Survival Group
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Water Purification
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Water Purification
Let’s talk about water. Most of us know to boil water if we aren’t sure of its potability, but what else can we do?
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46 Replies
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I found a document that outlines how to use bleach to help purify water. I will try to find it and post it up on here.
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I have been purifying water using bleach for sometime. If you’re afraid of the bleach taste you dont have to worry. After the bleach,( which is a very small amount depending on the size you’re purifying) will become tasteless around 24 to 48 hours. I carry a small bottlr of bleach in backpack or bugout bag, so if needed I only have to put a drop in a 10oz water bottle. It works if you just dont have any other source of purifying.
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If you can purify a gallon of water with 8 drops of bleach, you should probably keep a dozen or so gallons of bleach in garage, right?
WRONG!
It turns out that liquid bleach can only effectively purify water for about six months. I was recently informed that one can avoid the burden of replacing bottles of bleach every few months by spending about $10 on a container of pool chlorine powder that will stay effective indefinitely (when stored correctly) and purify enough water to last a family of four over 200 years.
The ratio is one teaspoon of chlorine powder for 50 gallons of water.
So it looks like I’ll be freeing up some space in the garage, does anyone want a dozen gallons of two-year-old bleach?
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**IMPORTANT**
The 1 tsp. to 50 gallons ratio was from one particular product. DO NOT ASSUME THAT THIS RATIO WILL BE ACCURATE FOR YOU. for the products available in your area. Different products may have different concentrations, so definitely check your label and the manufacturer’s instructions.
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Im glad I read this because I have been rotating my bleach so it wont expire. Ill definitely get some pool chlorine powder instead of carrying around a small bottle of bleach like I have been for emergency. The powder will be a lot easier to carry and store. Thank you for the article.
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Happy to help, and thanks SelfReliancePepe for the tip (if you ever find your way here).
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Good information. I’m purchasing DryTec, glass jars with plastic lids to store it in. And going to print labels with instructions. It might be my friends and families Christmas gifts this year 😂. The provident preppers have a great YouTube video with all the info
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Cool idea!
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Thank you
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Oh wow, okay. I hadn’t thought about pool chlorine, or the bleach not being viable in a few months. How much chlorine do you use per gallon.
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With a 1 tsp chlorine powder to 50 gallon of water ratio, I wouldn’t recommend trying to treat a single bottle unless you have experience measuring out miniscule amounts of powder.
You could figure out the ratio for one gallon by weighing 1tsp. of chlorine powder on a kitchen scale (I’d use grams) and divide by 50.
I wouldn’t even attempt to do it that way, as there are a variet of MUCH safer methods to purify small quantities of water.
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That depends on the percentage of active ingredient. It varies so the ratio changes. Are you using 71% or 56% etc.
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Hi, For smaller quantities the calcium can be used to make bleach. As described in Tamrock’s picture above. Bleach has a shelf
life of about 6 months after which it will deteriorate at a rate of 20% a year.
Dry HTH pool shock when kept cool and dry will last a long time.
Calcium Hypochlorite should be used, not Sodium Hypochlorite. Insure there are no additives
such as algicides which are commonly in super pool shock. Do not drinkuse the bleach to disinfect smaller quantities of the water per Clorox’s site.
https://www.clorox.com/learn/how-to-disinfect-drinking-water-with-bleach/
Actually now that I look at it again. that part is also in the picture. Thanks for providing it.
thank you
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An important distinction, thank you!
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Thank you for mentioning this very important issue. I have Pool Shock IT stored just for the purpose of water purification. Learned of it several years ago. A one lb bag makes A LOT of water purification solution & if I remember correctly it is enough to purify 10,000 gallons of water, depending on the % of calcium hypochlorite it has. Walmart has 56% & SOMETIMES 68% whereas pool supply companies carry up to 99%.
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We use these when hiking and hunting for our water bladders. I don’t see an expiration date. I even checked the ones that I have opened.
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Fun fact: there is no expiration date because the FDA considers them a pesticide and doesn’t require one. With that, expect water purified with iodine tablets to wipe out much of you gut bacteria, so maybe try to get some yogurt, keffir, or other probiotics in your system if possible.
That said, iodine tablets are legit. They are the SERE School go-to for a reason. A good rule of thumb is that they last for 4 years when sealed and stored correctly (dry, cool, and out of direct sunlight), and no more than one year after you open the bottle.
If you are unsure if the tablets are still good, look at the bottle. Is the wax seal broken? Is the lid rusted? If so I’d consider the bottle opened. For the tablets themselves, what color are they? Grayish or brown is good, yellowish or green is trash. You could also try squeezing one between your fingers; if it crumbles easily, it’s garbage.
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For clean water on-the-go, I really like the Sawyer MINI. I’ve been using the same one for a couple years now, and it’s still going strong. Just keep it from freezing, backflush it between trips, and make some attempt to filter out large particles from the water (a t-shirt, shemegh, or even a sock is fine) before running it through the filter.
Protip: if the security situation is less than permissible, use a Smart Water bottle for collection and more to a more secure area to treat and drink. The thread pattern on a Smart Water bottle matches the thread pattern on the filter, fills much faster, and holds twice as much. Just be sure to mark or remember that bottle as “dirty” and avoid drinking from it directly.
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I 100% agree with the Sawyer Mini. They are the absolute best backpack water filter for the money on the market as far as I am concerned. I have been using them for ever.
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Sawyer Mini is the best in my opinion
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Personally, I like the Sawyer. I tend to order one or two when I place an Amazon order so that I can gift them to friends and family. Even if they’re not into preparedness. Who knows, it may just bless them in the future.
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What about grapefruit seed extract? Would it kill of nasty bugs, without harming the gut biome? Any essential oils that are able to do the trick? Such as wild oregano oil?
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Yes, I have and use these both.
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I recommend these, for the highest quality!! I’ve been in the holistic health field for years, and these are the best. Most essential oils are cut with nasty things you don’t want. These are the best , especially the Oregano, straight from the Greece mountains where it’s harvested at its peak, the highest quality, thus being the most potent!!! I put it on my feet, in the diffuser, tablespoons. Here’s the website and link for the Oregano: https://aromavita.gr/product/wild-greek-oregano-10-1000ml/
I believe I got the Grapefruit seed extract from iHerb.com.
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I know moringa purifies water as well.
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https://youtu.be/2aRUU_j2MPQhttps://youtu.be/2aRUU_j2MPQ
FRESNEL LENS….I once made one using clear vinyl on a 2×4 frame. (Then fill w/water) to make parabolic lens…My kid and I were melting rocks and coins in an old iron crucible. The beam could melt the skin offa your hand. Pretty sure this will kill a parasite…..oh, the memories🙃
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I like Fresnel lenses, and I keep a few in my wallet, glove box, and pack. Probably the smallest and lightest multiuse firestarting device on the market. If no one else brings it up, I’ll kick off a firestarting discussion tommorrow. I’m always on the lookout for new ways to do that.
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Do you understand the science behind the lens as to how it’s made? Very interesting.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 7 months ago by Art.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 7 months ago by
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I just ordered the Sawyer Minis. Thanks for the heads up on this filter.
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Happy to help.
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Does anyone prep the unscented bleach tablets for water purification?
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Nope. Depending on the brand, it could work, but definitely read the label and scrutinize all of the ingredients.
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https://youtu.be/_70RWlYvuq4https://youtu.be/_70RWlYvuq4
Best video I’ve found on water purification
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Bleach, otherwise known in liquid form as Sodium Hypochlorite, or in the solid as Calcium Hypochlorite are both carcinogens. While you can disinfect water with them and have been in use for over 100 yrs to do just that they are still not good for the human body to consume. Once you disinfect the water it is best to leave the lid off your container to allow the chlorine gases to escape before consuming. I understand in an emergency we all have to do what we have to do at the moment. Just food for thought.
I am a 30 plus retired water treatment plant operator and so is my husband and I am speaking from experience.
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My plan is to use the Calcium Hypochlorite to kill all the nasty stuff then filter it through a PortaWell to remove sediment and other particulates and it does so at about a gallon a minute using a two-stage filtering process with carbon block, ceramic standard home filters. It requires less than 35 watts to operate and can run off a 12v battery (8 Ah will run it for an hour). I find this process more practical for larger volumes of water compared to using a Berkey gravity system.
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We live in mid-Missouri in a rural farming area. Our main water source is the county water line (which has good water} and backup is rainwater off our garden house with a metal roof; held in a 55 gallon food grade barrel. It may be good enough to drink as is, but I may need o filter out a tree frog or two. What would you do before drinking?
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Rainwater collection from a clean metal roof is pretty much the gold standard. You can buy a downspout diverter that will divert some of the initial downpour (and whatever leaves, acorns, dirt, pollen and bird dropping were on your roof) away from your collection barrels for a few seconds. Terminating your downspout a couple inches above your collection barrel and installing a tight mesh over the hole in the barrel will prevent critters from finding their way in. Geoff Lawton like to say that if you can breathe the air, you can drink the rainwater.
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Thanks. We normally have wonderful air. I grew up the first twenty three years of my life drinking water from a cistern. Now and then, we would have to toss out a fishing-worm, but my dad said that “they don’t drink much”.
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I bought streaming tablets in place of bleach for sterilizing surfaces, but I don’t know if that can be used for drinking water. Anyone know?
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Sorry, that should say Steramine not streaming.
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Steramine is NOT recommended for purifying drinking water.
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Thank you! Thankfully we do have our Katadyn filtration system and I guess we will just continue to trust that.
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After TX ice storm knocked out city water, we all had a good discussion on it. Boiling water only kills bacteria. So you have microscopic dead bacteria in it. It doesn’t remove the bacteria. And you want to shake that water a bit to add oxygen. Otherwise it may taste flat. A tiny pinch of salt also adds flavor.
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dakota well
it is using nature as a water filter
this video will show you and explain all you need to know
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