Category: Plumbing

Learning From My Amish Neighbor, by 3AD Scout

In February of this year, our neighbor sold his two houses and business. One of those houses was sold to our new neighbors. They are Old Order Amish who still do not use any electric lights on their buggies but rather use Kerosene lamps. It has been an interesting few months watching them transform their new-to-them home to their off-grid Amish lifestyle. I was wondering how the new owners would heat the large old farmhouse and get their water since the old neighbor used electricity for such things. The previous neighbor had an outside wood furnace that supplied both heat …


Separett Waterless Composting Toilet, by OhioGalt

Not the most comfortable topic to discuss but closing up the cabin last week I realized that our toilet has been problem-free for many years and worthy of a brief review to share with the readers of SurvivalBlog. I did not receive any compensation for this review, and we purchased this unit four years ago and have been using it regularly. We installed a composting toilet in our cabin several years ago for those times we didn’t want to trudge 300′ through the snow to the outhouse. My wife and I watched numerous video reviews of different composting toilets in …


Winter Plumbing Preparedness – Part 2, by A.F.

(Continued from Part 1.  This concludes the article.) Pex pipe can be installed without regard to any water that is still dripping from the system since it uses mechanical connection methods. Coat the threads of two male adapters of the appropriate size with pipe dope and tightly thread one into each of the female fittings exposed in the previous step. I don’t know if electrolytic effects are of concern between galvanized steel and brass (for PEX substitution) or copper, but I trust pipe dope to be a better deterrent to any possible corrosion effects than Teflon tape. I refuse to …


Winter Plumbing Preparedness – Part 1, by A.F.

“We are out of water!” were the words my dear bride spoke as she recently awakened me at 3 a.m. Hmmm said I, as I reached for my clothes to dress and began troubleshooting the issue. Step 1, Open the faucet and listen for gurgling or sucking sounds. No noises to indicate a vacuum so likely the pump hasn’t lost prime nor has the main supply line broken. Step 2, Check the panel and make sure the breaker hasn’t tripped. The weather has been clear ie. it’s unlikely lightening is my culprit and sure enough the breaker is fine. Step …


Practical Rain Catchment, by Javelina

I think everyone agrees that water is an absolute necessity, regardless of the situation at hand. Catching what nature provides can be as simple as a bucket or tarp or as complex as multi tank systems with complete purification systems. I am no expert, nor is this meant to be a technical article but a simple guide to get started harvesting rain. As always consult your local codes and permit requirements. The American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association (ARCSA) is a great place to start. The American Society of Plumbing Engineers (ASPE) is also a source of installation information as well. …


Rainwater Harvesting – Part 2, by K.R.

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) Our Primary Rainwater Capture System When the time came for us to put in a new garage, we had the opportunity to install a larger rainwater system that could also capture snow melt, as well as store water during the winter. The collection system is an in-ground French drain running the 60-foot length of the building, between the eaves of the building and the hillside. The drain empties into a 1,000-gallon concrete underground cistern. We put in a septic tank for the toilet in the garage, so we just dropped a second …


An Emergency Household Water Supply, by St. Funogas

As we saw in 2021 here in the U.S., grid-down events lasting several days can occur at any time of the year. Some of the major ones making the headlines were caused by forest fires, multi-state tornados, and near record-setting wind storms. Most of us deal more regularly with local blackouts caused by wind and ice storms, outages that can happen anywhere at any time. Are we prepared? We take water for granted. It’s always there when we open a tap or flush the toilet and often we’re not prepared when it’s not readily available for a several-day period. Here, …


Using a Dankoff Solar Powered Water Pump – Part 1, by Tunnel Rabbit

The Mission: To “Survive and Thrive” In my opinion, the ability to irrigate crops is not covered adequately.  Few have a plan, or the ability pump water for decades without electricity from the grid.  And fewer still have a contingency plan that includes relocating with this critical ability. Not only is our currency at risk, at the same time, so is our food supply and the ability to grow it.  Famine could soon be in the land. What is occurring in the world today has no equal in modern history books, but has been foretold in the Book of Revelation. …


A Deep Well Pump Jack: Vital Part of Water System, by R.M.

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Water is vital, so being prepared with multiple layers of backup make sense. A deep well pump jack is one way to have your cake and eat it too when a deep well is part of your water supply using the lowly pump jack. Pump Jack Can Pump Deep Well By Many Power Methods There are both advantages and disadvantages to use of a pump jack, but the greatest advantage by far is that you can power your deep well pump by many different electrical and non-electric methods. It can be powered by: the grid, a back up power system …


Understanding Water Filtration, by Old Soldier

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The understanding of water filtration requires a look at various filtration methods as well as contaminants. Let’s take a look at these. Water Filtration Methods Carbon/Activated Carbon Filters Activated carbon chemically bonds with and removes some contaminants in water filtered through it. Carbon filters vary greatly in effectiveness. Some just remove chlorine and improve taste and odor, while others remove a wide range of contaminants, including asbestos, lead, mercury, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). However, activated carbon cannot effectively remove common “inorganic” pollutants, such as arsenic, fluoride, hexavalent chromium, nitrate, and perchlorate. Generally, carbon filters come in two forms– carbon …


Compressed Air Well Pump and Pressurized Home Water System Bubbles- Part 2, by H.W.

Acquiring Parts To build this pump, I wandered for about two hours through the plumbing section of one of the big box home improvement stores. I love it when the guys who work there come up to me and ask what I’m looking for. I tell them I have no idea, and then I show them the back of my envelope with still-wet scribbles, as I design my project in real-time while I’m walking through the store! They see this a lot, I think. It might be called Home Depot engineering. I’ve noticed that the big box stores have stopped …


Water: PV-Powered Water Pumping and Storage, by A. Haggard H. Rider

All sources of preparedness information stress the importance of water. Without water everything else is put at risk. You cannot drink bullets, beans do not have a lot of moisture and sucking on a bandage will not help. The ideal situation is to have some form of safe running water on your property. But what if you don’t? Hopefully you have a well, but if your electric goes out your pump will not work. A hand pump will work, but it takes a lot of energy to get that water, and then you have the situation of Operational Security (OPSEC) …