After discussing Maslow's hierarchy yesterday, I decided to start talking about basic survival need #1, Air. Here is a quick exercise. Take a deep breath, now exhale slowly, there all done. That was easy. Hopefully you were able to complete that basic exercise easily, if not seek medical advice. Now on to basic survival need #2. Some will say shelter is your number two basic need, and in some circumstances that may be true. You certainly could hypothetically, die of exposure or hypothermia before water become a survival issue for you, but for the sake of this excerpt we are going with water. (Shelter will be discussed in a later post.) Here are some quick facts about water:
- Earth supports water in three forms; solid, liquid and gas.
- ~70% of the earth’s surface is covered with water.
- ~70% of an adult’s body is made up of water.
- Pure water (H2O) has a neutral pH of 7, which is neither acidic nor basic.
- The average person in the U.S. uses 80-100 gallons of water per day.
- ~85% of U.S. residents receive their water from public water facilities. The remaining 15% supply their own water from private wells or other sources.
- It is recommended that you have one gallon per person per day minimum in a survival scenario. A gallon being about 3.78 Liters. For drinking, cooking, and basic hygiene.
In an emergency, being without water can be extremely dangerous. Ask yourself, how long can I survive if I don’t have access to water? How long will I be without water? What can I do to make sure I have water in an emergency? Here are some options:
- Buy two cases of bottled water from the store, cost $5-10 a (12) case, remember to rotate through your water, while keeping at least a case on hand.
- While we haven't yet discussed evacuation scenarios or "Bugging Out" (See future post) you may need water on the go. Use a hydration bladder or a Camelbak and some water bottles, a Nalgene Tritan Widemouth 1 Quart Bottle - Blue and a metal bottle (for boiling water in)
- Use a water cooler service. Store a few 5 gallon bottles. Cost around $120 a year. Primo 3-Temp Water Cooler - Water Dispensers
- Rain collecting: Use large plastic rain barrel "Rain Wizard 50 - 50-Gallon Rain Barrel", as allowed and/or collect rain and dew with tarps. Texsport Camping 17430 10 ft. x 12 ft. Reinforced Rip-Stop Polyethylene Tarps - Blue. Water Colletion: How to Make a Solar Still
- Live near a fresh water source and have a hand pump well.
- Learn how to make a homemade water filter,
- Use coffee filters, a Handkerchief or store bought filter systems or filter straws. Mcnett 117576 Frontier Emergency Water Filter
- Learn how to Purify water.
- 1. Boiling. (5 minutes +1 minute for every 1000 feet you are above sea level.) (See Survival need: Fire)
- 2. Purifying tablets. Wisconsin Pharmaceutical Emergency Germicidal Drinking Water Tablets
- 3. Iodine. (great for wound care, nuclear radiation sickness).
- 4. Bleach. Ultra Clorox Germicidal Bleach, 1/96 oz Bottle - Bleach & Starch (12 drops per gallon of Plain Bleach, 1/8 teaspoon or 8 drops per gallon lasts 11-12 months stored in a cool dry place.) Remember to filter, aerate or use powdered drink mix if taste is objectionable. Crystal Light On-the-Go Pack, Lemonade
FYI: In an emergency you may be able to fill your
bathtub up with water or use water from the back of your toilet or even your water
heater.
Don't be without water in an emergency, The Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA and other government agencies won't always be able to provide water to you, protect yourselves.
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