water storage?

[heatherv]

I know for emergency storage, they say you're supposed to have 1 Gallon of water per person for 3 days or something like that.

Well we have a family of 7 (not including critters) So how/where do I store that much water?

Our pipes froze up several times last winter, and we ran out of our bottled water quickly.

Any suggestions of a water storage system that can work? I've seen a big plastic tub thing (it was in the camping section at Walmart) for water storage. But how long will water last in those, to where it's suitable for drinking? This is my biggest fear if there's a real emergency. I know I'm not prepared when it comes to the water.

HELP!!!

 

[ticks]

At cosco you can buy 25 packs of water. They last a long time if used sparingly. They are 16.9 fluid ounces so you could buy 2 of them that would work for an emergencie longer than 4 days.

 

[Colored Egg Farmer]

I heard one day on the weather channel you can store water in your bathtub for flushing toilets. best not to drink it though.

 

[heatherv]

yeah, if you're expecting the emergency (hurricane or whatever) then you could do that... but otherwise it doesn't always work out. Like w/ the frozen pipes we had.... I couldn't fill the bathtub! (couldn't flush the toilet though either)

I'm thinking more of something you could have on hand, for an unexpected emergency. We dont' live close to any stores... so it's not like we could run out and stock up on water at last minute. Plus... the weather up here doesn't always agree w/ going out to the store either!

 

[Colored Egg Farmer]

how did the water pipes freeze. were they yours or the utilities?

 

[heatherv]

ours...water and sewer utilities don't come out this far into the woods! Last winter was our first winter in the house. We bought this as a fixer upper... it basically needs to be tore down and started over. The foundation is the only thing good!!! It wasn't used as a year round home.. it was only a summer home. They built it themselves and I'm sure without permits as nothing is up to code. So we ended up having to run an electric heater onto the pipes coming out of the well for the remainder of the winter. Which reminds me... we need to get someone over here to work on that whole mess before temps get cold.

 

[Colored Egg Farmer]

When you go to walmart make sure its not a sewer storage container I really would hate to keep water that is not in a bottle from the water plants. Some bacteria could get in while your filling or already be in the water. One idea is you could probably can water. to kill everything and keep it fresh. Plastic will also give the water a taste and i have heard it puts chemicals into the water to.

 

[hoosier]

They make 55gal barrels that are food grade. Do you have a basement or root cellar that doesn't freeze?
Do you have a pond on your place? We have a water purifier that we could use on our pond water.
Your water heater holds several gallons that you could use for drinking. (Just remember to cut the power to it so it doesn't come on w/o water in it.)
If you have a freezer, keep gallon milk jugs of water in your empty spaces

 

[heatherv]

They make 55gal barrels that are food grade. Do you have a basement or root cellar that doesn't freeze?
Do you have a pond on your place? We have a water purifier that we could use on our pond water.
Your water heater holds several gallons that you could use for drinking. (Just remember to cut the power to it so it doesn't come on w/o water in it.)
If you have a freezer, keep gallon milk jugs of water in your empty spaces

Where can you get the food grade barrels? And how long would water be good for in them?

No basement, no root cellar. We have a pantry, but the floor freezes.

I do the water jug in the freezer thing when there's space, b/c I heard it's supposed to run more efficiently when it's full.

Thanks for the water heater tip, hadn't thought about that!

 

[patandchickens]

If perchance you have a sump pump in your basement, and the power or water goes out during a part of year when there is water in the sump, that water is fine for flushing toilets with. So is water from your roof (bucket at bottom of downspout to catch it).

Your hot water tank can be drained to use the water inside it as long as you ABSOLUTELY REMEMBER to pull the fuse or breaker associated with it so that it does not overheat and croak. (Note that this means you must have the fuse/breaker correctly labelled <g>). This water can be drunk if you really need to.

If you are on a well and have a pressure tank, the pressure tank can be drained, through the bottom fixture, to provide a surprising amount of water that is as drinkable as your well supply is. (Although I won't drink water out of ours because it hasn't gone thru the u/v unit first)

If you are on a shallow well it is sometimes possible to uncap it and use a well bucket to dip water out (although be VERY careful not to let stuff fall in that will contaminate the water supply!).

I buy large plastic containers of water to store as drinking-water reserve (alternatively you can put a little bit of bleach in tapwater and store in clean plastic carbuoys), and whenever we have to open one of them to use because the water is in fact out, when the water returns I refill the container with tapwater plus a bit of bleach and label it "for flushing only" for use next time.

Also, if you have to transport water from elsewhere (incl. for animals), you can use any sort of large STRONG plastic container lined with a garbage bag that you tie closed once it's filled with water. This reduces spillage from sloshing. Those lidded kitty-litter buckets are also TERRIFIC for transporting water without spilling.


Pat