What is the difference between hoarding and prepping?

imperfectlyhappy.com - Prepping Vs. Hoarding - the Imperfectly Happy home

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Prepping vs hoarding, do you know the difference? Being prepared for potential emergencies is a great idea. It is the reason many people choose to prep in different ways to ensure they have access to food and emergency materials if something happens. However, there is a fine line between prepping and hoarding. Hoarders tend to think of only themselves when collecting items and saving them. Knowing the difference between being a prepper and a hoarder will help you avoid turning into a hoarder while still taking precautionary measures. You can still collect emergency materials for times when you will need them the most.

Prepping is Great to Do Because Emergencies Can Happen

There is nothing wrong with prepping and saving items somewhere safe, such as the basement of your home. It is great to do because you cannot predict what will happen in the future, such as a massive storm that makes it difficult for you to get to the store. Different types of natural disasters can cause power outages and other issues that would cause refrigerators to shut off and food to go bad. If you have a stockpile of prepped items, you can stress less over the situation and keep your family and community protected while waiting for assistance to get things turned back on.

Hoarding Often Leads to Infestations in the Home

Unlike prepping, hoarding can often lead to infestations in the home. If someone hoards many items, some of which are perishable, those items could potentially attract different pests, including roaches, mice, and rats. If a hoarder has a massive collection of paper towels, those pests can get into the paper towels and start using them to create a shelter, creating an enormous mess in the household. Hoarding often leads to an infestation in the home because hoarders tend to stock up on tons of items instead of saving some for other people. They put all these items in their home, where the items will take up a lot of space that can quickly turn into a shelter for the pests. Preppers on the other hand often collect and save different items, including canned foods, flashlights, and water bottles, but they usually do not mind sharing if others need to use some of the items from their collection. Preppers tend to look forward to helping members of the community, which is one of the reasons they like holding these essential items. However, hoarders typically do not like sharing the stuff they choose to stock up on and collect in the home. A hoarder may want to have all these items for themselves because they feel paranoid about needing the items in the future, even if they have a surplus of them.

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Hoarders are the type of people who will rush out to a store when a storm is coming and begin grabbing all the toilet paper and paper towels, not giving anyone else a chance to get some.

Preppers Are Saving Important Items That Can Get Put to Good Use

Preppers take the task seriously and know what to save for possible use later. Instead of stocking up on paper towels that are not reusable, they may begin stocking up on food that has a longer shelf life, including canned fruits, meats, and vegetables. They might even can some of their own food in jars with airtight lids. Besides saving non-perishable foods, preppers may also collect flashlights, soap, batteries for the flashlights, solar generator kits, water filters, first-aid kits, and more. These simple items can provide food and comfort to people if they do not have access to food, electricity, or the usual toiletries.

Hoarders May Collect Non-Valuable Items

Hoarders will often take advantage of any sale they can find, even if it means stocking up on items that are not valuable in times of need. If a hoarder starts buying lots of perishable foods, those foods will only last a few weeks and will not come in handy if an emergency occurs months or years later. Some hoarders will collect paper towels that are not reusable, meaning they are not the best thing to save for an emergency. While it is good to have paper towels for specific reasons, they are not on the must-have list of prep items.

Preppers Tend to Keep Items Organized

Those who go through the process of preparing different items will often put effort into keeping their things organized and protected. They may use shelving units to keep items stored adequately and safely. Preppers will usually set the oldest objects in the front and the newer things in the back of the shelving unit. While preppers take great pride in their collection and work hard to keep everything in order, the same cannot be said for hoarders. The hoarders will often have stockpiles of different products all over the home that creates a huge mess.

Hoarding Can Pose Potential Fire Hazards

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Because of the lack of organization, hoarding can lead to fire hazards. If someone hoards many items and has no room for those items in their basement or a spare guest bedroom, they might start leaving their things all over the home. Not only does this create a mess, but it makes it nearly impossible for firefighters to access the house in the event of a fire. If a fire does occur in the home, it might spread even faster because of the items inside that the hoarder collected over several months or years.

Prepping vs Hoarding

Although both preppers and hoarders like to save items, there is a big difference between the two. While preppers want to save essential items for potential emergencies and disasters, hoarders often collect useless things that they do not want to part with or share with anyone else. Those who choose to prepare will usually have concerns about what could happen and would like to be as prepared as possible for themselves and others. On the other hand, those who hoard items tend to do so for selfish reasons. They may keep things that can go bad over time and not get put to good use during emergencies.