Oil
Oil such as vegetable oil, sunflower oil and olive oil makes great fuel for oil lamps. It can be also used as lubrication for mechanical devices from car engines to multi tools. Of course oil is also great for cooking and something that you really miss when you don’t have it.
As a food supplement oil is fantastic for adding calories to your diet. When food is in short supply you need to keep your energy levels up by keeping your calorie intake nice and high. Having a couple of spoons of oil a day will give you a nice calorie boost. On a slightly more personal note, when you’re not eating well you could encounter the problem of slightly stubborn bowel movements, this can be helped a great deal by consuming some oil with your food.
Batteries
Batteries are obviously going to be a valuable commodity in a survival situation so they may be very hard to come by. But what a lot of people don’t realize is that if you have the wrong size of battery, you can actually open them up and take the smaller cells contained inside and use them instead.
For example, if you have a 9 volt battery but your flashlight takes AAA batteries, open up the 9volt and inside there is a set of smaller cylindrical batteries. They are slightly smaller than typical AAAs but you can easily add some balls of tin foil to take up the extra space and make the connection.
Flashlights
This may be an obvious one but what some people may not have considered is that you can use a flashlight even if you only have a battery that is completely the wrong size. All you have to do is take out the bulb and some of the wire then you can use some tape to connect the wire up to each end of the battery that you have and this will give you a light source.
Bottles and containers
Water storage and transportation is very important. So any kind of container or bottles you can find are going to be valuable. If you’re traveling by car then it’s going to pay to have multiple containers because if you find some abandoned vehicles, you will need something to siphon fuel into.
Fruit netting bags
Any kind of netting will be useful, net curtains for example could also be used for some of the same things as fruit netting.
This kind of material can be used for fishing nets fairly easily. To make a frame for your net all you need is a forked stick and you can tape or zip tie the netting into place, or make some cuts in the wood and wedge the netting into them.
You can also use netting by attaching it to your bag or belt as an extra section for foraging or holding extra items. Fruit bags can also be used to scrub out mess tins and pans and generally clean gear.
Newspapers, Books and Paper
Obviously paper can be used as tinder and this would probably be most people’s first thought. But only do this if you need to, I would prefer to use natural materials for tinder that are more readily available in order to save the paper for other uses.
Paper and cardboard are good insulators. As I have said before, laying on the ground is a really fast way of losing heat. You need something to keep you off the ground and help keep you insulated. So paper can be put down as bedding if you have enough of it and you do need to sleep on the ground.
Something I mentioned earlier is that paper can be used as toilet roll even if it’s smooth and doesn’t seem like it would be much use, all you have to do is scrunch up and unravel it a few times to soften it up and make it more absorbent and soft.
Ceramic Mugs
Now obviously mugs can be used to drink out of but there is another surprising use for ceramic mugs. You may have heard of ceramic knife sharpeners, ceramics are great for refining blades. Many ceramic mugs have a rough rim on the bottom, this is the ceramic without the glaze that the rest of the mug has and is great for sharpening your knives.
Crayons
If you melt a crayon down to the paper and then stand it in the hot wax that you have melted off of the crayon, it will slowly burn down and act as a candle. If you find a box of crayons then you essentially have a box of candles that will last you a very long time.
You can also use the wax for waterproofing purposes such as coating regular matches to make then waterproof.
Light bulbs
The small ones can be rigged up to a battery using wire or paper clips to make an improvised torch. The bigger bulbs however, can be used to make an oil burning lamp. Just break off the bottom of the metal fixing and add some kind of liquid fuel. For the wick you can use, rolled up paper towels or napkins, rope, paracord, a strip of cotton fabric etc. If the hole in the top of the bulb is too big for the wick it may ignite the fuel inside. For this you can close up the hole using tin foil or even use a metal washer to provide you with a smaller hole.
Lighters
You are quite unlikely to find a lighter with gas in it as they are a bit of an obvious thing to take. But you may find used up lighters that don’t have gas, or even broken lighters that are smashed up. They can in fact still be used to make a spark that can ignite flammable substances and good quality tinder.
Magnifying Glasses
I think most people know that a magnifying glass can be used to start a fire. If it’s sunny they are actually very effective and it saves you having to use up your matches or the gas in your lighter.
They are also great for removing splinters. Splinters are actually quite a big problem in survival situations and can become infected and sore easily.
Baking Powder
Baking powder is great for cleaning things as it is a mild abrasive. You could even use it to brush your teeth if you don’t have toothpaste. It’s also a good odor absorber so can be handy to keep you smelling a bit fresher.
Bicarbonate of Soda
Bicarbonate of Soda is also a mild abrasive but it has a medical use. It is great for neutralizing stomach acid. I get indigestion quite a lot and so I have put it to the test personally. It doesn’t taste great, it’s quite salty, but it’s hands down the best indigestion remedy I have ever taken. Even with really bad, persistent indigestion, heart burn or acid reflux just take half a tea spoon with some water and it will remedy it almost instantly.
Zip Lock Bags
These bags are great, obviously the ability to open and close them quickly and easily is a big bonus. The use is fairly obvious, they are great for keeping things dry such as a fire kit, tinder, clothing or storing food. They can also be used for water transportation and storage if needed.
Shoe Laces
If you find some old shoes and they don’t fit you so you can’t use them as a backup, at least take the laces. They can be used as backup laces and also you can never have enough cordage.
Dust Masks
If you can find any of those cheap disposable dust masks, make sure you take them. Apart from the obvious use of helping protect you against dust and smoke, they can also be used to line a makeshift water filter and they make good tinder too.
Drop Cloth
Garages may contain decorating equipment such as drop cloths that are used to keep paint off of carpets and furniture when painting. They can be used as a tarp or ground sheet, although they are fairly flimsy they will definitely be helpful. You can also use them to cover your bag so gear doesn’t get wet or you can use them to create a makeshift poncho.
They are also great for rain collection, and if you find a clear one, you can even use it for solar water distillation.
Towels
Personal hygiene should be high on your list of priorities in any survival situation as medical attention could be a long way off and skin infections can become very problematic. Towels will help keep you dry after washing, but they can also be used as a blanket to keep you warm if you don’t have anything else.
Tea Bags
Aside from making morale boosting hot drinks, tea bags contain tannic acid which is an anti-inflammatory. So if you wet your tea bag with some warm water and use it as a wet compress on an inflamed wound or tooth ache for example, it will help reduce the swelling.
Listerine
Listerine is a good disinfectant, other alcohol based mouth washes will also do a good job. You can use it to wash your hands, clean a wound, help sterilize cooking, eating and drinking equipment and of course, for dental hygiene.
High Proof Alcohol
Any type of high proof alcohol can be used to help get a fire going, fuel for makeshift lamps or penny stoves and as a surface disinfectant. Do not use it for disinfecting a wound though. You can only use rubbing alcohol for this purpose and be warned, it hurts. A lot. But it’s better than getting an infected wound.
Hammocks
Garden hammocks will more than likely be left stored away or left hanging up seeing as most people in a disaster situation wouldn’t think, “Oh hold on, I better grab my hammock before we leave.”
Hammocks are actually a really great item to have. If you have a tarp or something to keep the rain off of you, then you can put a hammock up under it and this will keep you off the cold wet ground while sleeping.
Or if you have your shelter already taken care of, the mesh that hammocks are made of can be used as a really decent sized fishing net. You could even drag this up a stream to heard fish into a trap.