Category: Water Storage & Filters

Letter Re: Off-Grid Living on an Alaskan Island

Hello, Many US military personal who serve on an isolated duty station, in effect live off grid.  For example I was in the U.S. Coast Guard and stationed at Cape Sarichef, Alaska for a year. [It is at the end of Unimak Island.]           We had three large Caterpillar generators.  We got our water from a reservoir that was filled from mountain runoff.  I would go the reservoir when needed and start a small hand pull pump (during the winter could take almost 30 minutes to get started.) This would pump the water along a buried pipe line, with …


Letter Re: Observations From a Canadian Farmer

Hi Jim:  I have been reading SurvivalBlog.com for several months now and have found it very interesting.  I purchased a 640 acre farm in 1970 in the Little Clay belt in Northern Ontario and started from scratch.  I was 25, not married and knew no one in the area when moved from a large urban city, six hours drive away.  It was daunting and I learned a lot of lessons the hard way.  Since I used up all my cash I also had to work out to make ends meet. Here are some of my thoughts in no special order: …


Forever Preps – Preparations You Can Buy Once, and Have Forever, by Andrew D.

As a self-confessed budgeting fanatic, I’ve constrained my prepping budget on a monthly basis where I spend in one month what I made the previous month.  For example, I spend money in February that I earned in January, and so on.  Given the uncertain times, I never want to be “on the hook” with paying for things with “future money”.  So confession out of the way, sometimes it’s hard to know where to start with your preparations.  I know all about the rule of 3, etc., but when it comes down to it, there really are a lot of choices.  …


Letter Re: Preparedness on a Tight Budget

Mrs. R.J., I rejoice to read of your plans to prepare. It’s good to know you’re in Arkansas. The Christians at Ark Haven believe that is a protected area for many reasons, physical and spiritual. Three generations on one piece of property is definitely getting back to the old ways. Two acres is great — focus on compact crops and animals; Jeavons lists crops by square foot yield and calorie count so you can be sure you’re getting the correct amount in his book “How To Grow More Vegetables” (read it free here). (And yes, it appears this free book is …


Letter Re: Strapping Hot Water Heaters for Earthquakes

Hi James, Regarding River’s advice about strapping a water heater: He is correct about the value of doing this, but I would advise anyone considering this task to do more than just nail a strip of plumbers tape around the water heater. As a 40 year native of Southern California (yes, I am looking to escape) I am better acquainted than I would care to be with earthquakes and what they do. I am also a general contractor. California’s requirements for bracing water heaters can be annoying, but they do exist for good reason. Anyone looking at bracing their water …


The Golden Hours, by Brad H.

The three main factors in determining who lives and who dies WTSHTF are situational awareness, overcoming inertia, and dumb luck. The first two you have some control over. The third is always going to be beyond your control, except for Divine intervention, so don’t worry about it. If you are at mid-span on the Golden Gate Bridge when Al Qaeda sets off a nuke in San Francisco, or “The Big One” hits. In such cases, acceptance of God’s will is all you have to do to prepare. For those who are lucky enough to not be killed immediately when disaster …


Letter Re: Making Swimming Pool Water Potable?

Dear Jim: When I teach classes on water storage and preservation I am often asked this question. I usually respond with a few questions of my own: 1.) Name all of the reasons you need water? 2.) Tell me what percentage each of those requires?, and: 3.) How many of those could you do with pool water just the way it is? The truth of the matter is that the only reason you would need to “purify” pool water is for drinking or cooking. Washing, (dishes, clothes or bodies) doesn’t  require any pool water purification. Same with flushing the toilet …


Preparedness Provisioning (Good, Better, Best), by Bill L.

In an event where supplies of food and water or your access shelter have become compromised due to natural disaster, civil unrest or an unplanned scarcity of commodities, it would be comforting to know that in spite of the unplanned event you have planned for it.  This is not a detailed itemized list of what to get. There are numerous books, internet sites and clubs that offer all kinds of advice on preparedness. By doing your own research you will see that there are ample lists and dialogs to glean from. What this is is a method to keep you …


Letter Re: Making Swimming Pool Water Potable?

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James Wesley: I’ve got a question for your readership, the answer to which may save a great number of lives. The metropolitan Phoenix area is one of the half-dozen most populous in the United States. Between 3 and 4 million people live there. The river which Phoenix was built on (the site of a previous civilization whose population vanished around 500-600 years ago) is now dammed upstream, and usually bone dry. The population is mostly dependent on grid-up well-pumped or canal/dam-diverted water for its entire supply. Some 3.5 million people are going to be in a world of hurt if …


Letter Re: One Man’s Approach to Preparedness

Sir: Just to let everyone know, I am new to the prepper lifestyle, and new to the kind of changes one must make in one’s life to begin saving as opposed to spending, or maybe a better way of saying it is to say “ changing what your spending your money on ”   where before it may have been a new dirt bike, man toy,   or flat screen television, now my extra cash (after my tithe and savings) is going to preparations.   My change in spending habits quickly brought about a realization , that some items that …


Rain Water Collecting and Storage, by Tom C.

Water, gotta have it.  In a world that has become limited or shut down completely there will never end the need for water on a daily basis.  Disruption to the supply from the local water company will wreck havoc on every single person and family within hours. The immediate need will be toilets:  You come home from work, the kids from school and everyone heads to the same place after the car ride home.  Waters out. Did you remember to pay the bill?  Pipe bust?  Water Company going maintenance?  Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter/ Can’t flush but that one …


Letter Re: Grateful for SurvivalBlog in Australia

Dear James,   I read much of your blog site and started to get prepared two years ago when the financial crisis first hit.  Now, while staying dry enough, I am surrounded by flooded towns and washed out roads and bridges.  So much of what you have written is of value here right now.  I thought you would appreciate an on-the spot report.  Now my friends are scrambling and I don’t look like such a fool.      We in Jandowae have potable water but our nearest neighbouring town, Dalby was trucking in a million litres a day.  Even locally …


Letter Re: Intestinal Parasites and Water Filtration

Hi James, I thought I would pass this one along: Intestinal Parasites May Be Causing Your Energy Slump. This article talks about intestinal parasites, many of which are found in our drinking water, and their effects on chronic fatigue and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). This is one good reason for people to start using their Berkey filters on a regular basis and also start cleansing their bodies of these parasites. I have my filter in the closet, but after reading this I think I will put it on the counter and start using it to filter my tap water. I …


Letter Re: A Well Pump Failure Dry Run

Jim,   In the event that your readers are not aware of a well pump protection device known as the Pumptec, this is a very simple device that you cannot afford to be without.  The Pumptec senses sudden changes in amperage draw from the well pump and will automatically shut the power off to the well pump in the event the well runs dry or other conditions cause a high or sudden change in current draw.  Here is more information on the Pumptec, and some more maker information.    A real nice feature about this device is that it comes equipped …


Letter Re: Taking the Plunge and Buying a Rural Retreat

James,   I may be a little late to the party, but I have spent a considerable time lately worrying about what to do if this economy of ours crashes.  I started thinking about what I would do if TSHTF. I had no answer. I have read about lot of peoples concern over solar flares, and 2012 scenarios, and while they may happen, I am more convinced of the coming collapse of the dollar and the global economy. I think this is much more of a probability and certainly less speculative that the other fears—at least at the moment. So, …