Ten SHTF Shelter Essentials

I know I don’t have to tell you how important stocking your SHTF shelter is, since, its contents are what will keep you and your family alive in the days and weeks afterward. There are all the obvious things like food, water, first aid gear and weapons that I’m sure you already have. However, here are ten absolute essentials that you may have overlooked.

Having a variety of safety pins in both small and large is a really good idea. Especially, if you can get your hands on a few of the extra-large military laundry pins or kilt safety pins. There are an endless number of uses for them from medical to structural.

A can opener may seem like a no-brainer, but many folks have forgotten them on camping trips and had to result to trying to open cans with a knife or by banging them against a rock. It really does happen. The P-51 Can Opener is solid stainless steel and completely reliable, which considering most kitchen can openers usually don’t last very long, is what you need to have in your prep.

Believe it or not, a large stock pot is an extremely valuable prep item. Of course, cooking family meals is the obvious use but it’s also a great tool when you need to purify large quantities of water. A stock pot can also be used to wash clothes in, if necessary, or collect rain water for drinking and gather food in when foraging.

A knife sharpener is very important because you can survive SHTF without having knives that are going to stay sharp and usable. I suggest the Ridge Runner Knife Sharpener because it’s designed to keep a sharp edge on both single and double edged knives. Very easy-to-use, it’s made of impact-resistant ABS and the sharpening wheels are super hardened alloyed metal and ceramic. This gives you both fine and coarse sharpening options for a variety of types of blades from scalpel to bowie knife.

Activated charcoal definitely needs to be added to your SHTF shelter’s prep and it can be bought in bulk instead of supplement form. Its variety of uses include water filtration, emergency poison treatment, antidiarrheal, odor and moisture absorbent and an antibacterial for wounds.

A stock of broad spectrum antibiotics that will treat common bacterial and protozoal illnesses including pneumonia, digestive tract infections and respiratory infections is a survival necessity. Since, medical facilities may not be accessible after SHTF, you still need access to the medicine that will save you or a family member’s life.

You need to have, at the very least, a wool blanket for every member of your family. Wool is the only natural fiber which retains its insulating abilities even while wet, keeping you warm and dry, whatever situation, you find yourself or your family in. Invest in wool blankets that are 80 percent or more wool construction for the maximum benefit.

Just good, old household bleach, in large quantities, is an important part of your shelter’s inventory. One of the key ingredients to survival is cleanliness because, as history has proven, dirt breeds disease. You need an effective way to disinfect your living environment and absolutely nothing kills germs like bleach, which also makes a very effective water purifier.

Paracord is one of the most versatile survival tools that you can have. A good, seven-strand cord can be used from its inside strands to its outer casing, giving you endless options. I could probably write an entire book on the many uses of paracord. Not just for tying things down, it can be used as fishing line, shoe laces, part of a leg or arm splint and even dental floss, just to name a few uses.

Aside from the obvious, electrical tape also has tons of uses and is something you shouldn’t forget to add to your SHTF shelter prep. Since it has excellent insulation properties, you can use it to insulate other things and its resilience can provide durability to whatever it’s wrapped around, as well. Tough and flexible, it can be used for repairs, labelling and as a no-slip grip.