the wirecutter came up with a list of emergency gear...it's focused more towards electricity and keeping your devices running since it's a tech site, but there are a few things that i think might be worth getting...a lot of the items are also a bit expensive, and it is possible to get cheaper things that do the same thing...one good example is a can opener ($16 bucks for victorinox can opener is ridiculous)...you can get a super cheap one for a dollar or less...i have a couple p-38 openers (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-38_can_opener) in my bag along with regular manual ones in the kitchen...
http://thewirecutter.com/2012/10/gear-in-case-of-emergency/
when i was living in an apartment, my idea was to just have about 3 days worth of emergency stuff...being in an apartment, i was limited in the amount of stuff i could store, and since i didn't own the place, i could always just leave...now that i have a house, i have more room, but i'm also stuck here (unless everything is destroyed)...i'm rethinking about what i need to keep around in case of an emergency...the most likely natural disaster would be a large earthquake...the main things that i still need to stock up on are food and water...i bought some canned goods instead of emergency rations, because they were cheaper, and i could eat/replace them once a year (just spam and chili so far...need to get some canned fruit and veggies and maybe a few boxes of cliff bars)...i also need to get a few water containers, and the ones listed in the article seem decent...but i might just clean and reuse my 2 liter soda bottles instead...
the other thing is electricity...i don't want to buy a generator, so a small personal solar power battery pack might be enough to get by...the wire cutter has this product, and i think i saw this at costco too...one problem would be that i wouldn't have any hot water without electricity but i think can get by without that...
solar panels for homes can be used during emergencies if installed to feed electricity directly to the house...however, most installations are done so that the electricity from the solar panels goes directly to the grid, and the electric company "buys" what is produced and credits you...this is easier and cheaper, so i think most homes with solar panels are set up this way...even with the energy rebates, it is not worth it for me to install a solar panel (my electricity bill is pretty low)...a gas generator integrated to your home will cost even more money and regular testing and maintenance would be needed...a small portable generator would be loud (attract a lot of attention) and inconvenient to try to use for household items (long extension cords going outside to the generator)...you would also have to store a decent amount of fuel, and i don't like the idea of storing lots of flammable liquid...for me, being able to power a few devices like phone, flashlight, and radio would be enough...i already have an eton crank powered flashlight/radio/usb charger, but getting another might not hurt...also, another lantern might be good too...some people don't like eton...the one i have seems to work, but i never tried charging anything...
i'll need to get more batteries, and a small propane can stove would be good to have...one last thing might be to get some plywood and nails just in case i need to board up windows if they break during the earthquake...
