Emergency Preparedness Items you Need

When it comes to emergency preparedness, everyone thinks about major disasters – power outages, storms, supply chain shortages… but what about those everyday mini-disasters that happen in your home? The things that might not make you leave your home, but are a major inconvenience! These unusual emergency preparedness items and my mom hacks can make those moments more of a slight hiccup than a mini-disaster.

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We recently had a mini-disaster in our house – the laundry tub (where our washing machine drains) overflowed, and flooded out into the hallway and through the floor into the ceiling of the room below it. It was an awful mess! We got to work immediately cleaning it up, and in the process, I started thinking of the items that we used that kept this from being a major disaster.

These unusual home preparedness items are definitely things I recommend having on-hand, so you can be prepared for any mini-disaster that comes your way!

Unusual Emergency Preparedness Items You Need

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Extra Towels

I know there are minimalists who will cringe reading this, but having extra towels has saved us so many times! Overflowing toilets, leaking dishwasher, and flooded laundry room… if you have kids, you need extra towels.

Solar Battery Charger

Yes, this can be used in a regular power outage, but this little solar batter pack has saved me when my phone charger wouldn’t connect to my phone. I could set my phone on top and charge it, without the cable charger. Other instances we’ve used this charger:

• camping
• on a road trip when we need an extra charger
• staying at relatives’ where there isn’t a convenient charger

Mattress Pads

Even after kids are potty trained, waterproof mattress pads will protect your mattresses from accidents, spills, sickness, etc. These mattress pads are my absolute favorite – they cover the entire mattress, don’t make any crinkly noises, and are waterproof and protective.

But these saddles style mattress pads are the absolute best to have around. You can throw them over a bed when someone is sick or you’re bedsharing. You can put them on your couch when someone has the stomach flu to protect your furniture. We take them on every road trip to put over beds in case of accidents. Plus, they can go OVER the bed sheets, so you don’t need to change the sheets every time someone has an accident or gets sick.

You can also use them in the car – cover seats to protect them from wet swimsuits or muddy clothes from hiking adventures.

Carpet Cleaner and Shop Vac

I didn’t buy either of these new – I found the carpet cleaner on Facebook Marketplace and the Shop Vac came with our house. But we have used these numerous times!

Between these two things, you can clean up just about any messy, wet situation – in your house or the car! If we hadn’t had these in the house, our laundry flood would have been a much bigger disaster than it was. We were able to immediately get to work removing the water and stop it from causing even more damage.

Non-electric Coffee Maker

Now some people might not think this is a disaster, but if I can’t have my coffee… that makes my day a disaster. ;) If the power goes out or there’s a problem with my espresso machine, I can use a stove-top option. I also have used these when camping!

• moka pot
• french press
• pour over (we have a V-60)

These emergency preparedness items obviously wouldn’t be everything you’d need in the case of a major disaster or significant emergency, but they definitely will help you with those semi-disaster moments at home!

Looking for more emergency preparedness items?

If you are interested in more preparedness ideas and tips, check out my preparedness page.