Be Prepared

[mugwump]

Originally Posted by Costa

On the topic of water and filtration:

Has anyone seen this product yet?

http://www.lifesaversystems.com/index.html

a very good presentation on the product can be viewed here:

http://www.ted.com/talks/michael_pri...er_filter.html

They pitch this for disaster relief, for which it seems singularly impractical. The pump-on-the-move feature may make it better suited for mil operations but it looks like you'd need to filter several bottles to fill a Camelback.

Pros: It catches all viruses, it looks like you can fill the 'dirty' side reservoir and then pump it on the move, and it has a useful life of 1000 gallons before needing refurbishment.

Cons: size (UK Tommy has it in his smock pocket - I wonder what falling prone onto it would do) , expense ($150), it has a 3 year expiry even when unused/unopened, requires maintenance (periodic silicone greasing during use, 'priming' during storage), the backwash procedure needed for the 1000 gal. limit looks complicated, it uses replacement parts (new filter $99 plus $40 for prefilter and activated carbon filter packs), requires active pumping, and it apparently suddenly shuts down without warning when the filter limit is reached (which they sell as a feature).

Sounds fiddly, like my M1A. I think the third world (or my family in a disaster scenario) needs an AK: unlimited shelf life, no replacement parts, minimal or no maintenance, unlimited filter life, passive filtering (no pumping), high flow rate, cheap price. All instructions for use should fit on one side of a laminated 3x5 notecard. If it needs a manual, forget it.

[dadof18x'er]

[QUOTE=Costa;280938]On the topic of water and filtration:

here's a water purifier my wife researched and ordered, it works by
gravity flow and supposedly gets all the contaminants...

http://www.preparedplanet.com/Berkey-Water-Filters.html

[dadof18x'er]

[QUOTE=dadof18x'er;290886]

Originally Posted by Costa

On the topic of water and filtration:

here's a water purifier my wife researched and ordered, it works by
gravity flow and supposedly gets all the contaminants...

http://www.preparedplanet.com/Berkey-Water-Filters.html

for those interested we have now started using this filter and I am really
impressed with its simplicity. The water tastes good and according to the
specs it leaves the desirable minerals.

Originally Posted by Peregrino

No, but I will be looking for them next year. Thanks for the info. Now I need to find/make an actvated charcoal filter to put downstream from this one. (Chemically contaminated well water at the new house, lost the lake I depended on when we moved, now I'm stuck on city water and have to have a more elaborate emergency plan. )

Key West as no natural water. Many houses are set up as compounds. My house there had a two story duplex and the house next door with rain gutters and piping that sent ALL rainwater into the cistern that was under my back porch. Not sure of the exact tankage but the cistern itself was 8 feet deep, 22feet long by 12 feet wide. At any given time it was 1/2 to 2/3's full. We had a foot pump that could get water out fairly easily.
Whale gusher makes a simple foot pump that runs about $100, get the tubing that is for 45psi and up..

The problem with technology is that it breaks down. If there is a breakdown in society that creates a need for all this prep. Then, the possibilty of finding replacement parts decreases, it seems, with the further slide into more 'primitive' living conditions. Some of the old standbys for purifying water are pretty simple. Bleach and iodine. Bleach breaks down into biodegradeable components within roughly 24 hours. I use it all the time in my water tank.

One might consider sorting through the Foxfire Series of books. Is it Mother Earth News that has all that back to the earth living in primitive conditions like hippies stuff a lot in thier mag? Thing is a lot of that stuff is very useful. But to get past the organic, back to the earth, techonology is bad stuff is a bit bothersome.

[Razor]

AM,

Do you have a reverse osmosis pump or desalinator to augment your rain catchment?

Originally Posted by Razor

AM,

Do you have a reverse osmosis pump or desalinator to augment your rain catchment?

Do you mean boat or house? No,to both, for any number of reasons.

I am by no means a luddite. However, a decent watermaker would cost in the $4,300 range plus installation. A single replacement membrane is $338. Those prices are from www.defender.com do a search for 'watermaker'. The power 80e
The manual model takes 13 minutes of pumping to get a single cup of water.

For the cost of one watermaker I can have one of these puppies, tuned to (illegally) add the SSB bands.
http://yaesu.com/indexVS.cfm?cmd=Dis...5&isArchived=0
I can even have some nice bells and whistles. Antennas and all that good stuff.
Considering that someone has proposed a bill to ban the internet (cross thread points please) in times of 'national crisis".. It seems wiser to use my meager funds on something far more useful. with a pactor modem I can even get weather gribs and email.

I am a firm believer in KISS. The simpler it is, the less I have to work at maintaining it. The less there is to go wrong. Gutters and pipes to a cistern need virtually no maintenence. A mainsail with a catch funnel with hose to the watertank again simple and easy to maintain. I am rather lazy, I would much rather lay under the bimini and read, than work at some techno whiz bang toy.

[peshguy]

Originally Posted by Peregrino

No, but I will be looking for them next year. Thanks for the info. Now I need to find/make an actvated charcoal filter to put downstream from this one. (Chemically contaminated well water at the new house, lost the lake I depended on when we moved, now I'm stuck on city water and have to have a more elaborate emergency plan. )

Just a thought but can you set up rain catch barrels or multiple hot water heater tanks in your house/condo? Both are cheap and look normal in the city/suburb and can hold a lot of water...

[Defender968]

Originally Posted by peshguy

Just a thought but can you set up rain catch barrels or multiple hot water heater tanks in your house/condo? Both are cheap and look normal in the city/suburb and can hold a lot of water...

I wouldn't recommend the hot water tank approach for storing water long term, they rust pretty bad especially if you don't drain them frequently, food grade plastic tanks would be a much better solution.

[peshguy]

That is were I got mt rain catch barrel, blends right in with the house. During a recent blackout I noticed that the same houses that had something more than flashlights on at night also had rain catch barrels.




Rgr, on the rust I have one rigged to feed the other and drain both when I change the fire alarm batteries and test the auto sump pump in the basement.

Originally Posted by Defender968

I wouldn't recommend the hot water tank approach for storing water long term, they rust pretty bad especially if you don't drain them frequently, food grade plastic tanks would be a much better solution.

Two solutions. Plastic pickle barrels. My dtr has a number of them. Uses two for composting. She has 4 more, one at each corner of her new house. In the process of hiding them behind plants. Each barrel now has a spigot at the bottom attached to a ball valve that a hose can be attached to.

I was in Home Depot today and saw some very nice looking rain catchment barrels. One was red clay colored, the other a sand pebble texture. Both were flat backed to stand up against a wall. One can purchase diverter system from the rain gutter to the barrel.

A ground floor condo one can use an umbrella as a catchment system with enough plastic hosing..make sure that whatever you use is "food safe" meaning that NO plastic chemical crap gets into your drinking water. One can use an umbrella, a funnel and hose to fill a bathtub in an emergency. You just need to look around at what is at hand and think outside the box.
AM

[Sten]

Originally Posted by peshguy

Just a thought but can you set up rain catch barrels or multiple hot water heater tanks in your house/condo? Both are cheap and look normal in the city/suburb and can hold a lot of water...

Hide it in plain sight.

http://www.composters.com/rain-barrels.php

[mugwump]

Costco has a good web-only deal if you're a member -- $60 off of their already good price, although the package includes <shudder> their eggs. Eighteen #10 cans for $279 while they last. Number 10 cans might be problematic for a small household because after opening they have to be consumed fairly quickly.

Link to Costco-Mountain House

From the page:


From the makers of Mountain House, Oregon Freeze Dry introduces NEW Easy Meals. All of the Easy Meal products are created with the same superior quality and taste you have enjoyed from Oregon Freeze Dry for over 40 years. Every Easy Meal item is fully cooked and then freeze-dried. Most all of the Easy Meal items just require water.



The Easy Meal package offers a mixed case of lunch and dinner entrée’s, breakfast entrée’s and fruit, and ingredients. Now you can have a quick hearty meal or vegetable wherever hot water is available. Easy Meals are shelf stable and a perfect solution for any emergency situation. In addition, Easy Meals are ideal for a family get-togethers, potlucks, group feeding or simply when you don’t have time to cook.

Shipment arrives in 1 bundle that contains 3 separate boxes
Total Servings: 302
Shelf Life: 25+ year if unopened (on all items)
Best if used by date printed on all cans

The Easy Meal package contains 18 #10 (gallon size) cans. See below for package contents:



Breakfast Case:
1 can of Scrambled Eggs with Ham & Red & Green Peppers (17 servings)
1 can of Breakfast Skillet (10 servings)
1 can of Granola with Milk & Blueberries (20 servings)
1 can of Scrambled Eggs with Bacon (16 servings)
1 can of Raw Egg Mix, Butter Flavor (50 servings) – Requires cooking
1 can of Sliced Strawberries (16 servings)
Entrée Case:

1 can of Lasagna with Meat Sauce (10 servings)
1 can of Pasta Primavera, Vegetarian (11 servings)
1 can of Beef Teriyaki with Rice (11 servings)
1 can of Beef Stroganoff with Noodles (10 servings)
1 can of Chicken Teriyaki with Rice (9 servings)
1 can of Chili Mac with Beef (10 servings)
Ingredient Case:

1 can of Cooked Diced Beef (15 servings)
1 can of Cooked Diced Chicken (14 servings)
1 can of Cooked Ground Beef (18 servings)
1 can of Garden Green Peas (23 servings)
1 can of Golden Sweet Whole Kernel Corn (22 servings)
1 can of Cut Green Beans (20 servings)

[Crue]

Originally Posted by mugwump

Costco has a good web-only deal if you're a member -- $60 off of their already good price, although the package includes <shudder> their eggs. Eighteen #10 cans for $279 while they last. Number 10 cans might be problematic for a small household because after opening they have to be consumed fairly quickly.

Link to Costco-Mountain House

From the page:


From the makers of Mountain House, Oregon Freeze Dry introduces NEW Easy Meals. All of the Easy Meal products are created with the same superior quality and taste you have enjoyed from Oregon Freeze Dry for over 40 years. Every Easy Meal item is fully cooked and then freeze-dried. Most all of the Easy Meal items just require water.



The Easy Meal package offers a mixed case of lunch and dinner entrée’s, breakfast entrée’s and fruit, and ingredients. Now you can have a quick hearty meal or vegetable wherever hot water is available. Easy Meals are shelf stable and a perfect solution for any emergency situation. In addition, Easy Meals are ideal for a family get-togethers, potlucks, group feeding or simply when you don’t have time to cook.

Shipment arrives in 1 bundle that contains 3 separate boxes
Total Servings: 302
Shelf Life: 25+ year if unopened (on all items)
Best if used by date printed on all cans

The Easy Meal package contains 18 #10 (gallon size) cans. See below for package contents:



Breakfast Case:
1 can of Scrambled Eggs with Ham & Red & Green Peppers (17 servings)
1 can of Breakfast Skillet (10 servings)
1 can of Granola with Milk & Blueberries (20 servings)
1 can of Scrambled Eggs with Bacon (16 servings)
1 can of Raw Egg Mix, Butter Flavor (50 servings) – Requires cooking
1 can of Sliced Strawberries (16 servings)
Entrée Case:

1 can of Lasagna with Meat Sauce (10 servings)
1 can of Pasta Primavera, Vegetarian (11 servings)
1 can of Beef Teriyaki with Rice (11 servings)
1 can of Beef Stroganoff with Noodles (10 servings)
1 can of Chicken Teriyaki with Rice (9 servings)
1 can of Chili Mac with Beef (10 servings)
Ingredient Case:

1 can of Cooked Diced Beef (15 servings)
1 can of Cooked Diced Chicken (14 servings)
1 can of Cooked Ground Beef (18 servings)
1 can of Garden Green Peas (23 servings)
1 can of Golden Sweet Whole Kernel Corn (22 servings)
1 can of Cut Green Beans (20 servings)

Just came home to find my order on my doorstep. Offer is still good until 10 October. Might order another if I can time the order to be delivered when the wife is not home...

[Stingray]

Bump.

At Freeze Dry Guy's website, under products, pay as you go Clubs, there is a good reasonably priced monthly option for stashing Mountain House.


Knuckledragger alert* I don't know how to link it without the copy/paste or I would insert it.

Sincerely,

[koz]

Freeze Dry Guy