Prepper Kit #6 – Water Treatment Kit

I’ve written about water and its importance probably more than I’ve blogged on any other single subject, and that’s because water is one of the most overlooked and necessary preps.  But what about not only storing water.  What about being prepared for water filtration in case you need to clean water in order to drink it.

So in this kit, we’re going to talk about what do we need to store in order to drink water if something extreme should happen.  How are we going to make sure that our water is safe for our families to drink, to use to shower, to wash dishes?

There are several tools that we can pick up in order to help us through difficult times while providing our families with potable water.

Water Filtration Systems

Berkey Water Filters

We’ve had a Berkey water filtration system for six or seven years and we’ve actually used it for more than four years.  It is hands down the best gravity filtered water filtration system around. I’ve actually looked for other water filtering systems, and for stationary systems, there really isn’t another gravity filtered water filtration system that I could find.  If you know of other ones, please leave a comment below.

That being said, we LOVE our Berkey system.  We wouldn’t trade it for any other system – even if we did know about it.

Black filters

Large Berkey systems have two types of filters that they use.  One is negotiable and one is non-negotiable.  The non-negotiable one is the black Berkey filter.  Those are the ones that filter out bacteria, viruses, pathogens, and potentially poisonous elements in the water.  I highly recommend that you get yourself a Berkey Water Filtration System.   Once you have the entire system, then you can stock up on these filters.  This is what will clean your water for you if you can’t rely on your municipal water supply – and maybe that time is now.  We started using ours when we moved to Illinois and the water made me literally sick to my stomach.

White filters

The other type of filters that you can purchase for your Berkey Water Filtration system are white fluoride filters.  You will not need this if you are filtering rain water, but if you plan on using your Berkey system NOW, then I highly suggest that you purchase the white filters.

One of the things that you probably don’t know about me is that I’m a little “crunchy.”  I believe that there is a reason that municipalities put fluoride in the water, and I don’t think it’s to strengthen our teeth.  I highly suggest that you filter the fluoride out of your water now.

Filtration Water Bottles

Berkey Water Bottle

We have one of these for every person in our family.  These are a non-negotiable for us.  If we would ever need to bug out, everyone would be able to safely drink from any stream.

Life Straw Go Water Bottle

This is another version of a Berkey Water Bottle.  Life Straw is a good name in portable water filtration systems.

Katadyn Pocket Microfilter

This is another portable water filtration system.  Katadyn is also a reputable name.

Chemical Agents to Clean Water

Bleach

The bleach that you use for disinfecting water should be standard unscented bleach.  It shouldn’t have any other additives.

In order to use bleach to clean or disinfect water, you need to make sure that your water is already clear.  If your water isn’t already clear, find something like a 2-liter bottle and cut the bottom off.  Turn the bottle upside down and place the mouth of the bottle over a cup or pitcher.  Stuff some clean cloth into the bottle and pour your cloudy water into the “bottom” of the bottle (which is pointing up).  If the water is still cloudy after the first pass, just do it again until it is clear.

Once your water is clear, you can disinfect it by using 1/4 tsp of bleach  per gallon.

Iodine

Iodine can be used to treat water.  You can use a 2% tincture of iodine to treat water.   If you have a quart of clear water, you can use 5 drops of a 2% tincture of iodine to disinfect the water.  If your quart of water is cloudy, you can use 10 drops of that same tincture of iodine to clean and disinfect the water.

Water treatment agents

There are several different types of water treatment agents.

Purzine

Purzine is mineral salts in water.  This will clean bacteria, viruses, protozoa, pharmaceuticals and more.

Aquatabs

Aquatabs are tabs that fizz in water.  They will kill microorganisms that are in the water.  It takes about 30 minutes for the water to be purified.

Potable Aqua

These are tablets that release iodine into the water to clean it.  It takes 30 minutes for the tablets to work.

What About You?

What ways do you already have in your kit to purify water?  Are there items that you need to add to your kit in order to clean and purify your water.   Do you have other suggestions as to how to clean your water in case of an emergency.  Leave a comment below and let us know.

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