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WATER PROCUREMENT
Water you can't live long without it. When the tap
water stops flowing you will need to know how to
get clean drinking water and lots of it. How
difficult this is will depend on where you are
located. So lets look at where you will be getting
your water from. You will need about 2 liters per
person per day. More if you are physically
exerting yourself or if the weather is very hot.
WATER SOURCES Almost any environment has
water present to some degree. Deserts by their
very nature will one of the hardest areas to obtain
water from. So when the end of the world as we
know it arrives deserts will be a place to avoid.
On the other hand if you happen to be familiar
with the desert enviroment and can secure your
water supplies and food supplies there it will be
one of the safest places on the planet because
everyone else will be avoiding the desert like the
plague.
One important consideration is when you do find
good clean water you must collect as much of it
as possible and never leave water until you have
consumed as much of it as you can stand.
WATER SOURCES
Heavy dew can provide water. Tie rags around
your ankles and walk through dew-covered grass
before or shortly after sunrise. As the rags or
grass tufts absorb the dew, wring the water into
a container. Repeat the process until you have a
supply of water or until the dew is gone. You
aren't going to meet all your water needs this
way unless you spend a couple of hours at the
task but later on you will see that it is well worth
the effort.
Any water you find can be collected the same
way as the dew. Just dip a cloth in the water and
wring it out. This will be the first step in cleaning
the water as you will collect less debris and trash
doing this than if you simply dipped up the water.
But scooping it up is fine.
Wherever you find banana or plantain trees, you
can get water. Cut down the tree, leaving about a
1 foot tall stump, and scoop out the center of the
stump to form a bowl. The plant will pump the
bowl with water. The banana tree will produce
water for about 4 days.
Some vines can give you water. Cut the vine
diagonally and it might yield a swallow of water.
Not much but in a survival situation you take
what you can get. And where there is one vine
there is likely to be others.
Caution: Do not drink the liquid if it is sticky,
milky, or bitter tasting.
If you happen to be in a tropical enviroment near
or on the beach, coconuts of the green unripe
version are the best for quenching your thirst. The
milk from a ripe coconut is also suitable but it
acts as a laxative so drink only in moderation.
Another method of collecting water is to get a
plastic container such as a 2 liter coke bottle and
fill it with the greenest most succulant leaves you
can find. Seal the bottle and wait. It isn't much
and the taste will be strong but not nasty. Not a
long term solution but a good method when
traveling or trying to establish a camp or home.
One method to purify water is to place a pool of
water or large container of water below a tarp.
Sides must be somewhat sealed to prevent air
flow in or out. A bowl or other water collect piece
of equipment is placed in the center of the tarp
but below the tarp. A rock is place on the tarp.
The rock forces the tarp down. As the sun
evaporates the water below the tarp it condenses
on the tarp and drips into the collection bowl.
Oh and obviously streams and ponds or lakes are
great sources of water but purification of the
water is must before drinking any of it.
When the opportunity arrises collect rain water in
any containers you have. Use leaves or tarp
material etc to funnel even more water into your
containers. This water should be good to drink
without purification. WATER PURIFICATION
Boiling water is a surefire way to purify it for
consumption. Water needs to reach its boiling
point and remain boiling for 1 minute. At higher
elevations water will boil at lower lower
temperatures and a good rule of thumb is to boil
1 minute plus and additional minute for every 300
feet of elevation.
WATER FILTRATION DEVICES
Filtering water that can't be boiled is better than
nothing but never filter if boiling is a viable option.
Water can be filtered through sand, charcoal,
clothing or bamboo. The longer it takes the water
to perculate through the filter material the better
it will be filtered. But small organism that cause
all sorts of illnesses will not be totally removed.
So again... boil if possible.
source:
www.survival-manual.com/water.php
