Hi everyone, very new at prepping but it has been a big thing for me since I had my son 8 months ago so I have been slowly getting everything we would need. The question: How would you feed/care for your child in an emergency? really got to me! Especially when my answer was: I couldn't. So I am researching as much as possible and think I have a lot of it covered except water is a big issue. I was thinking the best thing for us would be to get the 55 gallon containers to store water in (we have pets too) but everywhere I look online costs over 150$ just for shipping one container. I know that I shouldn't be putting a price on my child's safety, but I don't want this to make me broke either! So I was wondering if you guys knew of a better way (however we have more than enough room for them), or if you know where I could get them in Ontario? I would drive there to get them. I am in Northern ON.
Second question: What do you think of the Thrive products?
Thanks 😀
You can use any food grade container to store water from your tap. There are also plastic devices which fit in your bathtub which do a good job if you have enough warning to fill it. 2 liter pop bottles and camping water containers are suitable as well. The trick is to have a method of filtration and purification to make whatever water you have potable. Depending on your source after a SHTF event you may need a large to small filter medium to remove as much particulate as possible from your water. This is step one. Secondly you need a filter medium that is fine enough to remove bacterial and viral contaminants. Lastly you could have a charcoal element to remove or at least reduce chemical contamination. A few simple items to have on hand are coffee filters and household non scented bleach.
Welcome to the forum. You will find a wealth of information and a group of helpful and knowlegable people here.
JAB
First one we had was a plywood box 4x4x4 re-enforced with 2x4 on 6 inch centers, then lined with poly..Yep poly..worked great for 4 yrs..
Basic concrete box cistern can be done easy and cheap,
and for the filter you can get the RO cartridge and adapt it to a few white buckets, gravity system..
http://millrisespin.shawwebspace.ca/pages/view/home_made_berkey_water_filter/
Chimo...
When All else fails--BIP--
2 l pop bottles are tough and last a long time. They're easy for anyone to handle as well. And free.
Use the cash you save and get a good water filter like a Berkey for the potential to turn many thousands of gallons in to safe drinking water.
i purchased two 55 gallon rain barrels last year. i believe it was, rainbarrels.ca
general motors does this in oshawa yearly. they were only $50 each but you pick them up yourself.
i had a relative place the orders, i picked them up and paid cash when i got them.
Thanks everyone, I guess I really need to look into filtering more than storing? So, do you still store lots of water, and will filter whatever comes out of your tap in a crisis?
Gg, I thought I had read that rain barrels were not food grade and therefore should not be used for long term water storage. How often do you change your water?
ive cleaned out my barrels,change them every 3-4 months, same as fuel. i would use them mostly for cleaning, cooking ect, as i have other stored water for drinking. however, i have a jerry can water filter that can filter up to 20,000 litres if need be. it wasnt cheap, but would do the trick. (excellent for bug-out)
keep in mind that if you have a hot water tank they also hold 30 to 50 gallons of clean water. enough for a couple weeks in an emergency. (toilets too)
there is also a bladder bag for the tub. if you can find one let me know, lol, they range in sizes, 40-50 gallons i believe.