thanks for the reply's and advise everyone. Just some information, we are a family of 5. My husband, two boys (10 and 9) and a girl (7) The 10 can eat lol We just moved into a house. It has plenty of storage and it has an extra room down in the basement that will not be used for anything, so I am thinking of getting some shelving and using it for extra supplies. We also have an upright freezer.

I would really like to do this for a few reasons, save money is the main one lol Also living up in NY you never know how the weather is going to be so we may be snowed in for a few days. Plus the way jobs are now you never know what may happen down the road.