Stockpiling

[shengmei]

Since I have five cats, I DEFINITELY stockpile cat food.

[joeswife]

my exh wouldnt work when we were married. so i didnt always have enough food for the kids to have good meals thru the month. so now i dont feel happy and secure without haveing a good stock of food for us. i have 3 kids, my self and dh. i also have 2 full deep freezers, a full pantry and a full set of shelves in my laundry room. we live in the country and even tho i have a 4x4, sometimes im worried in the winter that we wont be able to get out and get food. plus i live only 100 feet from my parents. my father cant get out well in the winter,and my mom is a long haul truck driver. so in the winter, i usually make sure to feed my dad. either way..i try to keep about a 6 month supply of food in my kitchen, just in case.

[Gailete]

There is just two of us also, but I stockpile what I can. I ignore expiration dates on some products and have never had a problem. I love knowing I have food in the house at all times. I'm disabled with arthritis and never know when I will flare-up and as flare-ups can last several days at a time, I can't ever let the groceries go down to nothing for fear I will get sick and not be able to get out for while. We also only have one vehicle, so I can't just jump in the car to go get something if we run out. We live in an area with blizzards and lots of snow so even more days in the winter that I can't get out.

Because of our frugal lifestyle anyhow there are only specific things I stockpile, and that's the stuff we use. I buy shampoo every 3-4 years when it goes down to my price (this year I finally broke down and bought it at 69 cents a bottle--usually almost $2). I stockpile only the brands of soap that we use, detergent, canned gods, generic tylenol, toothpaste, etc. I used to (years ago) stockpile any kind of brand or anything I could find cheap, but that ends up being a waste in the end. Toilet paper I buy by the case--don't ever want to run out of that!

I am looking forward to a 4'x8' pantry that I will have in our new home when it is finished.

[esmeralda]

Yes, we stockpile. I come from a long line of stockpilers. I track prices in the pricebook and when something is on sale for the lowest price I've seen in a while, we load up. But only on things that are non-perishable and that we use. Last weekend I found cat littler for $.21 per lb. We bought four 30 lb pails. And the pails can be used for lots of things like cleaning and storing after we use the litter.

we are now at the point where most of our extra storage space is full and we dont really need a lot more. Now the fun is in finding the things we use at the absolutely lowest price possible. It becomes a game after a while.

[meaghanchan]

I don't drive, so stockpiling's difficult. It's hard to carry 30 cans of something 10 minutes to the subway, 40 minutes on the subway (if you can't get a seat) and then 10 minutes home. If something's at a good price (and isn't too heavy) I'll buy a couple extras. But if it's too much for me to carry home... it's not going to happen, no matter how good the price is.

[mom-from-missouri]

When you stockpile, don't forget to use "wasted spaces" such as under your bed. (a friend of mine keeps soup in her suitcase under the bed, and paper towels in her clothes dryer, since she has not used the dryer in over a year), an unused camper,... Above a garage door might be a good place to keep lighter items, such as TP, depending on how your garage door is mounted.
Also, remember to cycle thru it, watching dates. Medications and such, also have exp dates and need to be kept out of the moisture/heat. Also make sure items in cardboard boxes or thin plastic are kept in a bug free/mouse free area. Remember that mothballs repel buts, but also melt plastic and will ruin food.
Be careful in stockpiling flamable items--such as TP and papergoods. Don't store them next to the furnace or hot water heater.

[pschale]

I grew up stockpiling everything - my mom was the biggest pennypincher I have ever seen. She got us thru some bad times when Daddy wasn't getting to work because of all the stuff she had stockpiled.

Originally Posted by zacsmum

Thanks Jesse, i wil look at that.
Basically what cicy33 and princessperky are telling me is if i do stockpile, to be smart and not overdo it. I should have mentioned that we will be living in a two bedroom unit and won't have a whole lot of space for storage so we might stockpile a range of different things but not a lot of each item for lack of space. You guys have given me a lot to consider so thanks for that. Does anyone have any good experiences with stockpiling?

I live in a dinky studio apartment and dont have a lot of xtra room for storing stuff. So I get creative. Cases of canned food can be stored under a bed, or in a closet. NOt all food has to be stored n th ekitchen. Think of all those emptyh spaces -- that extra shelf int eh closet, that small space behind and under your sof, that extra dresser drawer... Anyplace can be used to store extra inventory of food and whatever you stockile....

[ScottO]

Sometimes it's hard to stockpile if you have kids.

I used to stockpile things that were on sale but lately my 15 year old soon see's his a stockpile of his favorite food item and will go through it in days.

In his mind he sees an unlimited supply and thinks nothing of eating two or three times the amount he would normally eat.

We then also lose money because he will be full at dinner time and we will generally throw out his untouched dinner.

Originally Posted by ScottO

Sometimes it's hard to stockpile if you have kids.

I used to stockpile things that were on sale but lately my 15 year old soon see's his a stockpile of his favorite food item and will go through it in days.

In his mind he sees an unlimited supply and thinks nothing of eating two or three times the amount he would normally eat.

We then also lose money because he will be full at dinner time and we will generally throw out his untouched dinner.

Maybe stockpile and store that particular item in YOUR locked closet?? If it is nonperishable that is.... Or store all but one or two containers of it in your locked closet so he doesn tthink ther eis as much as there really is????

[Tree0164]

Make sure you are also using a pricebook and getting the lowest price.

Yesterday my local market had a good deal. Canned veggies 3/$1.00 and Spaghetti sauce 89cents for 26oz. Those were good deals and the lowest I know I can get for the price.I bought 15 canned of veggies. and 6 of the spaghetti sauce.

[Snoopy2645]

I stockpile all HBA products I can usually get them free with coupons such as soap, toothpaste, & shampoos & diapers if I can find them super cheap & dishwasher soap too always get that for free & have it stockpiled.

As for food we do have a small stockpile but I usually dont get good deals on any foods except meat we get that from dh's work really really cheap but we buy it in bulk so we always have that in case anything happens we can live on that for a little while.

[cicy33]

Originally Posted by ScottO

Sometimes it's hard to stockpile if you have kids.

I used to stockpile things that were on sale but lately my 15 year old soon see's his a stockpile of his favorite food item and will go through it in days.

In his mind he sees an unlimited supply and thinks nothing of eating two or three times the amount he would normally eat.

We then also lose money because he will be full at dinner time and we will generally throw out his untouched dinner.

Tell him no snacks before dinner. I know that is silly to say with a 15 year old but apparently he lacks the self control. I understand completely. I have four little ones and if I don't keep a tight rein on the snacks they will never eat a meal and nothing irritates me more than a child that will not eat for no good reason. Especially when I have spent MY valuable time and money cooking. My dh is starting to understand that a little better. Generally the only snack we keep on hand is tostitos. which they love with salsa.

[pschale]

I have a large pantry but I also have a large walk in closet and since I don't need all the space in it for clothes I use it to stockpile in. I keep a year's supply of the basics, flour, cornmeal, rice, beans etc.

[dealsaver]

I stockpile bottled water. You never know when you might need it.

[mountainmist]

Originally Posted by dealsaver

I stockpile bottled water. You never know when you might need it.

We have a supply of water, too.

Several years back, US Dept. of Homeland Security and the American Red Cross advised to have 3 days worth of food & water on hand at all times in case of emergency.

But last year, as the avian flu was hitting more and more human beings, when experts were interviewed they suddenly started talking about SIX WEEKS SUPPLY OF FOOD & WATER because they are very worried that if there is a serious epidemic that maybe many sectors of modern society will simply shut down.

We have a short term emergency stash of food & water & paper goods, medicines, etc., but we only don't even know a full half dozen other families who at all times have even three days of food & water on hand, as a stockpile, for unforeseen emergencies... very surprising in this day & age of wild weather storms and threat of terrorist attack.

Every thing we have was purchased little bit by little bit over the years, and ONLY when prices were bottom LOW. We rotate everything, but if we ever did have an "overage" I'd quickly donate it, so it didn't go bad before somebody somewhere consumed it. I'd rather have too much, and have to give it away, than to have too little, particularly since we don't know many other people who have ANYTHING extra on hand at all.

[mountainmist]

Originally Posted by dealsaver

I stockpile bottled water. You never know when you might need it.

We have a supply of water, too.

Several years back, US Dept. of Homeland Security and the American Red Cross advised to have 3 days worth of food & water on hand at all times in case of emergency.

But last year, as the avian flu was hitting more and more human beings, when experts were interviewed they suddenly started talking about SIX WEEKS SUPPLY OF FOOD & WATER because they are very worried that if there is a serious epidemic that maybe many sectors of modern society will simply shut down.

We have a short term emergency stash of food & water & paper goods, medicines, etc., but we only don't even know a full half dozen other families who at all times have even three days of food & water on hand, as a stockpile, for unforeseen emergencies... very surprising in this day & age of wild weather storms and threat of terrorist attack.

Every thing we have was purchased little bit by little bit over the years, and ONLY when prices were bottom LOW. We rotate everything, but if we ever did have an "overage" I'd quickly donate it, so it didn't go bad before somebody somewhere consumed it. I'd rather have too much, and have to give it away, than to have too little, particularly since we don't know many other people who have ANYTHING extra on hand at all.

[Broken Arrow]

I stockpile basic staples when there's a sale.

Mostly, that's TP though. One time, I stocked up on cans of Chef Boyardees, because they were on sale, but I eventually got sick of them. I still got two cans left collecting dust. Good til some time in 2007. For now though, it's been a while since I've touched them.

[shelbylovesmelby]

The only things we really stock pile on are clothes & such for the kids. Gotta love rummage sales!

[cschin4]

I think stockpiling is a waste of money. I think it is better to just buy what you need and use what you buy. Just my opinion.