One gallon/day of water is supposed to be enough per person for drinking, cooking and cleaning. Where did this tidbit ever come from? Is it true?
Definitely enough for drinking, I can say that. But cleaning AND cooking each day? Not sure… but I’ve never tried it.
Looked on the other water threads for this, but nothing specifically. Thought might as well make separate one since some of those are pretty darn long too.
Cleaning for situations with contagion and sick people? Probably not. Climate, people’s particulars; manual exertion, hot weather, breastfeeding women, treating fluid loss to prevent dehydration, probably not. Just guessin’.
Does the public know how to get by on a gallon a day? Maybe they better start getting “emergency” tips, printed on their utility bills, or something.
I think it was flourbug who mentioned being ble to get by with all hygeine needs with one cup of water a day. I’m trying this sort of thing out for fun, after all a pitcher of water in a bedroom in the past did people fine. As far as drinking, why don’t you check out exactly what you drink every day.
I beleive that the gallon a day is just for drinking and cooking. Cleaning is additional.
I believe if you look at your toilet tank, or bowl, you will find that your modern, Government regulated, Federally Mandated toilet takes 1.6 gallons of water per flush, in accordance with current Government regulation and specifications.
How many gallons per day do you think you’ll need?
I don’t know. I know I wouldn’t need to drink one gallon a day! I haven’t tested out amounts for boiling, etc. yet though…
The ideal is 3 gallons per day per person. 1 gallon for drinking, 1 gallon for hygiene, and 1 gallon for washing dishes and clothing…
In a stressful situation…such as this might become…a person will tend to drink more water because the body will sweat more (er, sorry…perspire!).
That’s a ton of water. I’ll definitely have to find a way to cut back on the washing of things. No need to wash as much if you’re not going out in public;) j.j. I think 2 litres (0.5 gallons) a day would be suffficient for most people for drinking. No one will be running marathons here. I use a water canteen right now and always generally drink at least 0.5 litres (0.125 gallons) a day without even paying attention. On warmer days, or days where I exercise, 0.25 gallons for sure. Not sure how much more after that.
So that leaves 0.5 gallon/day for other things… I’ll have to see how much water my pots require for pasta and rice.
Don’t forget non-potable water for the toilet. You’re gonna need about a gallon per flush…If that’s what you choose to do. Others here (true outdoors/survivalist-types) have mentioned simply placing a plastic bag in the commode, then tossing when through. No H2O necessary…
1 gallon is for drinking and cooking only … with the expectation that you will gain fluids in other ways such as drinking the juice that is in your canned fruits, saving the fluids from canned veggies for use in cooking instead of using fresh water, etc.
This does work if you plan it right, although certain cirumstances will drive water usage up … such as illness. But even with above normal temps you can make do so long as you don’t operate as normal … stay in the shade or nap during the hottest parts of the day, where a hat, adjust your diet and habits, etc.
My family does extensive camping … and we are a family of 7 with small children … and 1 gallon of water per day for cooking and drinking does work. So in an emergency that would be your planning number.
You’ll have to use non-potable sources for washing, etc.
“1 gallon is for drinking and cooking only … with the expectation that you will gain fluids in other ways such as drinking the juice that is in your canned fruits, saving the fluids from canned veggies for use in cooking instead of using fresh water, etc.”
Yes, this is a huge reason why I stocked up on soup. Lots of liquid, and it doesn’t need to be purified.
EmilyH, good point. DIdn’t think of it that way.
Flushing… hadn’t thought of the logistics of that yet (I’m behind in these areas since I only officially just started food prepping yesterday). Before was just thinking of all the non-perishable stuff, hadn’t thought of things like the toilet (still have to get my TP too!).
The most important prep is clean water. I got one water filter from here. There are other sites that sell them. You can get a gravity operated filter rated for 36000 gallons at one gallon per hour for about $170 US including shiping.
You can get toilet flushing water from roof runoff. Watch the bird poop.
I bought a brand new “weed sprayer”. Leave it in the sun to heat up the water. A nice fine misted shower uses about a quart (liter) of water. Refreshing too!!!
If you aren’t living with a septic tank/field you may not have to worry about “flushing” as there may not be any place for the flush to go to. If there is a break in a line or a back up beyond the sidewalk, there might not be any workers who can/will come out to fix the municipality’s part of the sewage line.
Think about a redundant system … cat litter in a five gallon bucket, liquids in one bucket and solids in another making getting rid of “stuff” slightly easier, composting toilets, etc.
We’ll need more if we are growing sprouts, greens, other vegetables. Pets need water too. Anyone who doesn’t stay home has to wash everything when he returns-guess that’s another reason to SIP (shelter in place). (Although some cleaning can be done with alcohol?)
We probably won’t get a warning when/if the water will stop. Wonder if it’s a time issue (so many days before chemicals run out or workers stop coming or something breaks) or a quantity issue (so many thousand gallons before the chemicals run out or the town water tank goes empty)? Would we be better off if no one flushed? If we used plastic bags and cedar shavings or lime or ? If we stop flushing we’d have to keep sewer gas from coming in through the dried-out traps (that’s true for our sinks too).
SCW AZ please elaborate. What does it look like? Where can you get one? etc. great idea for a shower.
I’ll share, in part, an experience that one of the ladies on my website had when her well broke and she had to turn to her water storage for daily necessities. It was a real eye opener to her (she’s a committed prepper) and to all of us, to see how quickly a commodity such as water can be exhausted:
“I decided to write out my families current events and hopefully learn something about ways to better prepare in situations such as this one.
Monday 1/9: Our well was worked on today as we had been losing water pressure and had to manually turn off the pump whenever we used water. The well-drillers thought that they could fix it but unfortunately what little bit of water pressure we have had for months is now depleted, gone. The well drillers were unable to fix the well and further problems resulted and now we need a new one urgently. January we’ve been told, is not the best time to drill a well. It could get costly and possibly a slow process.
Tuesday 1/10: Well drillers are coming Wednesday to drill the new well. Miss Dig had the utilities put all their flags in place so we are all set to go. I have exhausted all my reserve water gallons and camping containers I had been saving. It is amazing how much water a small family of 3 goes through in a matter of days with flushing the toilet sparingly, cooking, dishwashing, hygiene and watering pets. Definately need to re-think my water preps.
Wednesday 1/11: No sign of well-drillers. Honestly, how can people sleep when they know others are counting on them? Looks like we could be in for a tough week.
Thursday 1/12: Sure is beautiful outside 45′, even better is the wonderful sounds of well-drilling. ***** Power is coming out on an emergency call to fix another immediate problem we are experiencing at our already stessed household, as the welldrillers drilled over 1/2 our houses electric line. Thank God no one was hurt! It appears that Miss Dig did not do her job correctly and neglected to put flags up where the power line was. The well-drillers could have been electricuted! We now have no water, no plumbing, no electricity and no heat…Gathering up candles and filling the oil lamps. It has become camping inside my home. I’m still smiling, trusting for better days and keeping both my dear husband encouraged and my poor teenage daughter who wants to hide out rather than face the world without her daily hot steamy 1/2 hour long shower. What an adventure!
Friday 1/13: Well drillers hooked up the water from the well into the house today. It is not going as planned. Our new well-water is running out in the yard, ridding itself of this grey mud stuff. Its been running for about 4 hours. I hope its normal. The well-drillers said let it run until dinner time to clean out the well. I took a shower at the nieghbor’s house just in case!
Sunday 1/15: Still no clean water, just grey muddy liquid. We flush the toilet with it as its only use. Its really getting inconvenient now as tomorrow will be 1 week without means to laundry, wash dishes, make coffee and cook with…let alone shower. What a luxury I took for granted! I really don’t know how my friend held up for 3 months last summer without a well. I feel spoiled for complaining after 1 week. DH says the well-drillers are coming back tomorrow to put a screen down. It doesn’t sound too promising. Ughhh!
Monday 1/16: Our water is now disconnected from the house and running out in the front yard supposedly to clean the well. It wasn’t enough that Friday and Saturday we built an ice rink in the back yard with 1000s of gallons of water, now we are working on making the front yard one as well. Could take 2 weeks the well-driller said. Everytime we go out with a jar to check, the water is grey to black colored.
I was so down today after doing up dishes the old fashioned way, heating the water and so on. The laundry is piling up fast, I cannot flush the toilet and my hair was gross after 3 days again.
Tuesday 1/17: I cannot stress enough, that water preparation is an absolute neccessity. I need to gather more than cases of bottled water. I need to be thinking in terms of barrels because in just one week our family has went through at least 50 gallons out of neccessity and certainly not for a self sufficient lifestyle. We have not fully bathed, washed clothes or did daily dishes. We have modernly improvised (cheated) with paper plates, cups, plastic silverware, baby wipes and hand sanitizer for hygiene, cooking very little, taking showers elswhere, and letting the laundry pile up. 1 week ago, we thought we would be without water 1–2 days tops. We prepared for short term. So you can fully see that if we were truly living off the land, it would require much more gallons of water per person.
Well-drillers came back this am. Water is still cloudy coming directly from the well but not muddy. DH calculates that since Friday, we have allowed over 22 thousand gallons of water to be poured onto the ground. Enough to fill 2–3 swimming pools. How sad. Well-drillers are coming back to pipe water back into the house this evening. They are saying it now may be useable but not for drinking purposes. We shall see…
Wednesday 1/18: We now have water in the house. It is cloudy and we are hoping (praying) that it will soon clear up. Dh will not allow me to use it in the dishwasher, water softner and washing machine until it clears up. He has made a good point, with all the expense of the well, we surely do not need to purchase new appliances all at once because of silt build up. So for a time, life is not completely normal. I can shower but grey water doesn’t seem like it will make me clean?
Also because of a great ice storm yesterday, we were without power for 16 hours. Out came the candles, the oil lamps and flashlights! It was out all night and got a bit cold (55′)without the furnace. I did not notice how cold it was until waking up and getting out of bed. Stayed nice and warm all night.
Prep Note:we need an alternative source of heat to rely on. We have kerosene heaters but did not get them out due we thought the power would soon be on. I’m not especially fond of kerosene fumes and would prefer a woodstove. It would be nice to have a source of heat and a way to heat water and cook.
Power just came on, so we will see how the water clears up. I really hate to go through this process again with drilling a new well. Life goes on.”
That’s just one person’s real life experience that can remind all of us that we really need to accurately assess what our needs will be. It just goes to show you that someone who believes and is committed to on going preps can make judgement errors as to what they really will need.
Shad.
I’ve been lurking for the last week and am highly impressed with this site and its inhabitants. That said, I’d like to offer some suggestions regarding the water issue. We now live in a small townhouse community, so do not have the luxery of space, yet we do have a small fenced-in back yard. In it we are going to be using 40–50 gal garbage cans to store water for non-drinking/cooking purposes. In additon, our complex will have a filled swimming pool by the end of the month. You might check to se if there is one nearby. When we had a house in the suburbs we bought [later sold] a 60 gal rainwater barrel, which is available online for around $130. Also, if you have space, you might buy a used water bed bladder to fill and store water.
Remember that, in a sudden emergency, even if the power goes out, your water heater holds about 40 gal and ought to have a spiget at the bottom for you to drain out what is there. It is safe except for the sludge that accumulates over time in the bottom. If you have never cleared the bottom of the heater before, now may be a good time to clear the accumulated sludge so that you have more useable water should you need it in a hurry.
My son ran an Outward Bound camp in Colo and used to test products as well as train people in survival skills. Years ago he created a portable toilet for me. [Of course you can also get them at WM in camping]. If we are staying at home and are waterless, we can use the comode in the same way. His instructions: Line the portable toilet or comode with two heavy duty black plastic bags and then after solid waste use sprinkle powdered lime [sold in bags at garden supply house] to assist in breaking down the highly toxic wastes. It is expected that this arrangment will be used more than once before discarding the bag & contents. He also suggested burning the bags instead of burying them as that can contaminate the ground water and/or become a source of infection should they break open.
My intuition [trained and certified in this area with 40+ yrs experience—balances out my left brain law degree! LOL] is telling me that we cannot have too much water! Our physician of 23 years asked me on Friday to type out some things I’ve “seen” or sensed about the pandemic. I will be working on that this week, although I’ve already shared with him the importance of storing enough food, water, and other essentials.
Jane,
it is partly a time issue. Another post on another thread (By Guardian Mom, I think — it’s on the index) — she said there’s only a 7–10 day supply of chlorine at any given time ready to go… because of how quickly it deteriorates…. so… if things fall apart, there’ll be a week of chlorine in the water left before the water itself is no longer available.
Oh yes - Jane, Guardian Mom had called Capitol Hill and chem labs and everywhere to find this out. I think the thread was Water-Peroxide-Bleach or something like that.
This is a home made purifier using two - 5 gallon food grade buckets and a Black Berkey filter. Two filters are $80. Each filter good for 3,000 gallons. The filter is considered a 7 Log by the EPA.
Even if the chlorine at the water plant runs out, the water pressure should not drop in your home if you’re on a city/town water supply. You’ll simply have to boil/treat the water before drinking it. The water should (hopefully) stay on for several weeks, as long as electricity stays on with it.
This should allow you to at least put away a lot of non-potable water for use in cleaning and flushing. You can always add chlorine yourself…a gallon of chlorine/Clorox will go a long way…if you buy Clorox, get the type that does not contain any of that frilly, floral fragrance stuff. Old-fashioned original Clorox bleach.
1 gallon a day per person is Minumum amount. You would need to rely other sources like rain barrels, hot water tank, even get a water fitler to clean water out of a puddle if necessary! I personally like the Blue Reliance Brand that is suitable for camping which can be found at Wal-mart or in some camping stores. It comes in a 7 gallon square container, and stacks.
Why I like these containers-
1) We are told to have 14 Gallons or 52 Litres of Water is the recommended minimum amount to have on hand for a 2 week supply for one person. This translates into 1 gallon of water per person per day. Most of us probably exceed 140 gallons a day, if we consider all the showering, laundry, dishes, washing cars, watering lawns, etc. These containers come in 7 Gallon size. It makes it easy to calculate. 2) They stack… I’ve learned from experience to not stack it higher than 2 containers, or they will bulge and leak. The reliance brand also comes with a guarantee under normal wear or tear, or you can get be replaced.
3) There are blue…which means, that light can’t get in, and if treated properly, I may never need to change this water, whereas, I might have to every 6 months or once a year, with other containers.
4) They are easier to transport. One can carry it up to the kitchen, put in on it’s side, twist/reverse the cap for the spout to come out. Now you can also buy a pump to pump it out ($15.00)
Yes, there are other options…
Milk Jugs…do not use, they are bio-degradable and will break down within 6 months.
You can use 2 litre pop bottles (made from pete), although, if you plan to use these just for your minimum amount, realize you will need to have 26 bottles for just you!
Some say, I rather get a 45 gallon, polyethylene (plastic) water drum. If you do, make sure it is food grade, and clean so it does not take on the favour of what was in it last. They will save you on space, The cost $87.77 for tight head (this has two opening at the top) or an open head (that the lid would come right off for $94) through http://www.gwcontainers.com/ Just remember to put this container in a convenient location. Water weighs approx 8 lbs per gallon. You may not want to move this container too many times, having to relocate a 45 galloon drum (360 lbs). Store water off the cement floor, in a dark location and container, and away from any harmful chemicals and objectionable smelling products.
I prefer to use Aerobic Oxygen that when added to the water, I can keep from having to change it every year, as it will last 5 −10 years. http://www.goodforyou.ca/?PageT=Home&Content-Code=AOHowToUse
Other ways to purify- Two percent Tincture of Iodine — To use this add 12 drops per gallon of water. Note: pregnant or nursing women or people with thyroid problems should not drink water with iodine.
Chlorine Bleach — Household bleach can also be used. This should contain a 5.25% solution of sodium hypochlorite without soap additives or phosphates. Use 1/8 teaspoon (about 5–8 drops) per gallon of water.
Both are inexpensive and are effective methods of killing bacteria. Some like the iodine method. The one drawback, however, is that both may have negative health effects if used for long periods of time. As noted above, you have to be careful with iodine and chlorine. For years they have been associated with many possible health problems. I was introduced to a product a couple of years ago that I now prefer to use instead because it is an excellent water purifier, but it also has many excellent medicinal properties. It is a stabilized oxygen called Ion that is very effective in killing all harmful bacteria without any of the harmful health affects associated with chlorine or iodine. In fact, it is very healthy. For long term storage add 20 drops of Ion per gallon of water. One bottle will purify two 55 gallon drums. It is also excellent for your emergency packs (72 hr kits). It is small and light weight (2.33 oz.) but extremely effective. It kills all harmful bacteria including giardia, cholera, dysentery, etc. within 2 1/2 minutes, but it also doubles medicinally, having many healing properties. You are welcome to write me if you would like more information on it. Studies show that if water is bacteria-free and is stored in clean containers it will stay safe for several years. It is a good idea, however, to periodically check your water for purity and taste. And every few years it’s a good idea to change it. One of the things that affects the taste of water is it “going flat”. This occurs because of the oxidation that takes place as it sits. You can improve the taste by pouring the water back and fourth between containers to aerate it or by beating it with a hand egg beater. You also may want to store some flavorings such as fruit drink powders, kool-aid, etc. to add to your water if you find the taste objectionable. One of the other benefits of Ion is the oxygen remains suspended maintaining its good taste for much longer periods of time. Remember also that you have several sources of water already in your home that can be tapped in an emergency such as your hot water heater, toilet tanks (don’t use water from a tank that contains colored disinfectant. It is poisonous.), water pipes, ice in the freezer, etc.
Red Cross - Can I use bottled water? If you plan to use commercially prepared “spring” or “drinking” water, keep the water in its original sealed container. Change and replace the water at least once a year. Once opened, use it and do not store it further.
Water is relatively inexpensive to store and certainly not difficult to do - but certainly the time to store it is now. Water that we take so for granted when things are normal, in an emergency becomes absolutely critical. This is an item you can’t afford to overlook in your preparedness preparations.
Lily – at 16:10
“I think it was flourbug who mentioned being ble to get by with all hygeine needs with one cup of water a day.”
Good heavens no, not me! We frequently dry camped in our RV. Four people - my husband, myself, our 3 yr old, and a 15 yr old. We had a 100 gallon water tank. I had a small propane refrigerator, a few tiny cabinets in the kitchen, and I could store quite a bit of supplies under the queen sized bed, and the front sleeper sofa. I didn’t need to use our water tank for drinking at all, we had bottled water, milk, soda, and juice. I didn’t have to use water for cooking, as we usually had fresh foods available. Even so, we’d go through that 100 gallons in a day just with everyone showering and flushing.
Since we didn’t want to go home after just one day, we had to modify our standards, and conserve. We didn’t shower and wash our hair every day. We used a half cup of water when brushing our teeth, and baby wipes and bath wipes (sold in Walmart and drug stores) for personal cleanliness. The shower was saved for extreme necessity. We washed our hair over the sink, in a rubber tub. It usually took about two quarts to wash and rinse our long thick hair. The three year old was shampooed with a washcloth.
Dishes used the most water, so I became Reynold’s best customer. I would line my baking dishes in aluminum foil and toss out when done. We ate a lot of sandwiches, tacos, etc - anything that formed its own wrapper, didn’t need utensils, and could be “served” on paper towels. Everyone had their own cup, and I had 2 spray bottles - one with soapy water, the other with clean water with a little bleach in it. On the rare occasions I had dirty pots and plates, I would fill a tub with water and use a gallon bottle of water to rinse. That way I could better gauge how much I was using.
The water used for dishes was held in reserve for flushing. The RV toilet had a trap door on the bottom that opened to let whatever was in there drop into the black water tank. So we didn’t need water to remove the doodoo. We needed water to keep the black water tank from clogging up with solid waste. I kept a squeeze bottle full of water with a little soapy cleanser to squirt inside the toilet after doing our business. Probably used about a quarter to half cup each time. That helped keep things clean and smelling nice. We also used this on the sink and inside the shower to clean up after we used them.
Even strictly conserving, and drinking other things, that 100 gallons never lasted us more than 2 weeks.
For Ricewiki @ 18:39
Below is a link to the kind of sprayer I am refering to. In my part of Arizona it’s over 100(F) degrees today, so leaving it out in the sun for a short time heats it up nice.
A quick rinse. . .stop and lather. . . another quick rinse and wha-la, you’re clean.
DO NOT use and old one that has been previously used with nasty chemicals!!!!
For Ricewiki @ 18:39
Below is a link to the kind of sprayer I am refering to. In my part of Arizona it’s over 100(F) degrees today, so leaving it out in the sun for a short time heats it up nice. If you are in cooler climes, blackening the plastic with magic marker will REALLY heat it up (to much for here).
A quick rinse. . .stop and lather. . . another quick rinse and wha-la, you’re clean.
DO NOT use and old one that has been previously used with nasty chemicals!!!!
I got my blue barrels used from an animal feed store. They had food products in them originally and had no smell of food or anything else. I spent quite a bit of time cleaning them anyway. It was worth it. They were about $20.00 each. By the way. I got 50 lbs bags of wheat and flax seeds from another feed store in my area.
I probably use 50 gallons a day now?
If you want to plan then track your water usage for one day. Try to see how little you can get by with.
A few random thoughts after reading this thread:
1. Short hair takes a lot less water to wash. If pandemic hits, cut it!
2. I just bought a kiddie swimming pool at Target: $10, holds 168 gallons. Not food grade but great for washing. Fill it up when you decide it’s time to stay home, toss a tarp over to keep the leaves out, top it off (for evaporation) every day until the water goes out. Meanwhile it sits in it’s little box ready to fill, and is a whole lot cheaper than any other 168 gallon container. I might go buy another. :) Not helpful for apartment dwellers :(
3. On a wilderness camping trip last year we were told to water the trees, use the bucket only for number 2. Something about potentially explosive gasses from both in one bucket. They used a mixture of lime and something, I don’t remember what. Anyway, if they are right about the gasses, might want to have two buckets, one for each item? I’d probably put the buckets on my back patio; if the neighbors want to watch that’s their problem, it would keep the smell out of the house.
4. On that wilderness camping trip I was content with well under a gallon of water for a shower including washing short hair. I can sponge bathe in a pint or less not including hair. Unfortunately my tent mate used 3 gallons for a shower. (We shared one 5 gallon camping “solar shower.”) You have to find a way to set the water rations in a way people can’t go over them whether by accident or enjoying the moment. (We had no showers the rest of the week, in hot Utah summer! One can live without daily showers.)
5. A friend went swimming in the river, he had a cut on his leg, he became deathly sick a few day later, raging fever, a week in the hospital, I can’t begin to spell the diagnosis but something carried in animal urine that gets into river water. We all live downstream. Take water purification real seriously, and keep river/lake water off broken skin. Something to remember when taking buckets of water from the river.
Can I use a small above ground pool for water storage? I know it’s not food grade plastic. What is the real risk there? I saw advertised an 8 foot diameter 600 gallon pool for $35. My plan would be two of those, covered with tarps, in a dark attic above the garage(partially finished) treated initially with bleach and periodically thereafter. I want it in the attic because it is out of the way and I can siphon/gravity feed anywhere I want on demand with a hose & shut-off valve. Thoughts?
Just like parking 4 cars above your garage, about 10,000 pounds? Are your spans structural steel?
Pests. Rodents, birds and other animals may visit your attic pond.
Bispenol-A, if in the material, will be rapidly absorbed and concentrated into your bloodstream.
The endocrine disruption may enhance H5N1s cytokinic dysregulation feature.
Power Hungry – at 02:20
Watch out for weight of water, approximately 8 lbs per gallon. Your 600 gallon pool would weight 4800 lbs. How much does your car weigh? I would be surprised if your attic would hold the weight of 2 pools.
Should be fine for washing. Not sure for drinking. I would like to know the answer to it too.
Any chemist here who can tell us whether chemical from non-food-grade-plastic can be filtered by even the finest ceramic, or whether this (presumably organic) dissolved chemical can be absorbed by activated carbon?
I have a gravity filter Aquarain with a ceramic filter that claims to filter 2 micron, with activitated carbon as well. I was told if no chemicals added to swimming pool (the permanent inground type, not plastic), then I can actually drink the filtered water. I have not been able to verify that.
Any suggestions about calculating for water for animals in our care — dogs, cats, horses, etc? What water sources can we use for them?
If you capture used water you can use it again for other purposes. For example, vegetable rinse water after the dirt has settled out can be used for rinsing hair. The soapy water can go on the vegetable garden or compost heap.
Having spent a week in Venezuela with absolutely NO water and many years with limited water until the rainy season, I think I can give you some tips.
The one gallon of water a day per person s/b for drinking and minimal hygiene. I was always curious about the drains in the kitchen floor down there. Husband and self splashed water on each other to rinse off (that’s what the drains are for). We used measuring cups for this as we didn’t want to use too much water - about 2 cups each did the trick! I did wash my long hair once that week with minimal water. Twasn’t easy.
One of the tips from “old hands” overseas, was to keep a 30 liter garbage can full of water. This garbage can had a lid, was brand new and never used for anything else. This can was emptied weekly. The water was used to flush the toilet (if it’s yellow let it mellow, if it’s brown flush it down)and for minimal dish washing. Yes, you become good friends with paper plates, reynolds wrap, etc. At first you will use your no cook or minimal cook preps. You really can get pots and pans clean with barely 2 cups of water!
You become very aware of how much water you waste. Particularly brushing your teeth (use a small Dixie cup) and food prep.
It isn’t easy - in fact it is very difficult to manage the water. The most important tip is the one mentioned above, use your fruit juices and vegetable water to either drink or prepare foods with. No, you won’t be cooking regular meals without a water supply. No, you won’t be taking showers everyday. Just minimal washing of private parts. No, you won’t wash your hair everyday. But you will survive!
Kiddie pools for water for santitaion. Great idea to hold non drinking water. Like you said, keep them in the box until its “time:
Fluwike rocks again.
What about inground, plaster pools. I know that treated pool water cannot be used for drinking because all of the chemicals used to treat it and the PH build up in the water and are not good for human consumption. I was planning on emptying my pool of the contaminated water at the beginning of a quarantine and filling it up with clean, tap water. Then, only using the powdered version of sodium hypochorite (bleach) to control growth. I may let the water go brakish, and only treat water I take out for drinking (filtering through coffee filter and adding the recommended bleach). Does anyone know if an inground pool would be safe in this way?
Rock – at 10:59
Problem with outdoor inground pool is you can’t completely protect it from bird poop, or contamination from paws of small animals (with bird poop). Was it 1/10 bleach needed to kill the H5N1 virus, which survives in water? At that level, its obviously not potable.
Hmmm, Annon-YYZ, even if I have a pool cover? I was also thinking about an ultraviolet UVC type filter to kill viruses and make it safe. The thing is, if there is an emergency, and I have no other water, I think we will have to use the pool or risk dehdration (death?). Would love your thoughts on this.
oh, BTW, does that mean I need to treat the pool water before I use it to flush my indoor toilets? Will I be bringing in the virus and contaminating my home this way?
The MSF guidelines for refugee situations is 5 litres (1 gallon) per person per day for the first days of the emergency. After that 15 to 20 litres per person per day.
But for health facilities (bear in mind that for these purposes you may be a health facility if only for your own family)
a hospitalization ward needs 50 litres /person/day surgery/maternity needs 100ltrs/person/day dressings need 5 ltrs/dressing Feeding centres need 20–30 ltrs /person/day kitchen needs 10 ltrs/person/day
hoggie
Power Hungry – at 02:20
Water weighs A LOT!! If you are going to store that much water upstairs then you need to make sure that the rafters that it is sitting on can handle that much weight. Reinforcing will probably be necessary.
Nearly all American apartments and houses can handle waterbeds, which were common in the 1970s. A typical waterbed holds a few hundred gallons of water, spread over roughly a 7 foot by 5 foot space. The weight of the water is about a thousand pounds. (Plus two people on it, say, a total of 1300 or so pounds.)
This causes no strain on roof rafters. (If it did, then just having a party or gathering with, for example, a dozen people standing around talking would cause rafter problems.
A problem on a lot of balconies, perhaps, but not in modern houses.
(As for using waterbed water…fine for flushing, not for drinking. Unless the waterbed bladder was bought specifically for water storage and only filled with fresh water not too long before consumption (weeks or a month). Maybe fine even longer if lightly treated with the usual things recommended for water storage. Whether the vinyl bladders are “food-safe” is unknown to me, but I suspect they are not toxic to any significant extent. The anti-fungal additives usually added to waterbed water should not be in water intended for consumption, obviously.)
Sleeping on a waterbed is one way to get 200–300 gallons of water for flushing and washing. (Be aware, of course, that some sewer systems may not be operating if water pressure has disappeared…clogging of sewer stacks in tall buildings is an issue. Those on their own septic systems have nothing to worry about, though.)
—Guy who was butt of jokes after Y2K for publicly attaching his name to preparedness articles, so he won’t here
Regarding bathing, I remember a description of Greek (or Roman) athletes who cleaned themselves using a stigil, a scraper on their skin. First they oiled up, then scraped off the dead skin cells. This wasn’t a substitute for water, I don’t think, though. In a water shortage, I can imagine lying in the sun to heat up and sweat, then oiling, then scraping, then maybe scrubbing with a piece of muslin to remove excess oil. This would be a supplement to sponge bathing of private parts, imo.
On second thought, this might only work on nearly hairless skin. These athletes may have been shaved. darn.
Jane - yep, I think they revered the human body (without hair!).
Water preps are the most difficult. The priorities should be:
1. Enough to drink - plain, coffee, tea, juices.
2. Hygiene - teeth, bathing (or sponging folks with high temps)
3. Sanitation - flusing toilet, washing dishes, laundry.
The first one is fairly simple. 1 gallon per person per day. 1/2 gallon per small pet per day.
The second and third get to be a bit more complicated. You always have water in your toilets and in the hot water heater. We used only 1 toilet during times of no or limited water. No point in wasting water in the 2nd or 3rd baths! We held those tanks “in reserve” so to speak.
Try using 1 gallon of water a day to run your household. Take 1 gallon of water in a jug and begin using it tomorrow morning for all the things you normally do in one day. You will be AMAZED at how quickly you use up this water and how creative you become when you realize the need to conserve.
Good luck!
“does that mean I need to treat the pool water before I use it to flush my indoor toilets? Will I be bringing in the virus and contaminating my home this way?”
I suggest the moment you think water is in short supply, such as the day you want to use water from that pool for any domestic purpose, STOP FLUSHING TOILETS! Use a bucket!
If you have good reason to think the water will be off for just a few hours, fine to haul water and keep flushing.
But in a pandemic if the water goes off, you have no idea if it will be off for a few days, a week, two weeks, a month. You really don’t want to throw 1.6 gallons down the sewer every few hours and have the pool run low.
If water is not avaiable from the tap, cut out water use for anything that can be done waterless. Water is real heavy to carry from the river to your house when you want to wash dishes or wash your body.
If water is off and you really think you have plenty of water in that pool, I’ll bet your pool-less neighbors could desperately use some.
LizB - agree completely. Most of us have never had to haul water any distance. It does get heavy - very heavy!
Each time you have to go draw water in a bucket, walk back to the toilet, pour enough in the flush. Repeat. Think about it - especially those of you with small children. Not to mention folks with loose stools, etc.
I suggest those of you who have never had to draw water and flush a toilet with it - practice. Agree with the bucket if TSHTF!
The MSF guidelines for refugee situations is 5 litres (1 gallon) per person per day for the first days of the emergency. After that 15 to 20 litres per person per day.
But for health facilities (bear in mind that for these purposes you may be a health facility if only for your own family)
a hospitalization ward needs 50 litres /person/day surgery/maternity needs 100ltrs/person/day dressings need 5 ltrs/dressing Feeding centres need 20–30 ltrs /person/day kitchen needs 10 ltrs/person/day
hoggie
why does it do that - whenever I make a post, next time I come back to the site it automatically reposts it? Any ideas?
The state of Florida (*which knows how to handle a large storm) has come out with its 2006 disaster plan. It now has a minimum of 2–3 gallons per day per person. Lessons learned from last year in New Orleans.
I have set the standard for my family as 1 gallon per day for drinking and cooking and 4 gallons per day for other uses. I have purchased two 36″x12′ above ground pools. Each holds 2000 gallons of water for 4000 gallons in my gargage. I have also purchased 100 cases (6 gallons per case) of drinking water. I have also purchased a water purifier in case I run out. With the pools the cases and the jerry cans for water that I have, I sould be able to go into this with about 5000 gallons on hand. That should last my family about 4 months.
MajDad, Are you one of those people that would be “in the know” regarding when things might get dicey here in the US and be able to let us know here at fluwikie? And if so, is there anything else that isn’t covered here already that we should be doing? I feel like I do when I’ve asked Dr. Niman his professional opinion:)
Mother of Five – at 23:31
Just to say this, I am high enough up in the food chain that I should know at day or two ahead of “offical” announcements, but low enough down that I would not bet your life on it. If I get a good wiff of something I will let the folks here know. Right now I am no better off than you. I come here for the latest news and updates.
Bumping
Thank you so much, MajDad, for your feedback :) I think your comment says much about the value of fluwikie :)
Bump
If you are using large containers for water that are not airtight, don’t forget to thinking about the evaporation factor. In hot weather, you are going to have some evaporation factor no matter what you do … if not airtight anyway. There is also the waste factor. Large containers can be hard to get the last drop out of for use.
And, if you are using large containers for long term storage of drinking water, maintain sanitation by checking on your water regularly and adding chemicals as necessary.
Anybody have a sequence they’ve thought of to use for (1) clean or treated water and (2) possibly contaminated water (either from the water utility or from our actions), including ways to minimize using clean water?.
I’ve been capturing the soapy water generated by handwashing. (I thought it would be OK for the compost heap, but various Web sites say soap is a No-No.) Could that safely be used for anything other than flushing toilets if there was a possibility of flu viruses on our hands? I think water from rinsing or cooking vegetables should be reusable as long as hands were clean. It almost sounds like we’ll need an operating room kind of protocol for whoever is doing the cooking & cleanup!
What if you added bleach to the used handwashing water? Could you then used it for general cleaning purposes? (ie cleaning around the house)
Ok here is another way to get water if your water table is near the surface like in Florida. Just drill for water yourself.
Home Depot has all the items needed to make what is called a shallow well by hand. You use lengths of 1 1/2″ plastic pipe with a simple pointed head to hammer the pipe into the ground. You can go down over 40″ that way. The best part is the water is free the cost is less then $500.00. I use mine to normally water the grass. With a micro filter and hand pump I get water every day of the week.
It looks like care is needed in using water that has been disinfected with bleach for general cleaning. According to the Wikipedia:
Bleach should never be mixed with other household cleaners, especially not with ones containing acid, since this results in the generation of chlorine gas. It should also never be mixed with anything containing ammonia, since chloramine gas can be gained from this combination. Urine contains ammonia, so bleach should not be used to clean urine spills. Both chlorine gas and chloramine gas are highly toxic. Bleaches also react rather violently with hydrogen peroxide.
8 drops of bleach per gallon might not be a problem, but if we keep trying to reuse water and keep adding more bleach . . .
Actually, I am counting on swimming pool water for toilets, bathing and general sanitation. I just drained and refilled my pool this spring (the water here in AZ is so hard it has rocks in it!) with this thought in mind. I do have a sweet water filter as a back up for emergency use, but it does seem that the major portion of our water use goes for external purposes. We are getting a large genny that will be able to run the pool pump (for just an hour or two a day) to keep the water semi filtered. Currently we use liquid shock, but I do have a small supply of powdered shock that could be used in a pinch.
As my dear old grandma used to say: I don’t drink water; fish pee in it!
Closing this thread for speed. Y’all will find the second part here.