Creating A Preparation Budget

Ask yourself this: Can you devote $20 per paycheck toward preparation?

If so, then you can accumulate a respectable supply, over the course of several months.

The key to preparation is to start accumulating early, little by little.

For illustrative purposes, I'm going to propose a $20 per paycheck purchasing plan:

Payday #1: Buy supplies: See the Basic Supplies post. Buy 1 or 2 plastic totes.

Payday #2: Buy 4-5 cans of food (see Canned Food) and a 2-gallon jug of water (see Water Storage). Buy a box of black garbage bags (explained in the water storage post).

Payday #3: Buy a 2-3 gallon fuel container and fill it with gasoline.

Payday #4: Buy 4-5 cans of food and a 2-gallon jug of water. Buy a roll of heavy-duty plastic.

Payday #5: Buy a hand-crank flashlight/radio.

Payday #6: Buy 4-5 cans of food and a 2-gallon jug of water. Buy 3-4 gallons of bleach.

And so forth.

In 6 months, you'll have a decent store of emergency supplies built up.

If you can devote $30 per payday, you can do even more!