Cheap Long Term Food Storage: Store Food for Emergencies without Breaking the Bank

As we always say here at Crisis Survivor Tips, prepping doesn’t have to break the bank. There are ways you can prep and still be within budget.

Storing food for emergencies is one of the aspects of prepping that require you to shell out money. But if you do it smart, you can still cut the expenses down significantly. When storing food, one of your problems will be containers. You need the kinds that are airtight and can keep your food safe from rodents and insects. Sometimes, the containers cost more than the food you are storing. This is specially so if you get buckets and #10 cans plus mylar bags, etc. These are all good and can do the job of ensuring your stored foods last as long as possible. But if you can use a cheaper alternative that can do the job just as well, why not give it a try.

You can reuse plastic soda bottles to store your dry foods in, instead of buckets and #10 cans. Using 5 gallon buckets for beans and rice can be expensive, especially if you are going to store a 3 month to 1 year supply of food. When you are prepping for a family of four, it will really cost you a small fortune.

So a good hack to save on money is to buy dry foods in bulk and repack them into soda bottles.

You can use 1L, 1.5L or 2L soda bottles. There used to be 3-liter plastic soda bottles, it was first seen in shelves in 1985 but soda giants Coca Cola and Pepsi discontinued them in around 2005. But if you’re lucky to get 3L size bottles in different soda brands, they will be handy for storing bulkier dry foods.

Soda bottles come cheap and you can find them in trash bins or ask your neighbors for their discarded soda bottles. When you have enough, clean them up thoroughly with hot water. The goal is to remove all soda residues. You should also clean the bottle caps thoroughly.

Let the bottles dry – this can take anywhere from 1 day to almost a week, depending on the heat and humidity where you live.

Once the bottles have dried, you can now get your rice or beans ready as well as bay leaves.  Bay leaves are very important, they can repel and kill all kinds of bugs and their larvae – some bugs can be present in your rice or beans and the bay leaves will take care of them. Place a few of the leaves at the bottom of your soda bottle. Then use a funnel to put your grains or beans inside the bottles.

After filling the bottles with dry food, add a couple of bay leaves again before sealing the bottles tightly. Seal out oxygen completely by dipping the top of the soda bottle in bees wax.

Store the bottles in a cool, dry place.

Rice and beans have a long shelf life if stored properly. Storing items in soda bottles can keep out rodents, insects, and other vermin. You don’t have to worry about mold or rot because the bottles can keep moisture out, and as long as you put them in a cool and dry place, you need not worry. Don’t forget to check them from time to time though to be sure and rotate your food preps.

Using soda bottles in storing food items is easy and cheap. You can save more money by using them instead of buying expensive #10 can or 5 gallon buckets. Using soda bottles can also lead to less spoilage and waste of food.

There are a lot ways on how to store food for emergencies without breaking the bank. All you need is your effort and some simple supplies that you can recycle and reuse in storing your food items.

Do you have cheap food storage tips you can add to this idea? Share them in the comments.