Prime Hurricane Search

Posted by InformalMajor41815@reddit | preppers | View on Reddit | 22 comments

I have seen a post or two on here about different opportunities on Prime days right now. However, my main focus is hurricane readiness due to living in SE United States. Living through hurricanes and the aftermath before and traveling across the states to help those affected by other storms, I've seen a decent amount of issues arise when people are not prepared.

With this, have any of you seen deals on common power outage items like flashlights, lighters, and those kind of things that would be worth my time? (I do not own where we live, so generators are unfortunately not an option.) Has anyone seen deals on cooking options for when we lose power?
Also, have any of you seen deals on different self defense items? Firearms are a progressive response not necessarily an immediate one depending on the situation.

Everything that I saw so far seems to be 'discounted' from recently raised prices. I know that everyone here is probably far ahead of me on preps, and so, before I go spending money on 'deals' that are a load of s..., I figured I would ask.

And yes, going to the bank to withdraw and store the cash instead is always an option. The amount of people who are shocked when their cards don't work without power and internet still surprises me every time. 🤦🏽‍♂️

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FlashyImprovement5@reddit

Prime days aren't always the best time.

I've been getting most of my preps via r/preppersales.

That and a few websites most people hate.

I made a list a few years ago with all of the alternative ways to cook during a power outage that you might use to do targeted searches.

You can always put stuff in your favorites and wait for sales.

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

I regularly place items there. I just assumed there were things I hadn't thought of yet. Thank you.

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FlashyImprovement5@reddit

I keep a list of items I want on different websites. Then I wait for sales.

Things I have picked up incredibly cheap.

Solo style mini fire pit. I paired this with a cast iron fire grate.

Folding BBQ pit. It disassembles flat and the sides are stainless steel with the sides sliding in to hold it in the X formation with the actual cooking grate clipping on the top. It is for areas where you can't have a fire on the ground. This keeps the fire off the ground and can take smaller pieces of wood.

Fire blankets. I had 2 friends lost their homes this past winter due to kitchen fires. I bought a pack of 4 (I already had 1) so I could have 2 in the kitchen, 1 at my summer outside kitchen and 1 in each vehicle.

Headlamps. I live/work on a farm and I use these daily!

Small solar generator. This thing is really small (550w) but I have already used it several times as a light, to charge my electronics and provide Wi-Fi and to cook a meal for my neighbor during a power outage.

Paracord. We use this on the farm all the time and I keep some in each vehicle.

A metal device to make a tripod for over a fire. Basically a triangle piece with holes where you can put sticks and it has an attached chain to hold a pot over the fire.

Camping fan with 3 removable batteries

Water filters. I got both my Zero water fingers on prime sales. Afaik, my HydroBlu never goes on sale.

Camping hatchet

Multi-tool

Things I am Shopping for this year

I'm planning on buying several wool blankets

I need a new pair of winter boots

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

Headlamps- How in the world do you keep the bugs out of your face when wearing one? I love them and their convenience but hate the swarm of bugs to the light.

Generator- How pricy was your solar generator? I've never thought about a smaller option like this.

Paracord- What do you consider a sale price? I've always just ran to a local store when I needed some.

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FlashyImprovement5@reddit

Get a bug net to put over your face. I live in an area with many birds so we don't have many bugs but I have heard others mention using a mosquito net

My little generator was $89 on a freak Prime sale. Most thought it was never going to arrive but it did. It isn't large but for my laptop, both my phones, the Wi-Fi, my rechargeable lights, it works great. I have a vintage single coil burner that can run as well. Running my old coil burner for an hour took about 50% of its charge but it cooked the soup just fine. There are also 12v rice cookers on Amazon that I'm looking at- I've been told by others they work well running on these small generators.

I think the Paracord was around $8 or $9 for 200 ft? Reflective, so I wanted to be able to see it at night.

They run sales at a place I saw earlier this year that is all cut ends. For those who tie knots. Some can be 20ft and some 2ft. But you had to buy in excess of $40 to get a huge bundle, different colors and different strengths. Maybe someone in the group remembers the name of the place. It was a good deal but I didn't have that much money or a place to store that much Paracord. And the farm doesn't need that much either.

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nakedonmygoat@reddit

I have no idea how many of the following are on sale or if the sale is even a good deal, but I've been through three hurricanes. I will assume you already have some power banks and a weather radio.

Get a power station. You can charge it up ahead of a storm. Do some research to determine what you'll need for what you want power for.
A single-burner camp stove and a couple cans of butane will be sufficient to heat food or boil water for freeze-dried food.
If you only want to boil water for drinkability, get a LifeStraw and/or a camp water filter.
For light, if you're staying home, buy rechargeable LED light bulbs. You use them like ordinary light bulbs, but when the power goes out, they keep working.
I have a rechargeable LED lantern and a couple of rechargeable LED lights that stick to my fridge so there's light in my kitchen. They're motion-sensitive too, which saves power. They would be useful in a bathroom if you have brackets for one.
If you have pets or kids, get glow sticks, not candles.
If you don't have screens on your windows, get some mosquito netting.
Buy some battery-powered fans and extra batteries. I like the O2Cool 10" ones. I sent some to my father a few years ago and a power outage due to a cable issue caused him to be without power for a week. He called to thank me for those fans because they saved him from having to check into a hotel.
Get some chemical cold packs. Drug stores should have them. They're with the injury care products.
You might also want to consider a 12v car fridge.

While I understand your concerns about perhaps needing a firearm, if you aren't trained on how to use it, you're more likely to find it a liability than a benefit. Also, as I stated at the beginning of this post, I've been through three hurricanes and no one turned into raiding savages. Same for the many floods I've been through and the other random outages caused by other crap.

If a gun will make you feel safer, fine. But train with it. For purely home defense, I'm a fan of the shotgun. And before anyone calls me out on this, one of my best friends is a certified gunsmith and a firearms trainer for a gun club, and he agrees with me that this is optimal for minimal training home defense. A shotgun is easy to get, and just the sound of racking a shotgun is often enough to scare someone off, although if you're not willing to fire it and possibly take a life, don't bother with a gun in the first place.

With a shotgun your aim doesn't have to be perfect to inflict enough damage to stop someone. Expecting to have expert aim in panic mode is a bit delusional without years of training, and I don't just mean paper targets at a gun range. In a true shtf scenario, you won't be dealing with someone just standing there, so ask yourself what your best chance of success will be, given the amount of time you can devote to gaining expertise.

But honestly OP, in natural disasters it's far more common for people to help each other than hurt each other.

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

Your list and response is extremely helpful! Thank you.
Regarding firearms, I have trained with them since youth and carry daily both for work and while off the clock. Your concerns and recommendations are spot on though. It is always reassuring to see others discussing proper techniques and care. Keep it up! Referencing your last comment, I fully agree. However, living through Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath, I was awakened to those of the area who were more interested in benefiting only themselves regardless of how badly it hurt others. It may be more common, but the other side isn't impossible. Thank you again for your assistance.

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TheSensiblePrepper@reddit

I would recommend you check my post about preparing for a Power Outage. Though it wasn't specifically meant for Prime Day Discounts, several of the items might be discounted today.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask me.

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

Even the items you listed here are more expensive right now. 😆

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TheSensiblePrepper@reddit

I have no control over that.

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demwoodz@reddit

Not with that attitude you don’t! /s

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

Of course. It only goes to show how 'sales' attend always as they seem.

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

Thank you very much!

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TheSensiblePrepper@reddit

Happy to help.

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mediocre_remnants@reddit

For cooking, look into the dual-burner Coleman camp stove. I use one... at my camp. And it came in very handy in the afermath of Helene when we were without power and water for 11 days. Stock up on 1lb cylinders, or just get a 20lb cylinder and the required adapter.

But you can also sometimes find these for super cheap at thrift shops so check their first. Honestly, Amazon is really the last place you should check when trying to save money, even during Prime Day.

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PeanyButter@reddit

I see you're a fellow prepper in Asheville, are there any good groups for amateur radio/preppers at all? I was going to PM you but it looks like you have it disabled to combat spam.

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

These are great recommendations. Thank you

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SheistyPenguin@reddit

Most of the big-name portable power stations are 30-35% of at Amazon: Jacket, Ecoflow, Bluetti etc. But I think they go on sale every summer around Prime day (week?), so it's not the most exclusive thing in the world.

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InformalMajor41815@reddit (OP)

This looks great! Thank you

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