This is a very interesting article that I thought I
would share with you. I’m not advocating that you start storing water but I
know a lot of people are wisely starting to do this. I have heard a few of the
news and talk shows
telling how to do it and they have been very miss-informative.
The "Secrets" of Water Storage
by Dale Fergson
You need to know these "secrets", because ...
Water storage is the most significant item in any emergency storage plan.
Other than the air we breathe, it is the single most important thing needed to
sustain life. The method that you store water should not be taken lightly. Unfortunately,
when it comes to storing water properly, it is likely the least
understood of all food storage items.
If you store untreated water, it should be replaced
every six months and will not be safe to drink without filtering or boiling. If
you store chlorinated tap water, it will keep for up to one year before you
should renew it, and it too should be filtered and boiled before using. If you
store water to which you have added chlorine bleach or iodine for purification
purposes, as is common practice, you have likely eliminated the need to boil.
But, it is a health hazard (because of the added chlorine or iodine) and
should not be consumed without filtering. And the water should still be
"dumped" and replaced every year. If you use the method outlined here,
you can have clean pure water, ready to drink, that can be stored without
replacing for five years or longer!
First off, what water is best to store? Using
commercially treated water, be it distilled, filtered, reverse osmosis, ultra
violet treated, or a combination, is quite expensive and out of the range of
practicality for most people. Either tap water or well water (that has been
tested safe) is fine for home storage if it is properly prepared.
As to containers, there are several options. Some metal
containers tend to give water an unpleasant taste. The most popular option is
the use of heavy plastic containers, ranging from 5-gallons through 55-gallon
size. Make sure that they are made of a "food-grade" plastic, so that
a "plastic taste" is not leached out into the water. It goes without
saying that a tight-fitting lid that seals off all outside air is a necessity.
Small containers (when cleaned thoroughly) such as originally used soda pop,
should be used only for temporary water storage, until a more permanent solution
is found. They are not of sufficient thickness to prevent odors and tastes from
penetrating. Nor will they stand the rigors of time. Bottles that once contained
milk should not be used at all. Even with thorough washing, bacteria
contamination is still likely. The plastic used in such containers also
decomposes too quickly. Containers should be fill completely to the top to help
prevent any algae growth. Water is best stored out of direct sunlight and in a
cool part of your house. Never let the temperature reach 130 degrees, as is
possible in many garages during the summer. Needless to say, freezing should be
avoided for several reasons, including the likely rupture of the container. As
to the amount of water that should be stored, there are a number of published
"formulas". This is left to your own goals and, likely, the space that
you have available for storage.
I personally store water in heavy plastic food-grade 5-gallon
containers. While this may be a little more expensive initially than using a
smaller number of large containers, the advantages far out weigh the additional
cost. Water stored in 5-gallon containers is easy to prepare, handle, store, and
use. They are also easy to transport to another location, should the emergency
need arise or if you move. If you had water stored in 55-gallon containers, for
example, and had to change locations in an emergency , they would be almost
impossible for most people to transport. Also, with many households, the only
practical place to store containers that large is in the garage. And a garage
(in most cases) is not the ideal location for water storage. Most garages get
much too hot in the summer, and there is often the danger of freezing in
the winter. It is important that neither happen to stored water. My
recommendation is to stick with the 5-gallon size, if possible, and certainly
(for most households) not to use over the 15-gallon size. My wife and I
store our 5-gallon containers of water in the crawl space under our house. In
most modern homes, there is room to store many such containers, and the
temperature usually remains within the desired range year-round.
Stored water must be protected from bacteria
contamination. This is imperative. If not done, even the slightest trace of
contamination will grow and spread in your water. The old method, advocated for
years, was to add a small amount of chlorine bleach or iodine to retard bacteria
growth. Don't! We'll discuss
chlorine in more detail later. For now, I'll just say that chlorine is a known
carcinogen (cancer-causing agent) and a toxin that should not be taken into the
human body in anything over very minute quantities. Chlorine used municipally
treated water is normally found in very small quantities, as far as
"parts-per-million" is concerned. When you add even the small amounts
of chlorine bleach recommended and used by some for water storage, you are
ending up with a very "strong" dose of toxic chlorine, related to
"parts-per-million". In the case of iodine tablets, or similar
products, the same thing applies. Iodine is very closely related in chemical
make-up to chlorine and can be just as toxic to the human body!
The very best thing to use for
protecting water from bacteria contamination is Liquid Stabilized Oxygen. One of
the properties of oxygen is it's ability to destroy harmful bacteria. It is
effective against Salmonella, E-Coli, Cholerae, Streptococcus, Pseudomonas,
Staphylococcus, and Glardia-Iambila. In fact, researchers have found oxygen
effective against all known anaerobic infectious disease causing bacteria! There
are a number of products on the market now that claim to be Stabilized Oxygen.
They are sold for a variety of health uses, as well as for treating water. Most
use the "old out-dated technology" of oxygen being bonded to salts of
chloride. These should be avoided for water storage. A number are quite caustic,
as well, because of a high pH level. The label on these will usually warn you
against making contact with your skin! Some are activated by contact with
hydrochloric acid found in the stomach. Hardly suitable for water storage,
although some of the companies selling these products advocate that usage, in
addition to health purposes.
The "cutting-edge"
technology is Stabilized Oxygen contains, by contrast, actual
dissolved molecules of diatomic oxygen. These
have a near-balanced pH, and are quite safe. Look for a product made with the
new technology, has a near-balanced pH, uses actual dissolved molecules of
oxygen, and contains at least 50,000 parts-per-million of diatomic oxygen.
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Last modified:
May 14, 2008
