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By Kellene Bishop
Water Storage Myth: Treat your water and then store it.
Water Storage Fact: Actually, if you use regular tap water, it’s already treated. There’s no need to add any additional chemicals to it when it’s just going to be sitting in a container. If your water needs treatment, do so at the point of using it, not prior to storing it.
Water Storage Myth: Don’t store your water barrels on cement.
Water Storage Fact: Actually, there’s always a missing component to this myth. The key is not to store your water barrels on HEATED cement, and even that’s questionable advice. To store your water in your basement on the cement floor is just fine. There’s no need to make your barrels less stable by putting them on 2 x 4s. Cement only leaches chemicals when it gets hot. If you’re going to store your water in your garage, where the sun heats up the connecting driveway cement, then yes, I’d consider raising your barrels up on floor boards or such.
Water Storage Myth: Stored water tastes bad.
Water Storage Fact: Stored water is merely lacking oxygen. You can get it back to tasting great simply by pouring it back and forth a couple of times between a couple of pitchers, or glasses. This will infuse oxygen back into your water.
Water Storage Myth: I’ve got a pool out back for our water storage, so I don’t need to store any otherwise.
Water Storage Fact: One who has this opinion is taking a big risk, one which I would not venture to take. It’s presuming that no animal waste, nuclear waste, or other biological poisoning will enter the pool water. Also, if there is a water shortage in your area, and your big pool is out there for all of the desperate folks to see, you’re simply begging for some dangerous self-defense scenarios. You might as well leave your car doors unlocked with your wallet on the front seat. In the event of a real emergency, I would ALWAYS recommend that families store water as well as presuming that their pool water supply will be available, thus preventing it from outdoor contaminates and ensuring that you have water to survive in the event of all possible scenarios.
Water Storage Myth: I have iodine tablets and I know where the river is.
Water Storage Fact: You and everybody else. Just how long do you think that river supply is going to be available to you and your family? How useful will that river supply be to you in the event of a flood? Iodine tables don’t do too well with cleaning out home and body parts. How much vital physical energy will it take you to fetch enough water for you and your family to survive long term? People who have this attitude sure are taking a huge gamble. Remember that conserving your own physical energy should be your first priority in an emergency. So purposefully putting yourself in a situation in which you need to work hard for water is short-sighted. Also, you’re assuming that your iodine tablets will take care of whatever is in the outdoor water, regardless of what it’s been exposed to. (See previous myth/fact example) If you have water stored in quality containers in your home, you can save your physical energy for other more important tasks, and you will ensure that your water supply is protected and is YOURS. Not only that, but chemical treatment of water is not the safest. Heating your water, such as boiling it, is by far the safest method of treating your water.
You’re also assuming that you won’t be quarantined and that the streets will be safe to travel.
Water Storage Myth: Boil your water for 10 minutes in order for it to be safe.
Water Storage Fact: Actually, you do not need to boil your water. Boiling the water is actually a waste of precious fuel. Water boils at 212 degrees. However, getting your water to a heat of 160 degrees for 30 minutes will kill all pathogens, and 185 degrees at for only 3 minutes. This is true even at a high altitude. (Note that my preferred way of heating water is in a solar oven. No fuel waste!)
Water Storage Myth: You only need 2 weeks worth of water for your family.
Water Storage Fact: Two weeks is only enough to get you from one point to another. Long-term survival will require a year’s supply of water. The magnitude of a disaster which would create a long-term water shortage, would also require 3.5 years of repairs in order for you to have the kind of water access you are accustomed to now. So really, a one year supply of water is still a minimalistic “get-us-through-until-we-can-find-a-good-well-or-other-water-supply” kind of storage. And besides, if you’re not storing a year’s supply of water, no one else is. So now let’s compound your problem exponentially in your community and discover just how fast the “native get restless.”
Water Storage Myth: I don’t need to drink a gallon of water a day!
Water Storage Fact: The recommend amount of one gallon per person, per day is not just for drinking. It’s for bathing, (as hygiene is critical), sanitation (you gotta manually flush your stuff in an emergency, folks), medical (some instances require more drinking water than others), cooking, and cleaning. Next time you think one gallon of water a day sounds like a lot, measure how much water you put in the pot when you boil water, wash your dishes, or wash your clothes. It’s a LOT more than you think!
Also, your kidneys process the equivalent of 400-500 gallons of water per DAY! If you don’t feed your body new water, then the old water ends up looking like nasty oil in a car that hasn’t been changed in 10,000 miles. When times are tough, you don’t want to try and use that kidney of yours as a commercial slime filter, do you?
Water Storage Myth: Food is more important than water.
Water Storage Fact: Nope. You can go several days without food. You cannot live without water for longer than ONE day without seriously beginning to tax your body. It only goes downhill from there. Without water, your muscles lose their elasticity, your organs shut down, and your senses are dulled. None of these are situations you want to occur during an emergency.
Water Storage Myth: I don’t need water. I’ve got a year’s supply of Gatorade.
Water Storage Fact: Liquid intake is not the same as water intake. The moment you add ANYTHING to your water, your body no longer takes it in as water. It has to process it, filter it, and THEN use what water is left in the liquid before it benefits from it. If your body has to work hard to process the liquids it takes in, it’s using more vital energy. In a perfect world, your water drink for refreshment would consist of distilled water, as that’s what you body can use the most readily.
Water Storage Myth: I’ve got 2-liter bottles, old milk jugs, and juice bottles full of water. I’m set.
Water Storage Fact: Ok. This is better than nothing. But if it’s water than you intend on saving your life, I would definitely consider more sturdy and durable containers. In my opinion, even the water that is sold in the stores is insufficiently packaged for long-term storage in most cases. The plastic is too vulnerable for rugged use and access. I also don’t advise storing drinking water in used containers. And whatever you do, stop storing water in the old milk jugs. Those are the WORST in terms of chemical leaking and plastic breakdown.
Water Storage Myth: I’ve got ten 55 gallon drums full of water. I’m set.
Water Storage Fact: It’s great that you’ve got that much water. However, consider also having some water that’s more portable as well. It will make your life physically easier in surviving a long-term emergency situation. And by all means, make sure you’ve got the hardware necessary to get your water out of those big drums such as a hand pump, wrench, etc.
Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.
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August 11, 2009 at 5:04 pm
Excellent post, Kellene. The Utah Preppers just wrapped up a group buy on high-capacity water tanks. They are an great way to store a year’s supply of water and are much more convenient for rotating and using your water. While the group buy is over, we may still be able to get a discount on one of these 275 or 525 gallon tanks for individuals in Utah County. Anyone else in the country is welcome to contact us as well to see what options there are.
August 11, 2009 at 5:12 pm
wow great write up Kellene. You really hit all the points. I might have to repost this in the coming weeks!
August 11, 2009 at 5:19 pm
My only problem with water storage is how in the world am I going to be able to store a year’s supply for a family of 7!? Seriously.
August 11, 2009 at 5:24 pm
Let’s face it. Emergency preparedness is hardly ever convenient. I know that I can always find a way or reason not to do something. But when things go bad, I’m certain that all of those reasons will seem insubstantial. Don’t you?
I don’t know what your living situation is, but you can always store water gallons to the side of your house. If you get the sturdy ones and don’t fill them to the max, they will be ok, even in the dead of winter. It will mean that you will need to thaw them when you need access to them, but that’s what I would store a bit of water inside the home for, in such an instance. Share with me what your particular challenges are and I’ll try to address them.
August 11, 2009 at 5:58 pm
Some issues I can come up with is cost, new barrels are expensive. I would need 1000 gallons or 20 barrels which is $1000 or more. Second, does heat matter? If I store water in my garage in a new barrel is it safe to drink after a year or so, while I need to purify it still?
August 11, 2009 at 9:57 pm
you can buy some of the barrels used for much less, but use that water for your non-drinking water. Heat does not matter so long as you’re not allowing the cement to heat directly under the barrels. Yes, you should still purify your drinking water prior to consuming it after such storage, to be safe.
August 11, 2009 at 5:28 pm
A good goal is 100 gallons per person. Two SureWater tanks would get you close to that and would only take up 14 square feet of floor space. You could then make up the rest in smaller portable containers.
August 12, 2009 at 11:45 am
Storing a year’s supply of water for a whole family (9 in my case) is an absolutely absurd idea. I would need 65 barrels in order to do that for my family. You tell others to store some outside. Is that any different than those who say they are storing it in their pool? No.. just easier for those who are desperate to steal it. Let’s face it. If there is a disaster that requires me to have over 3000 gallons of water to survive then we are not going to survive. SImple as that. I believe that the directive to store 2 weeks of water is at least possible. I have 600 gallons in my home. I am happy with that. If any of you are storing over 3000 gallons in your home (without a pool), send me a photo. I would like to see that. As for storing them outside, our climate goes to -40 degrees in the winter. That is going to freeze those barrels solid and they will take days to thaw out. This is if you can get them in the house but that would take a lot of wasted energy now wouldn’t it! I think posts like this simply scare people into doing nothing! Telling us to have a year’s supply of water is simply fear mongering… nothing more.
August 12, 2009 at 12:02 pm
I didn’t see anything wrong with her post. Store as much as you can, both financially and operationally. Obviously have a 100 gallons each for a family of 9 is going to be pretty hard to achive. I’m impressed that you have 600 gallons. I think that that’s excellent. It sounds like you’re set. I’d call it good and move on to your next prep item.
August 12, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Apparently Lorin, I’ve pressed on something that you’re not comfortable or mentally prepared to deal with just yet. And that’s fine. There are many that feel the way you do about every aspect of emergency preparedness, not just water. But their arguments are shallow and will be meaningless when, not if, a dire time occurs. At least you’re a lot further along than others with being willing to store a 2 weeks supply.
In order to get frozen barrels from outside, in, simply use a portable dolly. Even though I’m undertall and overweight, I’ve been able to easily manage that. This is also why I specifically mention in the article to be sure that you have some water that’s not frozen inside.
At present, my husband and I have 2,000 gallons of water–no pool, as there is just the two of us. However, we are still in the process of obtaining more. I’ve actually already published a picture of one cluster of that water supply–about 400 gallons.
If I’m a “fearmonger…nothing more” then so is the Bible as it’s full of woes, warnings, and very graphic scenes of promise of what will indeed come. I’m hopeful that no one reads the Bible and then throws up their hands and says “then we are not going to survive.” As I’m certain that that was not the Lord’s intent in warning us. Along with His warnings are several pleadings that we prepare, be watchful, and be ready. I don’t believe He’s giving us futile instructions in doing so.
August 11, 2009 at 5:20 pm
A practice from when I was a child that is still hanging around is putting bleach in your water. While bleach can be used to treat water in an emergency, I sure wouldn’t want to drink bleach flavored water if I could avoid it. I support your believe that there is no need to treat water coming out of the tap in most metropolitan areas.
August 11, 2009 at 5:25 pm
When I lived in the Philippines for 18 months, this is how we treated every drink we had. You get used to the taste after a while. And just imagine how squeaky clean your insides are? 🙂
August 11, 2009 at 6:47 pm
I live in Florida and have no other options other than storing water in the garage which gets hot. Is it safe storing tap water in 55gal barrels with a lot of hot days? I also am thinking about storing 55gal barrels on the north side of my house but it would be exposed…other than covering it with canvas or something. Do you think that would be ok?
Thanks, love your blog!
August 11, 2009 at 9:56 pm
Yes, so long as it’s stored in a quality water container, it will be fine. It will simply taste stale and need aeration in order for you to drink it comfortably.
August 11, 2009 at 10:43 pm
If you’re looking to buy 55 gallon drums, Walmart has them for $38 right now (at least here in Utah). That’s half the price of Emergency Essentials.
August 12, 2009 at 9:40 am
Just about everyplace is about half the price of Emergency Essentials. That store drives me crazy. It because of stores like that that more people don’t do anything about emergency preparedness. It’s just too dang expensive. (sorry for my rant…)
August 12, 2009 at 5:50 am
Stockpiling an arsenal of bleach
It may not result in total breakdown, but storing bleach is likely to lessen the effectiveness of the product. Sodium hypochlorite solutions have been shown to decompose rapidly, so much so that the EPA requires manufacturers of bleaches with 5.25 to 12.5 percent sodium hypochlorite to add special language to their label: “Degrades with age. Use a test kit and increase dosage as necessary to obtain the required level of available chlorine.”
August 12, 2009 at 9:54 am
Charles, keep in mind that the degradation also applies to the container that it’s stored in.
August 12, 2009 at 11:45 am
Great topic! I have a question. Is there any other prep needed to store water in two liter bottles other than washing them out with soap and hot water?
Thanks for all that you do!
August 12, 2009 at 11:57 am
Nope.
August 13, 2009 at 4:55 am
Water not for consumption: I have been saving my old white Clorox Bleach (one gallon plastic) jugs for years. These are fine for storing water for household uses such as doing laundry, dishes, flushing commodes, cleaning the floor, and cleaning up other minor messes in emergencies. I save my tap water (from a well) in these as they are more sturdy than the plastic milk jugs.
For potable/drinking water I have used these in short term use for storms and minor power failures.
Just a nice resource you do not need to pay for if you use bleach.
Passer
August 13, 2009 at 9:53 am
Maybe you can help me brainstorm. We have 10 people in our family. I rent, and the HOA is very strict. There’s no way I can install a rain water catch or even store water outside and the garage is very small (not large enough for 2 cars; we have to store our utility trailer in there because of HOA rules). How/where do I store that much water?
We actually DO have catch containers outside (one under the AC drip) that we use for watering the garden, etc. and I have a Berkey, so we could drink it, possibly. Also, I’m in Houston – 100 degrees + here.
I have some recycled 5 gallon juice containers for water storage, and have about 100 gallons.
August 13, 2009 at 11:03 am
You definitely do have a challenging situation. If it were me, I would simply do the very best I can do. Having said that though, I’m going to still try and push you a little bit, especially with your family size. And with a family like that, there’s bound to be other’s calling in a time of trouble. I would make as much use of the bottoms of your closets, backs of your cupboards, and under the beds as is possible! You may need to to invest in better quality 5 gallon barrels in order to be able to put wood, and then more barrels of water on top of that. Don’t take up all of your space with water, obviously, but really push yourself to get in “just one more container of water” any time you can.
In FL, being without water will not be pleasant, obviously. I know that’s the only way I survived when I lived there, was to stay hydrated.
You definitely do have a challenging situation. If it were me, I would simply do the very best I can do. Having said that though, I’m going to still try and push you a little bit, especially with your family size. And with a family like that, there’s bound to be other’s calling in a time of trouble. I would make as much use of the bottoms of your closets, backs of your cupboards, and under the beds as is possible! You may need to to invest in better quality 5 gallon barrels in order to be able to put wood, and then more barrels of water on top of that. Don’t take up all of your space with water, obviously, but really push yourself to get in “just one more container of water” any time you can.
In FL, being without water will not be pleasant, obviously. I know that’s the only way I survived when I lived there, was to stay hydrated.
August 13, 2009 at 12:48 pm
Thanks for stopping by my blog – having grown up in Tucson I can appreciate the need for stored water. Great stuff!
August 24, 2009 at 5:36 pm
In response to Milehimama with a HOA to deal with. If you have a deck, can you build box-like enclosed benches along the rails and seal them with heavy vinyl and silicone? They can be filled like large aquarium tanks. If you can you will need to support the deck much more to hold the weight of excess water at approximately 8 pounds per gallon. Secondly, can you use trash cans outside and cover with hanging plant vines to conceal?
September 20, 2009 at 1:51 am
Check your water against the resources at the NY Times:
http://projects.nytimes.com/toxic-waters
In an article by Amy Goodman (http://bit.ly/15wsTA) that refers to the Times study, I learned that “Forty percent of the nation’s community water systems violated the Safe Drinking Water Act at least once, exposing over 23 million people to potential danger.”
Goodman goes on:
“An investigation by the New York Times has found chemical companies have violated the Clean Water Act more than 500,000 times in the last five years. Most of the violations have gone unpunished, with state regulators taking significant action in just three percent of all cases.
“Although some of the cases entailed minor violations, a majority of 60 percent were deemed to be in ‘significant noncompliance.’
So, before you store water, check the Times to see whether your water is at risk.
September 20, 2009 at 1:53 am
The article by Amy Goodman is an interview with the author of the Times pieces.
September 20, 2009 at 3:34 pm
I live in a small 3 bedroom home in Phoenix Arizona and have no room to store 55 gallon barrels inside. Are there any issues with storing these types of barrels outside in the Arizona heat? I plan to prop the barrels on wooden pallets, place them in a more shaded area, and cover them to lessen exposure to direct sunlight, but it’s very hot here.
September 20, 2009 at 4:08 pm
Yes, you can store them outside. But be sure you use the heavy duty water barrels as opposed to flimsy plastic. Yes, I would provide shade for them as well and prop them up on pallets. Dont’ fill them all the way full. Fill them only the 55 gallon line in order to allow for expansion due to the heat. We seem to forget that our water that gets to our homes travels through pipes that are exposed to the sun every day. You’ll be fine.