emergency water supply?

Xringer · 09-24-12, 09:43 AM

I was reading about how to store water for an emergency.

EMERGENCY DRINKING WATER SUPPLIES

If your city water supply was turned off for a few months and you had to
rely on your stored water (no water tankers etc. coming by).

You would be pretty much out of luck, unless you had your own well..

Are your prepared for a state-wide disaster scenario that lasts for months?

I know I'm not. Counting the 40 gal water heater tank, we have about 44 gallons of drinking water.
After that's gone we have a scum pond out back..

strider3700 · 09-24-12, 10:05 AM

I live in an earthquake zone. We have 5 gallons/person stored. Then we have the 60 gallon water tank. After that we fall back on the rain barrels and if need be the ditches.

I have one of the big berky's with 2 filters.
Berkey Water Filter - Water Filters and Purifiers, Water Filter Accessories and more

It's pricey but lasts effectively forever if you're using relatively clean water to drink and it's capable of taking swamp water and making it safe to drink requiring just gravity and some time.

We also use it when camping and sometimes in fall when the tap water here has issues and we get a boil water advisory due to huge rainfall events.

Xringer · 09-24-12, 09:21 PM

Wow! Thanks for the input. The reviews look very good and the units look like they are very well made.
The design reminds me of the old aluminum coffee pots we had in the USN.
I must have a 1/2 lb of aluminum in my bones by now..

Might be something we can use all the time, not just during the summer
fire hydrant flushing events..

We will be checking these out!

Take care,

strider3700 · 09-24-12, 09:46 PM

the water coming from it tastes far better then most tap water. If I didn't live somewhere with some of the best tap water on the planet I'd happily set it up and let it stay on the counter all the time. During the boil water advisories we fill it up let it filter, empty that into a jug and put that into the fridge. Cold pure water all the time.

OffGridKindaGuy · 09-28-12, 05:27 AM

I'm in emergency mode full time. I have no well and rely totally on cloud juice.

I have 400 gal. of storage inside that will support us for a couple of months. No cistern. I collect from the roof in a 375 gal. mushroom tank and top off the inside storage as I can. Add a dab of bleach everytime I pull some in and I'm good to go. It's a game in the winter to get the water inside before it freezes.

I get my drinking/cooking water from a known good source but I do have a Berkey on hand, just in case..

Xringer · 09-28-12, 08:19 AM

"a known good source" ??
OGKG, that's got me curious. Can you name your source?

OffGridKindaGuy · 09-28-12, 08:32 AM

The machine up the road that eats quarters..

Xringer · 09-28-12, 10:16 AM

A water vending machine!!

OffGridKindaGuy · 09-30-12, 07:49 PM

Our county water supply around here is pretty good. A little hard but good quality. Reverse osmosis, Carbon filtering, UV treatment.. I'd say that's some good water. I see the owner of the machine changing stuff from time to time so it's not neglected. I've been using it for years..

Point being, I could use my rain water if I really needed to but why should I use up filters when I don't need to? My Berkey would get me through a tough situation for many months if it came to that. 5 gal. will last us a week or more. $.25 is a good price for a gallon of great water, wouldn't you agree?

Xringer · 09-30-12, 09:38 PM

25 cents is super! A gallon jug around here is a buck!!

The place where I work (flex time, and rarely since retirement), has water fountains with filters installed,
but the water still tastes like it's 1/16th diesel fuel..
Reminds me of my Navy days! I have to drag a large bottle of tap water with me to work..

Otherwise, I end up in one of the basement clean-room labs where they've
installed a big rack of filters in series.. Taste is a bit flat, but no diesel in it!

09-24-12, 09:43 AM	#1
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	emergency water supply? I was reading about how to store water for an emergency. EMERGENCY DRINKING WATER SUPPLIES If your city water supply was turned off for a few months and you had to rely on your stored water (no water tankers etc. coming by). You would be pretty much out of luck, unless you had your own well.. Are your prepared for a state-wide disaster scenario that lasts for months? I know I'm not. Counting the 40 gal water heater tank, we have about 44 gallons of drinking water. After that's gone we have a scum pond out back.. __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

09-24-12, 09:21 PM	#3
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Wow! Thanks for the input. The reviews look very good and the units look like they are very well made. The design reminds me of the old aluminum coffee pots we had in the USN. I must have a 1/2 lb of aluminum in my bones by now.. Might be something we can use all the time, not just during the summer fire hydrant flushing events.. We will be checking these out! Take care, __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

09-28-12, 05:27 AM	#5
OffGridKindaGuy Hi-Tech Hillbilly Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Ohio Posts: 97 Thanks: 1 Thanked 16 Times in 15 Posts	I'm in emergency mode full time. I have no well and rely totally on cloud juice. I have 400 gal. of storage inside that will support us for a couple of months. No cistern. I collect from the roof in a 375 gal. mushroom tank and top off the inside storage as I can. Add a dab of bleach everytime I pull some in and I'm good to go. It's a game in the winter to get the water inside before it freezes. I get my drinking/cooking water from a known good source but I do have a Berkey on hand, just in case.. __________________ If it don't, I'll always think it shoulda..

09-28-12, 08:19 AM	#6
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	"a known good source" ?? OGKG, that's got me curious. Can you name your source? __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

09-28-12, 08:32 AM	#7
OffGridKindaGuy Hi-Tech Hillbilly Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Ohio Posts: 97 Thanks: 1 Thanked 16 Times in 15 Posts	The machine up the road that eats quarters.. __________________ If it don't, I'll always think it shoulda..

09-24-12, 10:05 AM	#2
strider3700 Master EcoRenovator Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Vancouver Island BC Posts: 745 Thanks: 23 Thanked 37 Times in 30 Posts	I live in an earthquake zone. We have 5 gallons/person stored. Then we have the 60 gallon water tank. After that we fall back on the rain barrels and if need be the ditches. I have one of the big berky's with 2 filters. Berkey Water Filter - Water Filters and Purifiers, Water Filter Accessories and more It's pricey but lasts effectively forever if you're using relatively clean water to drink and it's capable of taking swamp water and making it safe to drink requiring just gravity and some time. We also use it when camping and sometimes in fall when the tap water here has issues and we get a boil water advisory due to huge rainfall events.

09-24-12, 09:46 PM	#4
strider3700 Master EcoRenovator Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Vancouver Island BC Posts: 745 Thanks: 23 Thanked 37 Times in 30 Posts	the water coming from it tastes far better then most tap water. If I didn't live somewhere with some of the best tap water on the planet I'd happily set it up and let it stay on the counter all the time. During the boil water advisories we fill it up let it filter, empty that into a jug and put that into the fridge. Cold pure water all the time.

09-28-12, 10:16 AM	#8
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	NO!! A water vending machine!! __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

09-30-12, 07:49 PM	#9
OffGridKindaGuy Hi-Tech Hillbilly Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Ohio Posts: 97 Thanks: 1 Thanked 16 Times in 15 Posts	Our county water supply around here is pretty good. A little hard but good quality. Reverse osmosis, Carbon filtering, UV treatment.. I'd say that's some good water. I see the owner of the machine changing stuff from time to time so it's not neglected. I've been using it for years.. Point being, I could use my rain water if I really needed to but why should I use up filters when I don't need to? My Berkey would get me through a tough situation for many months if it came to that. 5 gal. will last us a week or more. $.25 is a good price for a gallon of great water, wouldn't you agree? __________________ If it don't, I'll always think it shoulda..

09-30-12, 09:38 PM	#10
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	25 cents is super! A gallon jug around here is a buck!! The place where I work (flex time, and rarely since retirement), has water fountains with filters installed, but the water still tastes like it's 1/16th diesel fuel.. Reminds me of my Navy days! I have to drag a large bottle of tap water with me to work.. Otherwise, I end up in one of the basement clean-room labs where they've installed a big rack of filters in series.. Taste is a bit flat, but no diesel in it! __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..