Last Updated on March 12, 2020 by Mark P.
Having trouble finding home essentials like toilet paper or hand sanitizer or cleansing wipes? Have you found it online but are not willing to pay the ridiculous asking prices? Here’s what you should do.
Background
I went to 3 local grocery stores yesterday trying to find these items and they were all out. They had signs posted that there was a limit of 2 items per customer because they were trying to do doing their part in ensuring that there was enough for everyone. That still didn’t work. I was able to to purchase 2 cases of bottled water which is great because the tap water in my location isn’t the best quality.
I then went on Amazon and even they were out. Some items are on back-order but it looks like most of them won’t be back in stock until early next month. Don’t believe me? Search Amazon for toiler paper.
I went on Walmart’s website and, while they said some items may be available in-store, you could not purchase it online.
I even went to check on eBay to see if there were 3rd party sellers offering toilet paper, Clorox or Purell for sale. I did manage to find a few options but the asking prices were nearly 10 times what the usual price was. As a deal guy, there’s not way I could justify that.
Out of a mixture of sheer frustration and disgust, I wanted to put together a list of resources to help you get the essentials you need without having to wait for weeks or pay an arm and leg for them.
Here how you may be able to find these items nearby without having to pay a premium to get them:
- Go to a website called Brickseek.com.
- In the search bar, enter a term like “toilet paper”, “Purell”, “Clorox wipes”, etc.
- Open the product pages for the items your interested in and scroll down to where it says “In-Store Offers > Enter Your Zip Code for Offers Near You”.
- Enter your zip code and, if it is listed as in stock, it will then display which stores have it and if stock is listed as limited.
- Brickseek does have limited daily updates so we do recommend you call the store first to confirm that the item is actually in stock at that location.
- If you just search google for Walmart Near Me or Target Near Me, the phone number for that store location should be readily available in the location snippet, just after the address and store hours. Keep in mind, if they tell you that the items are no longer in stock, you should still ask them when they’re expecting their next shipment in. It may be coming in as early as tomorrow.
What is Brickseek?
Brickseek is a website that lets you search for specific items and see if local Walmart, Home Depot or Target stores have them listed as still ‘in stock’. I ran a few searches for toilet paper, Purell and Clorox and, to my surprise, a few stores within a few miles actually had them listed as ‘in stock’. I was surprised because even though I’m in a suburb outside of Los Angeles, we still have a relatively high population density.
Here are a few of the items I was able to find within a few miles of my home:
- Charmin Ultra Strong Toilet Paper – 24 Mega Rolls
- Charmin Ultra Soft Toilet Paper – 12 Mega Rolls
- PURELL Advanced Hand Sanitizer Naturals with Plant Based Alcohol Pump Bottle – 8 fl oz
- Clorox Disinfecting Wipes Bleach Free Cleaning Wipes – Crisp Lemon – 75ct
- Clorox Disinfecting Wipes Fresh Scent 35 ct
- Clorox Disinfecting Wipes, Bleach Free Cleaning Wipes – Orange Fusion – 75 Count
There are a number of other toilet paper, Purell and Clorox items I found to still be in stock (or at least listed as limited stock available).
Brickseek does only update their results every few hours so, while it says that an item is in stock, we still recommend checking with your local Walmart, Target or Home Depot store. It’s as easy as giving them a call and asking them. Just be sure to have the UPC available so they can look it up. The UPC is located just under the name of the item on the Brickseek website.
Here are results from a few of my local searches:
Why is everyone sold out or toilet paper, Purell and Clorox wipes?
A lot of folks are looking to stock up on essentials in case there is an extended quarantine in the next couple weeks. Neither the President nor the Vice President have even suggested that we might be in for that but there have been rumors that certain local areas might be shut down.
An example is New York where there is a quarantine in place in New Rochelle and Governor De Blasio has already hinted that it might be coming for New York City, though he is doing everything in his power to avoid that.
The Guardian has also put together an interesting article on preparing for a quarantine with your family.
