Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Imagine a scenario where cash has become worthless. It could be hyperinflation, where it takes a wheelbarrow of cash to buy a loaf of bread. Or it could a devastating act of terrorism such as a bioweapon or an EMP that sets the country back 100 years. Whatever the cause, there could come a day when our money becomes useless.
And it won’t necessarily be a nationwide disaster that causes this to happen. In a local disaster such as a powerful hurricane or earthquake, the power will be out which means the banks will be closed. And if they don’t reopen, there won’t be enough cash to go around.
In any of the above scenarios, people will be forced to barter with one another until power is restored or a suitable currency emerges. In case that ever happens, it’s a good idea to have a wide assortment of barter items. That way if someone has something you need, you’re more likely to already have something they need.
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Precious Metals
Although precious metals are a great thing to have as a part of your portfolio, they might not be ideal in a survival scenario. If the SHTF, most people are going to be more interested in things they can use than gold and silver.
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On the other hand, many people believe in the intrinsic value of precious metals. So in a survival situation, precious metals could emerge as a popular form of currency.
This is why I recommend getting some metal, but don’t put all your eggs in one basket. It’s probably best to buy silver instead of gold because even small pieces of gold are too valuable to trade for any items you would want from your neighbors. Try a site like apmex.com where you can buy a roll of 20 American Silver Eagles.
Alcohol and Tobacco
Again, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. In survival situations, nicotine addicts are going to become desperate and some of them will trade useful items just so they can smoke. And if times are tough, a lot of people will crave spirits so they can temporarily escape the reality of their situation.
However, if things are really bad, your alcohol and tobacco might be useless. In a post-apocalyptic scenario where people are starving, even nicotine addicts and alcoholics will be more interested in food.
I recommend storing a few cartons of cigarettes and several bottles of alcohol, but no more. And if you have a drinking problem or are an ex-smoker, please don’t store any alcohol or tobacco. It might become too difficult to resist.
Other Items
The point of this article is that in most survival situations, people are going to want things they can use. If you want to store up items you can trade, they need to be useful and have a great space-to-value ratio.
For example, people might want shovels, but they might also want lighters, and a pack of lighters takes up a lot less space than a shovel. Lighters are also very portable, a necessity when visiting your neighbors and making deals.
Here’s a list of fairly small items that could be great for bartering during a disaster:
Allergy medicine
Aloe
Ammo
Aluminum foil
Animal traps
Antacids
Antibiotics
Anti-histamines
Antiseptics
Apple cider vinegar
Aspirin
Baby food
Baby formula
Baby wipes
Baking powder
Baking soda
Bandages
Bandanas
Bar soap
Batteries
Beans
Belts
Benadryl
Bicycle parts
Bleach
Borax
Buckets
Bug spray
Can openers
Candles
Canned food
Canned shortening
Canning jars/lids
Chap stick
Charcoal
Chocolate
Cleaning supplies
Clorox wipes
Clothes line/pins
Coffee
Coffee filters
Coleman fuel
Combs
Condiments
Condoms
Cooking oil
Corn starch
Cotton balls
Cough drops
Crayons
Crisco
Cups
Dental floss
Diapers
Dish soap
Disposable gloves
Disposable razors
Dried soup mix
Duct tape
Feminine products
Fire extinguishers
Firesteels
First aid kits
Fishing gear
Flashlights
Flour
Fly swatters
Freeze-dried food
Games
Garden seeds
Gatorade mix
Gauze
Glasses repair kit
Gloves
Guns
Glow sticks
Hairbrushes
Hammers
Hand warmers
Hand sanitizer
Hard candy
Hatchets
Honey
Hydrogen peroxide
Imodium A-D
Iodine
Jelly
Jerky
Kerosene
Kleenex
Knives
Lamp oil
Laundry detergent
Lighter fluid
Lighters
Lotion
Magnifying glasses
Maps
Masks
Matches
Measuring cups/spoons
Milk, powdered
Mousetraps
Mouthwash
MREs
Multivitamins
Mylar blankets
Nail clippers
Nails
Needles/Thread
Nuts and bolts
Nylon rope
Off spray
OTC Meds
Pantyhose
Paper
Paper plates
Paper towels
Paracord
Paraffin wax
Pasta
Peanut butter
Pencils
Pens
Pepper
Pepper spray
Pet food
Plastic sheeting
Plateware
Playing cards
Ponchos
Popcorn
Prescription drugs
Q-tips
Rat poison
Razor blades
Reading glasses
Rechargeable batteries
Rice
Rope
Rubber bands
Rubbing alcohol
Safety pins
Saline solution
Salt
Saw
Scissors
Screwdrivers
Screws
Sea salt
Sewing supplies
Shampoo/conditioner
Sharpening stones
Shaving cream
Shoelaces
Slingshots
Socks
Solar battery charger
Spaghetti sauce
Spices
Sponges
Spray bottles
Sugar
Sun block
Sunglasses
Super glue
Survival books
Syrup
Tampons
Tape
Tarps
Tea
Thermometers
Toilet paper
Tools
Toothbrushes
Toothpaste
Trash bags
Tuna fish (in oil)
Tupperware
Tweezers
Twine
Underwear
Utensils
Vaseline
Vinegar
Watches
Water bottles
Water filters
Water purification tablets
Wax paper
WD-40
Wicks
Wire
Yeast
Zip ties
Ziploc bags
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For the most part this idea of bartering is a joke.
Early on in SHTF, when people need most of this stuff they will not have anything to offer in trade.
Later on they will have learned to make do with out most of these things or have substituted other stuff for them. Besides which there will be a lot of stuff lying around free.( considering the estimates of the 1st year death tolls on most SHTF scenarios)
Now Tobacco and alcohol and fire making stuff, clothing, tents( basically any survival items), will be in high demand but few will have anything to trade for them in the early days. Later on most people will have covered these needs or are already dead.
So exactly who are you going to barter with? And what do you expect them to have that they will part with; except some hot lead aimed in your direction, just before they steal all your stuff!
What you will be able to barter is skills and work. It is better to be able to build and operate a still than to have some whisky to barter.
It would be better to have, grow and process tobacco, than to just have a small amount of today’s commercial stuff.
The additional problem of having things to barter is that you become a well known and bigger target for looters and thieves.
So think twice before doing some of this stuff.
You are not thinking long term. Some people have a green thumb others do not. Barter for their skills as well as product. Things wear down, get old including people. Injuries require assistants, help cutting up fire wood, cooking, gathering food, ect., kids need help too. I really think you need to see the BIG picture and LONG term needs.
If you stock a few extra of things YOU will use to trade it is great. You ONLY barter when/if you REALLY need something. Otherwise you are best to hide out of sight and be “grey” or uninteresting.
Almost any hand tools. If you’re trying to build a stock of hand tools for barter, try flea markets. That $5 shovel you paid $2 for could be worth much more than that to the guy who has no shovels. Files wear out, as do saws. I think the limitation for most people will be storage space. An 8×8 shed can hold a few hundred tools, depending on what you have.
8 x 8 … Which unit of measure?
yards? meters? foot?
I’m Brazilian, I live in Brazil, and I’m just thinking about building a warehouse. What’s your idea?
Excuse me for my English …
8 feet by 8 feet
Or roughly 2 1/2 meters by 2 1/2 meters.
But you must be prepared to lose it ALL, especially if others (even your wife and kids) know about it.
ALL of them talk.
Loose lips sink ships.
If you’ve got a warehouse, think toilet paper. If not, keep your TP for your own use and think small, light, cheap and valuable. Junk Silver, dimes and quarters, will seriously increase in value if the monetary system bites the dust. People might not want your perishable eggs but they’ll be able to purchase whatever they need with your junk silver. Razor blades, all first aid supplies, water purification tablets, fire starters, sewing supplies, seeds, soap/shampoo/hair conditioner, spices, salt, toothpaste/toothbrushes/floss, kerosene/oil lantern wick, etc.
No matter how much you tuck away, it will get used up or sold eventually so make sure that you can produce a product or service that will be in demand whether it’s food from a garden to dental services. And remember, there won’t be any hoes, spades, rakes, fertilizers, tractors, insecticides, rodent control, deer control, etc. so if you’re not gardening the hard way today, don’t think that you’ll do it when the SHTF – you’ll starve.
Save all the freebies. Elastics from the produce you buy in the grocery stores, safety pins from the dry cleaners, toothbrushes, floss and toothpaste from the dentist, candies from reception desks everywhere, plastic bags, complementary pens and notepads, reusable canning jars from the farmers’ or country markets where you buy their lovely jams, soaps and shampoos from hotels, extra ketchup, mustard, napkins, etc. from the fast food restaurants. They all add up and you can use them for bartering or just to have extras for your own needs.
Epoxy glue! The two part, two tube variety (those double syringe types tend to have bubbles and /or dispense unequal volumes. I prefer J.B. Weld for most jobs, but be aware they now have several varieties with different uses.
Be aware! Super Glue has a relatively short shelf life, (search “super glue shelf life”) and and once it’s opened all bets are off. Plan to throw it out or use it up at least once a year.
Silicone sealant / glue (white or clear are my choice.)
Durham Rock Hard Water Putty. Great for repairing anything wood – stronger then the original wood in most cases. (tip: it doesn’t stick to clear plastic packing tape – I wrap a piece of scrap plywood and clamp it over the wet putty to form a flat surface that requires minimum sanding.) Repair a broken wood handle, wrap packing tape around the glued joint while it cures and you have a smooth repair.
Mylar “emergency” blankets / ponchos, etc. Watch out for those filmy, flimsy things that come in tiny plastic pouches – although fairly effective, they are usually “single use” items (and just you TRY to refold and put back in the bag!) – better to spend considerably more and get the ones that come in cardboard boxes and have substantial weight (17 oz?). I like those that have one side silver and the other in red or blue – I think they now also come in camouflage. I have made shelter halves out of them (they used to be called NRC Space Blankets -I think the “NRC” has been dropped) and was toasty warm with a summer weight sleeping bag, in a snow bank, with temperatures below zero.
Useful article to remind you what you need to survive but at the end of the day ANYTHING can be bartered just some things may be more useful than others.
Women have the BEST ‘bartering tool’.
Oldest profession known to man.
Also, condoms (unlubricated ones) have many uses.
Women would do most anything for feminine hygiene items.
Baby diapers.
FORMULA (powdered should last a fairly long time).
Sewing items.
Think anything a woman would want is a good idea to stockpile for bartering later on.
Remember, women are usually the ‘shoppers’ in every household.
I would not trade any ammo, it may come back at you!!! and I may need all I have for defense of my tribe.
I wholeheartedly agree…. barter some ammo away, then hear the rack of a slide or the click of a hammer being pulled back and now you’re giving up ALL your ammo. Worse yet, you get followed back to your camp.
Every contract must be evaluated, if someone is trading squirrel then trading some 22 rounds might provide a renewable meat source.
I have seen this comment before. But I just don’t agree. It is unlikely that a person who wants to trade for ammo has a gun and zero ammo for it. More likely, he realizes he does not have enough. Either had very little to start with, or is using it up, perhaps hunting.
So the chance is slim to none that you will be making a person able to shoot you who was unable before. Don’t adopt the liberal/progressive perspective that nice people become killers as soon as they get a working firearm in their hands. The gun doesn’t create criminal intent; the criminal makes the gun dangerous.
Are gun shops and gun shows frequently attacked? It the transfer of a gun or ammo a moment of great danger today? Absolutely not.
All trades need to take place on neutral ground, in a public place. Ideally, a place where many people are coming together specifically to trade. Not your property, and not theirs. So they can’t just up and shoot you there. Of course, don’t give away even the slightest hint as to where you live. And don’t appear to have much stuff.
Charmin ultra rolls, my attic is full of mr whipples favorite TP!
Now I think I hear mice up there!
shoes or clothes????????????
Yes! I always heard work boots and blue jeans are great barter items!
Here I’ll trade you a bottle of liquor and some bullets for that….what could possibly go wrong
Seeds both heirloom and hybrid would be okay if people know how to use them, as for alcohol to trade anything strong has multiple uses. i would never trade out ammo or the makings of it unless i knew the people as friends or possible family, as for trading out weaponry um not likely ever.
I think it’s hilarious how Alcohol is always #1 or #2. Just what we need after the collapse is drunks with guns!!
The primary use for alcohol will be for disinfecting everything from countertops to surgery/dental tools. There are hundreds of uses for alcohol besides drinking.
don’t forget tampons and sanity napkne, not only are these good for first aid, but thay store indefinly if kept dry.
I trust you meant sanitary napkins………… Sanity will be gone!
Lol! Good one!
One item not on th Alist that can be used for barter “Ammunition”.
I would keep enough 22 cal to barter with. It’s cheap, easy to store and many people have a 22 and will be looking for ammo. Papa Bear
Awsome idea:
“Here’s some ammo for that gun. Oh, now you’re pointing it at me and taking my stuff? Dammit!”
Always give your ammo away so they can come back and take everything you have. Real good move there!!
NEVER !! allow the sensitive information of what “You” have in reserve for survival- Ammo, Weapons (any sort of defensive or offensive items- knives, everyone will NEED a sharp blade- medical supplies, suture, gauze wrapping, scalpels, antibacterial cream or liquid). It may seem selfish to have these things and not share them to help others- BUT in a “Panic ridden” society, NO ONE can be trusted at first (the first 7 days are critical and will “weed out” those unstable folks who will not be part of the “We- not I” form of unselfish “Team” players, after the first 7-21 days, the real serenio of how deep (or how long) the damage to society will be the factor for future rebuilding (or securing permanent restructuring) of some assemblance of society