Preparedness Questions

[rudyc]

Nice, I am going with a 30 day supple also, how do you like your filter straw ? I have the life straw it's great for my get home bag [GHB].
Have you seen a five gallon water filter set up ?

i have not seen a five gallon water filter set up, if i have, i have not remembered. but the straw i have used a few times to test it out. you still need to boil the water or use the water tablets, or chlorine. it is meant as a basic filter.

• Removes the following:
• Dangerous heavy metals like Lead, Mercury and Chromium 6
• Bad-tasting chlorine (tthm)
• Industrial pollutants like Benzene and mtbe
• Not for use with water that is microbiologically unsafe or of unknown quality

but as emergency goes, i can still drink water with out having to worry about getting too sick or it is still better than nothing. i am currently saving up for another katadyn filter.

 

[Colt 1911]

i have not seen a five gallon water filter set up, if i have, i have not remembered. but the straw i have used a few times to test it out. you still need to boil the water or use the water tablets, or chlorine. it is meant as a basic filter.

• Removes the following:
• Dangerous heavy metals like Lead, Mercury and Chromium 6
• Bad-tasting chlorine (tthm)
• Industrial pollutants like Benzene and mtbe
• Not for use with water that is microbiologically unsafe or of unknown quality

but as emergency goes, i can still drink water with out having to worry about getting too sick or it is still better than nothing. i am currently saving up for another katadyn filter.

Check out the life straw

http://www.basspro.com/LifeStraw-Pe...sions&om_mmc=shopping_googleproductextensions

 

[rudyc]

i have seen this filter straw before, and it looks like an even better made straw with better filtration system in it. i might get one.

the reason i bought the other straws were because they were cheaper and i was getting more than one. for multiple bug out bags.

 

[inplainsiteprepper]

If the SHTF right now how long would you be able to survive?
How long will your current food/water supply last?
Just some food for thought.....

I have 6 days of food and water in BOB and on the 200 mile trip to my bug out local I have total nearly 6 weeks of food and drinks takin into count stagnent water will only store for so long before becoming unsafe to drink with that I stored energy drinks and sports drinks in my CACHE for the sugars and electrolites so for me if it takes more than a a few days to go 200 miles then I will have tasty drinks for the trip

 

[Dani]

200 miles could be a very slow process in a doomsday situation. I evacuated during hurricane Rita, which was a 3 hour drive from where I was, and it took me alot longer to get back home since I had to go around the military/police barricades. Once I hit an Interstate to get home, there was military at every excit that would not let you pass through. I was lucky since my husband was a police office. I just called him up and he met me and he was able to flag me in. So, I am hoping you have the same luck.

 

[inplainsiteprepper]

I have mapped every back road and trail to save me time in any way

 

[ubduomk]

I have 3 cases of MREs and 2 buckets of dehydrated foods it's about 65-90 day's worth of food.
I have 10 gallons of water. if i'm lucky it might last 10 days

I want to get more water, I want to buy a 55 gallon drum or several, they're pretty cheap but where ot put it? can't do it in the backyard, considered an eyesore and against CC&Rs. not upstairs where most of my food is stored, at 440 lbs (water only) per drum, in a wood framed house and in a quake zone, sounds like asking to trouble. I could put in in the garage, but there is no space.
The current system of using 2.5 gallon and 1 gallon jugs of water from the store sucks. the containers can't be stacked on safety, and they cant' sit over anything since hey're heavy. they also like to leak after a few months, it's unpredictable and risky- they can leak undetected for a while and then I'd find serious mold growth and supplies ruined! bottled water keeps longer but cost much much more, and inefficient use of space.
The best solution and it's quite affordable is to get those blue 55 gallon drums, if only I had a place ot put them...

The current plan is to rush out and buy them all when the SHTF starts. to hell with the CC&R's, I doubt they'd be suing anyone when there's anarchy all over! I could have 10 drums in the backyard in 3 hours. figure I cna jam 5 drums in my minivan, 2 trips. the store's only 3 miles away but i figure with all the panic buying and stuff that might be happening it will take much longer to get there and back! if I can strap a few to the roof of my minivan I can get maximum 20 drums in 3 hours. then it'll take 2-4 hours ot fill them all and disinfected...
there's also plans to get groundwater going, although there's too many unknowns about it. first, digging a 50 foot shaft will be very very difficult. 2nd, who knows what the ground water is like? the data i have it really doesn't look good. 3rd, how the heck will get water up 50 feet? and 4th, how will i clean the water to make it usable, will solar distillation remove the toxins like pesticides, heavy metals, other chemicals and jet fuel?

assuming i can get more water I have supplies for 65 to 90 days. If I can keep the garden going supplies for 100 days. if I can hunt the local wildlife in the area (rabbits mostly) and have edible meat, I can push to 180 days.

 

[RV-Kitty]

Water would be no problem. We have enough food for about 2 weeks. We have backup heat in the house if the electricity goes out - kerosene and a fireplace. We have enough wood stacked for an entire winter. We also have a 28' RV with a propane furnace, fridge and cookstove. We would be fine until the propane tanks were empty.

 

[Maverick]

Water: For the home I have Big Berkey on stand by, If I have to bug out I can also take one of the filters used for the Berkey with me for large volume filtering using a couple of modified parts in my field pack to use with collapsible camp bucket.

 

[RV-Kitty]

We can hide and store enough food, water, and arms to get us through any initial collapse in unprepared human thinning out, then become farmers, etc; but there is no way the water will survive the shtf. Filtration is going to be the key to life for everyone that survives the initial collapse, I feel. At least that's my fear at the moment; that and hiding out long enough to get through it.

Start stocking up on chlorine bleach. Water can also be boiled before drinking.

 

[Trapper]

Start stocking up on chlorine bleach. Water can also be boiled before drinking.

Use pool shock to store instead of bleach. Bleach has a shelf life of 6 months at best. You can make liquid bleach by mixing pool shock with water. Shelf life after mixing is 6 months after it is mixed. Mix as needed. 5 pounds of pool shock will treat like 100,000 gallons of water.

If you want to save money make your own bleach and get used to using it. Keep your old bleach bottles to mix it in so its not confused with any other household products. You can get a 5 pound packet of shock and it is cheap and last forever.

 

[Lindy]

Where do you find Pool Shock if there are no Pool stores around you?

 

[bairleafarm]

I noticed Wal-Mart hadpool supplies. They don't carry the big buckets but 1 gallon of shock is better than no shock.

 

[Trapper]

One heaping teaspooon of shock will make 2 gallons of bleach. You only need 8 -12 drops of bleach to purify a gallon of water. So a pound of pool shock will treat about 30,000gallons of water. If you buy a couple of pounds of shock it will be more than enough. Like I said before you can save alot of money by making your own bleach for laundry and every day use.​

 

[Clyde]

One heaping teaspooon of shock will make 2 gallons of bleach. You only need 8 -12 drops of bleach to purify a gallon of water. So a pound of pool shock will treat about 30,000gallons of water. If you buy a couple of pounds of shock it will be more than enough. Like I said before you can save alot of money by making your own bleach for laundry and every day use.​

do you often use Pool Shock?
I admit I like the idea, easier to transport in a bug out situation.

 

[Shenandoah]

I have 3 cases of MREs and 2 buckets of dehydrated foods it's about 65-90 day's worth of food.
I have 10 gallons of water. if i'm lucky it might last 10 days

I want to get more water, I want to buy a 55 gallon drum or several, they're pretty cheap but where ot put it? can't do it in the backyard, considered an eyesore and against CC&Rs. not upstairs where most of my food is stored, at 440 lbs (water only) per drum, in a wood framed house and in a quake zone, sounds like asking to trouble. I could put in in the garage, but there is no space.
The current system of using 2.5 gallon and 1 gallon jugs of water from the store sucks. the containers can't be stacked on safety, and they cant' sit over anything since hey're heavy. they also like to leak after a few months, it's unpredictable and risky- they can leak undetected for a while and then I'd find serious mold growth and supplies ruined! bottled water keeps longer but cost much much more, and inefficient use of space.
The best solution and it's quite affordable is to get those blue 55 gallon drums, if only I had a place ot put them...

The current plan is to rush out and buy them all when the SHTF starts. to hell with the CC&R's, I doubt they'd be suing anyone when there's anarchy all over! I could have 10 drums in the backyard in 3 hours. figure I cna jam 5 drums in my minivan, 2 trips. the store's only 3 miles away but i figure with all the panic buying and stuff that might be happening it will take much longer to get there and back! if I can strap a few to the roof of my minivan I can get maximum 20 drums in 3 hours. then it'll take 2-4 hours ot fill them all and disinfected...
there's also plans to get groundwater going, although there's too many unknowns about it. first, digging a 50 foot shaft will be very very difficult. 2nd, who knows what the ground water is like? the data i have it really doesn't look good. 3rd, how the heck will get water up 50 feet? and 4th, how will i clean the water to make it usable, will solar distillation remove the toxins like pesticides, heavy metals, other chemicals and jet fuel?

assuming i can get more water I have supplies for 65 to 90 days. If I can keep the garden going supplies for 100 days. if I can hunt the local wildlife in the area (rabbits mostly) and have edible meat, I can push to 180 days.

In response to your question, "How the heck will I get water up 50 feet?" Thats pretty cheap and easy! Check out Flojak.com for $399 you can get the complete hand-pump kit to pump water for a 50' system. Or...our well is only 26' deep so I went to the RV store, purchased a 12v water pump, dropped a line right down in the well casing, attached it to the 12v pump (with the help of a radiator clamp.) Next, I took a cheap 800watt B&D inverter and clipped it to a marine battery, hooked up my water pump and voila!! The 12v pump easily moves water up 26' and out to each of our (4) areas for livestock. Is it fast? No! But it sure beats hand-pumping that water! My husband has since attached a toggle-switch to the water pump for ease of use and we now have a 100w solar panel that keeps (2) dedicated marine batteries charged for wtshtf.

Likewise, we have a similar system for our big chest freezer. Except, we keep it running on solar all the time now. We don't have the resources to put in a big 'ol solar system for our home/farm, etc. but with a couple of these cheap emergency systems, our lives will be much easier when chaos strikes. Our thoughts being, we will use the refrigerator as an ice box, freezing gallon jugs of water in the chest freezer and then putting them in the fridge to keep things such as milk, eggs, jello cool, in the house. I became well versed in this type solar system while living in my lil 12' camper for the past 5 years...I'm a traveling nurse and so I stay on BLM/National Forest land and they seldom have access to power. For <$400 I set my camper up entirely on solar! I am able to run lights, a fan, my laptop computer and a tv or stereo for "free"! Where there is a will, there is a way!

Blessings,
Shenandoah

 

[Trapper]

I have made bleach for home use. I have not used it to purify water. When getting pool shock look at the ingredients to make sure there is no fillers or antifungals. Get pool shock that is calcium hypochlorite. There is a lot of info on it just search the web.

 

[Lindy]

I noticed Wal-Mart hadpool supplies. They don't carry the big buckets but 1 gallon of shock is better than no shock.

Thank you sir. I will put it on my list next time we go to Wal-Mart.

 

[Lindy]

One heaping teaspooon of shock will make 2 gallons of bleach. You only need 8 -12 drops of bleach to purify a gallon of water. So a pound of pool shock will treat about 30,000gallons of water. If you buy a couple of pounds of shock it will be more than enough. Like I said before you can save alot of money by making your own bleach for laundry and every day use.​

Thank you for the info. I put it on my list next time we drive near Wal-Mart. This seems to make much more sence than buying bleach. It helps to know how much pool shock to use. Thanks for your help. ~Lindy

 

[RV-Kitty]

Thank you sir. I will put it on my list next time we go to Wal-Mart.

They only sell it in the spring in the north, so stock up depending where you live.

 

[RV-Kitty]

Thank you for the info. I put it on my list next time we drive near Wal-Mart. This seems to make much more sence than buying bleach. It helps to know how much pool shock to use. Thanks for your help. ~Lindy

You don't use bleach in your laundry? I like to use it for all whites, socks and underwear. I would still want it for doing laundry if the SHTF.

I know what "Shock" is but never considered it to "clean" water of bacteria, fungi and parasites for drinking.

 

[Lindy]

You don't use bleach in your laundry? I like to use it for all whites, socks and underwear. I would still want it for doing laundry if the SHTF.

I know what "Shock" is but never considered it to "clean" water of bacteria, fungi and parasites for drinking.

Hi Ms. RV-Kitty, I use bleach on some laundry. I never realized there is an expiration date on bleach. It sounds like Pool Shock doesn't have a date while storing it. I also thought bleach took out bacteria fungi and parasites but I was assuming (a dangerous thing assuming) . I will have to look into this Pool Shock further. Bless your day. ~Lindy

 

[Clyde]

I have made bleach for home use. I have not used it to purify water. When getting pool shock look at the ingredients to make sure there is no fillers or antifungals. Get pool shock that is calcium hypochlorite. There is a lot of info on it just search the web.

Thanks for the info! I will certainly search for it!

 

[Shenandoah]

Thank you sir. I will put it on my list next time we go to Wal-Mart.

Hey Lindy-
Looks like you are fairly new at the prepping thing....If you are interested, I developed a simple plan that I call the Food Storage Map. As a health care provider I wanted to come up with shelf-stable, nutritious, foods that are cheap to stock up on. It was originally designed for a one month purchase plan that would cost you approx $60/month. We also compiled a list of medical supplies to put into your must-have list. If interested, I will be more than happy to email it to ya...no cost. We believe the more prepared folks are, the safer we all are!

Blessings,
Shenandoah

 

[Trapper]

Hey Lindy-
Looks like you are fairly new at the prepping thing....If you are interested, I developed a simple plan that I call the Food Storage Map. As a health care provider I wanted to come up with shelf-stable, nutritious, foods that are cheap to stock up on. It was originally designed for a one month purchase plan that would cost you approx $60/month. We also compiled a list of medical supplies to put into your must-have list. If interested, I will be more than happy to email it to ya...no cost. We believe the more prepared folks are, the safer we all are!

Blessings,
Shenandoah

Shanandoah,
Perhaps you can start another thread with your info and provide your list. It sounds helpful not only to the newbies, but even some of us oldbies as well!! I know Im interested in seeing it.

 

[jjrfs]

Hello all, if you're going to use pool chems as a chlorine source, some advice:

For "pool shock" make sure the chemical in it is calcium hypochlorite, or "calhypo." There are non-chlorine shocks out there for pools, such as monopotassium persulfate.

Other dry chlorine tabs used for pool servicing are called "trichlor" and "dichlor" marketed under different brand names. Trichlor has more chlorine content than dichlor. Calhypo has more chlorine than both of those, as it's usually used to shock out organic contaminants.

DO NOT store calhypo with trichlor, dichlor, or any acids. They are incompatible chemicals and can cause explosions.​

​

http://www.anotherperfectpoolnews.com/2011/06/26/incompatible-pool-chemicals/​

​

​

 

[jjrfs]

Also, your chlorinated drinking water should end up being anywhere from 2 to 4 ppm (parts per million). You can measure this with test strips.

Something like this, just make sure the testing range is from 0-5 ppm. Some test strips measure ranges from 0-200 ppm or so.

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/LAMOTTE-Test-Strip-4EVU3

 

[La_crimson_nape]

I have a couple of back packing water filters and life straw, it would be nice to have something that could do some volume.

What about building a filter? I saw one constructed on some show, where they used charcoal and sand(?) and a 55 gallon drum.

 

[Colt 1911]

What about building a filter? I saw one constructed on some show, where they used charcoal and sand(?) and a 55 gallon drum.

That's a damn good idea. check this out

 

[Mike Quinn]

As of today I have enough food to last me and my family about a month, this consists of canned goods and rice and pasta.