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Use it every day. Rely on it when it counts.
Some of the most useful things in your home are also the least exciting. A good manual can opener is one of them. It sits in a kitchen drawer, opens your beans and tomatoes on a Tuesday night, and asks for nothing: no outlet, no batteries, no charging cable.
That is exactly why it matters when things go sideways.
The item everyone forgets
When people build an emergency kit, they think of water, flashlights and batteries. They stock up on canned soup, chili and tuna. Then the power goes out, and they reach for the electric can opener on the counter.
It's a surprisingly common moment. A pantry full of food, and no easy way to open it.
That's why the Ready.gov basic disaster supplies list names a manual can opener for food right alongside water, food and a flashlight. It's a small item that makes the rest of your food supply usable. (StashAndSet isn't affiliated with FEMA or Ready.gov; we just think their list is a sensible place to start.)
Why manual beats electric when it counts
Electric can openers are convenient, but they depend on the grid. In a hurricane, an ice storm, a wildfire evacuation or even a long neighborhood outage, that dependence is the weak link. A manual opener:
- Works with no power at all. No outlet, no battery, no charging.
- Travels. It fits in a drawer, a go-bag, a glove box or a weekender.
- Lasts. A well-made stainless opener can go for years with nothing more than a rinse and a dry.
- Is quiet and simple. Anyone in the house can use it, including kids and older family members.
Here in Florida, hurricane season is a good reminder. When the power's been out for three days, a can of soup and a manual opener are a real meal. Without the opener, it's a frustrating afternoon with a knife you shouldn't be using that way.
Why it should be one you actually like using
Here's our honest take: the best emergency gear is the gear you use every day. If your can opener is a cheap, flimsy thing buried at the back of a drawer, you won't trust it, and you might not even find it when the lights are out.
The OXO Good Grips manual can opener is our pick. It's the kind you'll reach for on an ordinary weeknight: compact, comfortable in the hand and good-looking enough to keep out on the counter. It doesn't look like survival gear. It looks like a kitchen tool, because it is one.
On a budget? The Gorilla Grip manual can opener is a well-reviewed, lower-priced option that does the same job. Pick up one for the kitchen drawer and a second for your emergency kit.
That's the whole idea behind StashAndSet. Use it every day, and you'll know exactly where it is and that it works when you need it.
Where to keep it
A simple rule: one in the kitchen, one in the kit.
- Kitchen drawer: your everyday opener, used weekly, always within reach.
- Go-bag or emergency bin: a second one packed with your canned food, so the food and the tool travel together. A roomy everyday backpack or a waterproof weekender duffel works for this.
- Pantry storage: if you keep extra canned goods in airtight food storage bins, tuck an opener right inside the bin.
Building out the rest of the kitchen kit
A can opener is the keystone, but a few other everyday items round out a kitchen that's ready for a few days on its own:
- Utensils you already cook with. A 5-piece kitchen utensil set handles daily cooking and doubles as your serving set when you're working off a camp stove or grill.
- Water you can carry. A collapsible silicone water bottle is great for the gym, and folds flat in a kit.
- Light to cook by. A rechargeable LED lantern brightens the kitchen table during an outage, and a rechargeable flashlight lives in the drawer next to your opener.
- News without power. A solar and hand-crank radio keeps you updated when phones and Wi-Fi are spotty.
- Basic first aid. A latched first aid box fits on a pantry shelf and handles the kitchen cuts and burns that happen any day of the week.
- Fixes for anything. A 5-pack of duct tape for the junk drawer, the garage and the storm.
A quick checklist for your pantry
- A manual can opener in the kitchen drawer.
- A second opener packed with your emergency food.
- At least three days of canned and shelf-stable food your family actually eats.
- Water: about one gallon per person per day (see ready.gov/kit).
- A light source that doesn't need the wall outlet.
- Rotate your cans: use the oldest ones in everyday meals and restock.
That last step is the secret. If you cook from your emergency pantry and replace what you use, nothing expires, nothing gets forgotten, and your can opener stays a tool you know by heart.
The bottom line
A manual can opener is about as unglamorous as kitchen tools get. It's also the difference between a stocked pantry and a usable one when the power's out. Pick one you'll enjoy using every day, keep a second in your kit, and you're covered.
Hope for the best. Plan for the worst.
Get the OXO can opener on Amazon · Budget pick: Gorilla Grip · See the full everyday emergency kit checklist