# Stockpiling: what a family should store · Dark Grid Prep > Source: https://darkgridprep.cc/stockpiling ## Stockpiling What to stock, how much per person, which corners of an ordinary house hold it, and how to use it up before it goes bad. ### Latest in Stockpiling [ ](/stockpiling/how-much-cash-to-keep-at-home-for-emergency) #### [How much cash to keep at home for an emergency ](/stockpiling/how-much-cash-to-keep-at-home-for-emergency) Size the cash your household needs when ATMs and card readers lose power: a two-week formula, which bills to hold, where to hide them and the insurance limit. 10 Nov 2026 Other sections * [ Threats and scenarios](/threats) * [ Grid-down living](/grid-down) * [ Home defense and security](/home-defense) * [ Bug-out and evacuation](/bug-out) * [ Communications](/communications) * [ Medical when help is delayed](/medical) * [ Family emergency plans](/family-plan) [See all eight on one page](/topics) ### A stockpile is a budget decision Every family that starts prepping hits the same wall: the lists are endless and the money is not. A good stockpile is built in layers, cheapest and most likely-needed first, so that each dollar buys another day of independence. The official starting point is modest. Ready.gov recommends one gallon of water per person per day for several days, a several-day supply of non-perishable food, a radio, flashlights, batteries, a first aid kit and a handful of tools ([build a kit](https://www.ready.gov/kit)). That covers a storm. This section takes you from there to two weeks, then a month, then the deep pantry that carries a household through a collapse. ### The layers #### Water first It is the cheapest prep and the one you die without fastest. We cover containers, how much a household really uses, and treatment for when the stored water runs out. #### Food you already eat A stockpile of food nobody likes gets thrown out. We favor buying extra of the canned and dry staples your kitchen uses now, first in, first out. #### Medicine and hygiene About half of Americans take a prescription medicine every day, by the same federal count. Refills, over-the-counter basics, soap, bleach and trash bags matter as much as food. #### Power, light and fuel Batteries in the sizes your gear uses, lantern fuel, propane and stabilized gasoline, stored safely and cycled through. #### Cash and barter Card readers and ATMs need power. Small bills are part of the stockpile, and our guide to [how much cash to keep at home](/stockpiling/how-much-cash-to-keep-at-home-for-emergency) shows how to size the reserve for your household and where to hide it. ### What we leave to others Gardening, canning and raising food are long-term homestead skills. This section is about buying, storing and cycling supplies for a crisis, and about fitting them into a suburban house or a rural lot without a basement full of mystery buckets. Once the stockpile exists, protect it: see [home defense](/home-defense) on keeping it out of sight. ### Common questions about Stockpiling How much water should I store per person? One gallon per person per day covers drinking and basic sanitation. Fourteen days for four people comes to 56 gallons. What should a beginner stockpile first? Water, a fortnight of food your household already eats, prescriptions, a radio, flashlights and batteries. Add depth after that. How do I keep stockpiled food from expiring? Buy what you eat, put new cans at the back, eat from the front and re-check dates every few months. --- [ ](/) Dark Grid Prep is a survival magazine for American families who want to be ready when the grid, the economy or the supply chain fails: the threats (EMP, long blackouts, collapse, civil unrest), and how a household plans, stockpiles, communicates and secures its home through them. [newsroom@darkgridprep.cc](mailto:newsroom@darkgridprep.cc) ### Prepare * [Threats and scenarios](/threats) * [Grid-down living](/grid-down) * [Stockpiling](/stockpiling) * [Home defense](/home-defense) ### Plan * [Bug-out and evacuation](/bug-out) * [Communications](/communications) * [Medical](/medical) * [Family emergency plans](/family-plan) * [All articles](/articles) * [All topics](/topics) ### About us * [About](/about) * [Authors](/authors) * [Editorial policy](/editorial-policy) * [How we make money](/how-we-make-money) * [Contact](/contact) * [Terms](/terms) * [Privacy](/privacy) © Dark Grid Prep. Written for American families getting ready for grid-down emergencies. Some links may earn us a commission. It never decides what we write. [How we make money](/how-we-make-money)