Clean Water in an Emergency
Obtaining clean water could be the most difficult thing in an emergency.
Heck, in the not so distant future it may become difficult even under normal circumstances.
We Americans are spoiled by the luxury having clean water available at the turn of the faucet. Our public water systems are going downhill, and you can argue that chlorine is dangerous (though we must have some way of killing bacteria), but it's still better than what's available to most of the world. Most people have to drink potentially hazardous water because they cannot afford to buy bottled water. Or they have to walk five miles to fill up a jug.
Water seems very plentiful, but only 3% of it is fresh water. The rest is ocean salt water. And about 69% of that is stored in glaciers. Another 20% is stored in Lake Baikal in Siberia.
You need to consider what you could do if something threatened your water supply. If you're in an arid area, that could be a prolonged drought. It could even be a flood, as in 1993 when the Mississippi River closed down my mother's town's water treatment plant so she had to boil water and accept some donated by Anheuser-Busch.
If your water comes from a municipal water supply, remember it needs electricity to pump water to your home. If you own a well with an electrical pump, how could you get water if you have no electricity?
Disaster preparedness experts advise storing at least a three-day supply of water per person in your family -- and two weeks is even better.
According to FEMA, that's at least one gallon per person per day. That may sound like a lot, but remember you're not going to drink all of it. You need a lot of water to cook freeze-dried and dehydrated foods, and Meals Ready to Eat (MRE). Also, you need to wash your hands, brush your teeth, and so on. One gallon per person is very minimal.
Plus, water is not so easy to store safely -- and is heavy and takes up a lot of space.
You need a proper container, such as glass. Ordinary plastic tends to store odors. And even with glass you should not use any container that's contained something inedible. Plastic bottles storing water in stores can be used only for the short-term.
The Department of Transportation had developed a form of plastic container good for transporting water, known as DOT #34. You can buy them sizes from five to fifty-five gallons.
You can help protect the water by putting in a few drops per gallon of bleach. The chlorine will help kill bacteria.
To help preserve a fresh taste, add one teaspoon per gallon of powdered ascorbic acid. That's Vitamin C, so it should be available in your local health food store, If not, you can find it online.
If you do have a problem, turn off the main water valve to your house. You should have the wrench for that, and have the valve available in your front yard. You never know when you may need that to stop a water flow inside your home due to plumbing problems.
You can do what much of the world does -- put clean containers outside to catch the rain, or snow in winter. If you're close to an urban area, though it should be purified because it's passed through polluted air.
Clean Water in an Emergency
By: Richard Stooker
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