Emergency Kit Calculator
| Household | Water (3d) | Meals (3d) | 3-day kit band |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | 3 gal | 9 | $87 - $210 |
| 2 people | 6 gal | 18 | $114 - $270 |
| 4 people | 12 gal | 36 | $168 - $390 |
| 6 people | 18 gal | 54 | $222 - $510 |
Ready.gov's Build A Kit list is the skeleton: water - one gallon per person per day for several days - food, a battery-powered or hand-crank NOAA weather radio, flashlight, first-aid kit, whistle, dust masks, moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic sheeting, a wrench or pliers, a manual can opener, local maps, and phone chargers or a backup battery. The checklist is universal; the quantities are yours. The calculator turns household size and horizon into counts, and adds a realistic retail budget band - because we should build a kit fails in December, but it costs about two hundred dollars closes in one afternoon.
Assembly is one shopping run: pack the small items in airtight plastic bags, the whole kit into one or two duffels you can actually carry, and put it where an evacuating household will find it in the dark. Maintenance is a once-a-year pass - keep canned food cool and dry, swap anything expired, re-think the family's needs - which is why many households ride the daylight-saving clock change as the standing reminder: batteries and smoke alarms, kit and go-bag, all on the same Sunday.
How to use
- Set the household size and the horizon - three days is the evacuation baseline, fourteen is the stay-home reserve; the consumables scale linearly from there.
- Read the budget band as retail reality, not panic pricing: the low end is a duffel of cans, a crank radio and hardware-aisle lights; the high end adds a proper first-aid cabinet and quality torches.
- Buy once, then set the yearly reminder - swap expired food and batteries, and re-check the list whenever the household changes size.
Frequently asked questions
What are the basic items in an emergency kit?
The Ready.gov core: water at a gallon per person per day, several days of non-perishable food, a battery or hand-crank NOAA weather radio, a flashlight with spare batteries, a first-aid kit, a whistle to signal for help, dust masks, plastic sheeting and garbage bags, moist towelettes, a wrench or pliers to shut off utilities, a manual can opener, local paper maps, and chargers or a power bank for the phone. Pet food and prescription medications ride on top of the household count.
How much water does a family of four need?
A gallon per person per day, every day: twelve gallons for a three-day evacuation window, eighty-four for a two-week home reserve - and that is drinking and sanitation combined, so the number is honest. Store it in sealed containers away from heat, and let the emergency-water calculator do the month-by-month arithmetic.
Where should the kit be stored?
Anywhere you can grab it without light or thought: a hall closet near the exit beats the back of the basement. Ready.gov's wider point is that nobody schedules their disasters - prepare supplies for home, work and the car, since the kit you need is the one within reach when the warning comes, not the one at home you are driving away from.
How often should an emergency kit be checked?
Once a year minimum: replace expired food, water, medicine and batteries, and re-size the kit if the household changed - a new baby, a new dog or a teenager who now eats like two people all move the counts. Tying the pass to the daylight-saving clock change makes the date unforgettable, and it pairs with the smoke-alarm battery ritual most households already keep.