11 Essential Items for Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse
A lot of zombie lovers talk about being prepared for the oncoming zombie apocalypse, but how many are truly prepared? Simply understanding several zombie types and having a blunt instrument is not enough to ensure your survival. You need a bug-out-bag full of the essential items and materials needed for surviving the zombie apocalypse. Items and materials much like the ones listed below.
1) Water Filtration Straw
Water filtration straws can make clean water from the unhealthiest bodies of water
Water is essential for survival in any situation, but when you are constantly needing to run from the undead you can quickly realize that water is needed more often than usual to prevent dehydration. Unfortunately, the production of purified water will cease with the coming of a zombie apocalypse, and you will be left with the task of purifying your own water.
Purifying water can be extensive and time consuming, which can leave any nomadic survivor in a bad situation. But with the use of a water filtration straw a quick trip to any source of water can mean rehydrating yourself without the risk of getting sick or being in one place for too long.
The Life Straw can filter up to one thousand liters of water before the use of iodine, or other purifying chemicals are needed. So, if the average human needs to intake up three liters of water per day, a single filtration straw can last almost a year. Keeping ten of these straws would allow you to have enough clean water to survive for over nine years. The filtration straw is certainly beyond priceless in a zombie apocalypse, but until then, you can purchase it online, or at a local supermarket for about $19.95/piece.
The water filtration straw can filter out 99.99% of water born bacteria and viruses
2) Med Kit
A well-chosen emergency kit can save your life in the midst of a zombie apocalypse
Med Kits are probably useless if you have been bitten by a zombie, but in an apocalyptic world where a single cut can easily become infected and lead to your death, you will be grateful that you have it. Despite whether it was due to cutting your hand on a broken window when looting a store, or splitting your knee open from trying to parkour like you’re Kyle Crane, you can easily get these wounds infected if they are not treated carefully and properly.
Keeping multiple med kits in stock would be ideal as the apocalyptic world will be willing to deal out some animal planet level violence from all ends and you never want to run out of supplies and die from something as simple as a scraped knee.
A trip to your local grocery store can provide you with the basic family med kit, but if you believe you are going to be out among the chaos it would be better if you opted to buy a major emergency med kit. They may cost around $100, but they will be able to help you work through the heavier injuries you may sustain throughout the new world.
Having a good store of medical products is smart, but try not to pack more than what you can carry
3) MRE
Some MRE products may look better, but quantity accedes quality in the zombie apocalypse
MREs are great for apocalyptic situations as they can retain a shelf life up to a decade, and MRE tabs are directly consumable on the go. This makes it much easier to get all the needed nutrients, and vitamins needed for survival without using up time better used for finding food, water and other survival materials.
You may be able to find MREs at your local grocery store, but this is an item that needs to be bought in bulk if you are buying them for apocalyptic prep making it best to seek out an online military surplus store for the bulk product. Buying a months’ worth of cookable MREs and MRE tablets could leave you with a bill of about $300-$500 depending on the where you shop and the quality of the MREs you intend to buy.
A large inventory of MREs can ease the stress of finding food within the midst of a zombie apocalypse
4) Micro Stove
Cooking food using a micro stove can keep you from revealing your location
A micro stove acts as an extremely portable stove that can be used to cook food or boil water, and in grimmer situations it can be used to cauterize wounds. Micro stoves are simple to use, compact and over all light weight making them a must in the zombie apocalypse.
Micro stoves can be very versatile in situations that require you to boil water for MREs, or cook food that you may have caught or found. The micro stove can also make for a sensationally great source of heat that can be added to a dry wood and kindling to make a fire for a great source of warmth and cooking.
It is wise to have at least two micro stoves/ pocket stoves with you as losing one could make a tough situation lean toward unbearable. Keeping a bigger store of the fuel tablets however, would be in your benefit as the larger your store, the easier it will be to outlast the zombie apocalypse. Micro stoves, or pocket stoves can usually be purchased at any store that sales camping gear, and will usually cost around $10 plus the cost of extra fuel tablets which can be bought in 8-packs for around the same price range. A very inexpensive tool when you consider all the ways it helps make survival easier.
Fuel tablets for the pocket sized stoves a considerably cheap in respect to what they can do
5) Sleeping Bag
If you decide to sleep and regain your energy, make sure that it is in a secure area and not in the open
Everyone needs to sleep to make the best of their energy stores, and despite how hard it may be to sleep in a zombie apocalypse, you will eventually find yourself exhausted enough to require it. When that times comes, there may not be any hotels available. Leaving you with the requirement of having a mobile bed, also known as sleeping bags.
Keeping a sleeping bag with you allows you to sleep in situations that allow it and a good power nap can give you the much-needed energy required to run from a horde of zombies the next time you make a wrong turn. A sleeping bag can also be much more forgiving to your body than the hard ground, keeping you from waking up with your muscles stiff and unable to make the maneuvers you desperately need to have in your escape arsenal.
Sleeping bags can be purchased anywhere from your local supermarket to any camping outlet in your area and can cost as little as $10 for an adult size, but for the zombie apocalypse I think I would personally spring for at least a hefty $30 sleeping bag that was built to survive mother nature’s wrath.
Taking power naps during the day can help you regain energy before an excursion
6) Multi-Tool
There are several options for multi-tools, and finding the right one can be the key to your survival
Multi-Tools come in numerous shapes and sizes, but for efficiency the idea is to lean more toward a Swiss Army Knife style tool that is small yet efficient in different ways. Whether you are in a situation that requires a knife, scissors, file, saw, etc. you will have it. These items may seem far from necessary until you need them. At the points in an apocalypse that you hastily need any of these items you will be thankful that you have it.
Cutting rope to use for building material, removing a door hinge to place a door in another location, cutting your hair short so that zombies don’t have any easy grab and snack handle. All these things require tools readily available with a standard hand held multi-tool. This is a very small yet effective tool that could change your zombie survival experience.
Finding a multi-tool is far from hard as they can be found in gas stations, super markets, or online and depending on how many tools you wish to be able to carry in your pocket you can expect to pay $12-$50 for a good quality multi-tool.
A single hand held multi-tool can help you in over a dozen different situations
7) Backpack
It is important to retain an awareness of what you carry as it will be relevant in any good escape plan
Despite how small all the previous tools and supplies are they do add up to a good amount to carry around in your arms and pockets. So, a backpack would be an innovative survival tool that would allow you to carry all your survival equipment and keep you from having to pick and choose what items you take with you on your supply run.
Being in a situation that requires you to have supplies you are lacking do to a pick and choose scenario can be the end of your survival. Making a backpack an excellent survival tool. Alternatively, the backpack can act as a means for collecting new items when searching abandoned buildings for supplies.
A small hiking backpack can cost about $30 but is the best option for a durability, space, and comfort without sacrificing the essential use of the backpack.
Many camping backpacks will have a space for sleeping bags, leaving a lot of room for other supplies
8) Tactical Outfit
Depending on the cause of the zombie outbreak, a ventilation mask may need to be incorporated
All the supplies previously listed are completely useless if you are eaten by your undead uncle ted. Wearing a tactical outfit will decrease your chances of become zombie food significantly. The outfit may be a bit hot at times and can even hinder your visual range you will be able to fend off some zombies without worrying about a single bite being your undoing.
Finding yourself searching a seemingly empty building can be scary when you know there is a good chance that it isn’t really abandoned. There could be a zombie or zombies hiding anywhere within ready to end your existence with a single bite. But if you had a tactical outfit you would stand a better chance of giving that zombie the beat down of a lifetime.
Tactical Outfits are a bit of an oddity when searching the aisles of your local superstore, but fret not, as they are available online through specialty outfit stores for a hefty bill ranging from $200-$1000+. Tactical outfits are certainly a pricey item to add to the list, but is one that will save your bacon when scouting for supplies.
A good tactical outfit can greatly increase your chances of survival against the dead and the living
9) Melee Weapons
Katanas and crow bars are good for direct attacks and offer no form of delay tactics
Melee weapons are ideal for killing small groups of zombies without making audible noise that would draw the attention of more unwanted zombies. Being able to kill several zombies quickly and with as little noise as possible is the basic plan of any in and out supply run.
Three items that are debatably the best options for melee weapons are an authentic katana, good for decapitating multiple zombies with precision, a crowbar that is more of a blunt force weapon that doubles as a skeleton key, and a shaolin spade, while different, acts as an excellent way to keep zombies at bay before killing and burying them if you desire.
These items can be purchased online at the varying prices of Katana: $4,000+, Crowbar: $10, Shaolin Spade: $80. These items make for excellent melee weapons and can suit each person differently depending on your combat preference and style, but overall melee weapons are only good for small groups of zombies.
A shaolin spade can offer a means of keeping a zombie at bay while you plan your escape or attack
10) Suppressed Weapons
Glock G17 and a Remington 870 can allow for multiple rounds of effective mid-range damage
When crowds of the undead grow too large to handle with your melee weapon, it becomes apparent that you must either run or pull out a weapon capable of killing masses of zombies, but preferably without drawing more unwanted attention that would otherwise defeat the point of needing to kill masses of zombies.
Three examples of great suppressed weapons for the zombie apocalypse are a suppressed Glock G17, capable of holding seventeen rounds and having easy usability, suppressed Remington 870, capable of holding 3-4 rounds that can easily incapacitate numerous zombies per shot, and a suppressed AR15, capable of holding thirty rounds and having a lethal distance factor makes three great suppressed weapon choices.
Buying these weapons is a bit more complicated than ordering then online as there are laws in place that require proof of ID and a federal background check to obtain, but so long as you have a clean record, and local gun shop available you should be able to obtain own these weapons at the price ranges of Glock G17: $600, Remington 870: $400 and AR 15: $650.
An AR 15 can provide thirty long range hits per clip
11) SAS Survival Guide 2E
The SAS Survival Guide has a massive amount of info that can be used during a zombie apocalypse
Knowing how to make a fire and mend a broken leg are priceless skills to have and this guide is willing to teach you how to do just this and more. Learning how to survive multiple different apocalyptic outcomes is a grand gift to prepare you for the zombie apocalypse.
Many of the supplies above are great for making a zombie apocalypse more bearable, but whether you don’t have the money to buy large stores of these items or not they will eventually run out, and knowing how to start a fire and mend a broken limb without these materials will leave you with higher chances of surviving the apocalypse long after the rest have perished.
SAS Survival Guide 2E is available all over the internet and possibly in your local book store. This book is probably one of the greatest items on this list, and at $5 it is the most inexpensive by far.
Read your copy of SAS before a zombie outbreak, or you could be a zombie snack before chapter 2
If you can obtain these materials and master them before the coming of the zombie apocalypse should certainly count yourself among those who will survive the zombie apocalypse. You may become one of the founders of the new world and see that it is rebuilt in memory of those who tried so bravely to send the undead back to their eternal rest.
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