How to Purify Water During an Emergency

While it is best to store water beforehand, you can purify water several ways.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Pots
• Pots
• Small Plastic Containers
• Paper Or Plastic Cups

Boiling

1. Fill a pot with water.

2. Let any particles in the water settle to the bottom of the pot, or filter them through a paper towel or clean cloth.

3. Bring water to a rolling boil for 3-5 minutes.

4. Pour the water back and forth between two clean containers to restore oxygen, thereby improving taste.

5. Let the water cool before drinking.

Disinfecting

6. Fill a clean plastic container with water.

7. Let any particles in the water settle to the bottom of the container, or filter them through a paper towel or clean cloth.

8. Add 16 drops of regular household liquid bleach per gallon of water.

9. Stir the water and let it stand for 30 minutes.

10. Check for a slight bleach odor. If there is none, add another 16 drops of bleach and let the water stand another 15 minutes.

Distilling

11. Fill a cooking pot half full of water.

12. Let any particles in the water settle to the bottom of the pot, or filter them through a paper towel or clean cloth.

13. Tie a paper cup to the handle of the pot's lid so that it hangs right-side-up when the lid is upside-down. Be sure that the cup is not trailing into the water.

14. Boil the water for 20 minutes. The water vapor will be mostly free of impurities.

15. Condense back to water, and drip from the lid into the cup.

Tips & Warnings

• Household bleach contains 5.25 percent sodium hypochlorite.
• Avoid scented or colorsafe bleaches, as well as bleaches with added cleaners.

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[azrver]

on 10/20/2009 Good detailed information on How To. One more step by adding this site at the bottom of your page.
Great site: Dept of Health: Purifying Household Water
http://www.doh.wa.gov/phepr/handbook/purify.htm

This site was posted on How To Purify Water Yourself by jmilgtp

[wayne101]

on 10/3/2009 Great suggestions by Jonesy. I wouldn't suggest adding to bleach to drinking water as it is a poison. Call Chorlox, they will tell you it is for laundry, not ingestion.

[BFunkey]

on 10/3/2009 Especially in the "Boiling" and "Distilling" sections, there is no method described for what to do with the particles that settle to the bottom before boiling. One you start boiling, those particles will re-mix with the rest of the water. Most boiling containers do not have bottom taps to drain particles from the bottom. I suggest you need other containers into which you can pour the water above the settled particles before boiling, then rinse out the original container and return the poured-off water, if that original container is to be used for boiling．

[MyJB]

on 5/14/2009 Interesting.

[jonesyboogieman]

on 5/12/2009 3) Learn how to shut down your home systems (water, electrical, gas) and then drain your plumbing at the lowest point into buckets or a bathtub for more emergency water. If you don't shut your home systems down, for instance during a flood, you run the risk of having a gas leak, electrified flood water, AND your plumbing getting contaminated by backed up flood/sewage.