Post Disaster Potable Water

The city sewage treatment plant goes off line due to a terrorist attack.

A natural disaster - such as Katrina - devastates and floods large geographic areas, making all water unsafe to consume.

An earthquake strikes or wildfire races through your area, knocking out power for your entire region.

A train derails and dumps thousands of gallons of toxic sludge into your city's primary water supply, making it unusable for consumption or sanitation.

Bottom line:  You are forced to evacuate, and must look elsewhere for water to consume.

Your plan is to rush down to the local super market and grab all the water off the shelves and hit the road. 

The problem is, everyone else had that same plan, and they got there before you.

 Most people that study and practice prepping know about The Rule of 3's:

You can live 3 minutes without air
You can live 3 hours without shelter
You can live 3 days without water
You can live 3 weeks without food

Water, though, has some rules.  You can't just drink any water - you've got to drink potable water.  Potable simply means, "safe to drink".

Drink contaminated water, and you may be accelerating your death, not preventing it.

The two biggest enemies here in the US are Cryptosporidium and Giardia.  Nasty stuff, both of them.

Both of these protozoa can give you severe gastrointestinal distress.  That's a nice way of saying diarrhea. 

Both are capable of causing you to lose more fluids than you are able to retain, and you slowly die from dehydration. 

If you are able to get to a medical facility, recovery can take upwards of 6 weeks for severe cases. If you can't get to facilities, your options are severely limited. 

The long and the short of it is:  Don't ingest these protozoa!

As we age, this is even more critical.  In general, we are faster to get ill - when compared to a typical 20-something - and are slower to regain our health.  A bad case of, "The Revenge" can take your life if you don't have immediate access to medical care.
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Far and away, the most effective way to make your water potable, is to boil it. 

Many (if not most) survival and prepper sites will tell you to boil your water for 5 minutes.  In my opinion, that is a waste of precious resources (fuel and evaporated water) and time.  

Water is pasteurized (all bad stuff killed by heat) when it reaches 191F for 1 second.  You'll notice that this temperature is below boiling temperature of 212F. 

Most people don't carry a thermometer with them, so they can't tell when they've hit 191F.  For me, I wait until I see my first big boil bubble in the pot.  

By that time, I have already blown through 191F and have reached 212F.  I know with certainty - even at higher elevations up to 11,000 feet - that the water has been pasteurized and is safe to consume. 

Also, it's very important that the turbidity of the water be removed.  What does that mean?  It means you want the water to look clear.  Particulates floating in the water can house the protozoa, bacteria and other harmful bugs, and prevent the boiling from being fully effective.  

If you don't have some sort of a filter, let the water sit undisturbed for a half hour, and pour off the clear water on top. 

Lastly, stay away from water with a chemical or solvent smell.  There are ways to remove these contaminants, but you are ill-equipped to employ them during an emergency situation.

This first video shows how to make a survival filter.  Perhaps more valuable, she shows how to make an Egyptian Well - using natural sediments near the body of water to pre-filter the bad stuff -

 

 Sometimes you're fortunate enough to have some gear with you.  In this case a Life Straw.

This inventive teacher mixes up a batch of Cow Poo Tea.... and then drinks it with the Life Straw.  A pretty good addition to any Bug Out Bag, car emergency bag, or camping gear backpack -

 

 This creative fellow fills his canteen... from a tree!  Very easy to do with just a knife and a canteen.

 And a tree, of course!

 

 Dave Canterbury - formerly of the Discovery Channel show, "Dual Survival" shows us how to treat water in a number of ways.

 

Lastly, this video show how to make a solar still - producing pure, distilled water.

 As the video highlights, a LOT of work goes into solar stills, and you typically get very little water in return for the effort.  Use this technique in conjunction with other, more productive techniques.

   

 Learn about the water in your area.  Where are the treatment plants?  Where are naturally occurring bodies of water such as rivers, lakes, ponds and the like?  Are they up- or down-stream of potential contamination sources?

Where are man-made sources of water, such as swimming pools, storage tanks and cisterns?  Toilet tanks and water heaters?  Having this information before you need it can be a life-saver.

Do you have the ability to make a fire to boil your water - any time, any where?  Pots or other containers to hold it?  Chemicals to disinfect it?  Filters - or the skills to make one - to clarify it?

The skills and tools needed to make your water potable are readily available.  It's your job to make sure YOU have them.

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Copyright 2014 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Sanitation With A Twist

I've mentioned that I'm looking for some rural property, and most of them are on private wells and septic.  Having been a "city boy" my whole life, I'm trying to get a grip on life without all of the normal amenities, and the "rules" you've got to follow.  No fat in the septic, for instance.

I've been doing a lot of research on sanitation, and I thought I'd share some of what I've found.

The Taj Mahal of Outhouses - holy crap (oops) this guy rocks!  In addition to recycling most of the materials for the outhouse to save a couple of bucks, he turned  his creation into a full outdoors bathroom - crapper, sink and shower.

Take a look at the video he provided to get a good look at what he created -



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The state to which I'm planning my move is dry.  Really dry.  Water is truly a scarce commodity.

This simple but ingenious Gray Water Recycling set-up caught my eye.  The primary purpose is to flush his toilet.  It incorporates simple, Big Box supplies and non-rocket scientist engineering.  Right up my alley!

What was very nice about this project was, he came back to the site after using it for 6 months, detailed some of the problems he ran into - and the fixes/upgrades he performed.

Really a great project.
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Another outhouse project, but this one is also a composting set-up.  I've seen a number of commercial composters that I've really liked, but it's always nice to know how to do it yourself.

I don't think Mrs. Chief Instructor is quite ready for this one.  I like the idea of having a ready source of material for a compost pile (I know, not for use on veggies that come in direct contact with the compost), as the areas we've been scouting have areas of poor soil quality.  We're looking at the "good dirt" areas initially, but I do plan on doing lots of composting of all plant materials.


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Copyright 2014 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Yoga: All Bent Out Of Shape

Almost every morning, I go through an exercise routine.  I focus on short, intense (20-30 minute) workouts, typically following a Convict Conditioning-style regiment:  Very little workout equipment, as would be the case if you happened to be in jail.  Lots of body-weight stuff (push-ups, lunges, squats, planks).

I start and end each workout by doing yoga.  After years of athletics when I was younger, my joints - and in particular, my back - need to be warmed up before I get going.

I actually got into yoga while playing football in high school.  In 10th grade, we had this coach who was big into stretching and yoga.  During pre-game warm-ups, the other team would be doing jumping jacks in cadence, and growling and being all tough.  We'd be in a big circle, focusing out thoughts, doing yoga!

They laughed and snickered.  And then got their asses kicked.  We went 9-1 that season.

Anyways, when playing football in college, the competition was bigger and meaner, and the chance for injury was much higher.  Being physically flexible, agile AND powerful (I was a D-lineman) was beneficial.  Yoga helped a lot.

I just started a new move called the Boat Pose.  I found an article about it, and decided to share.

Of course, be sure you're physically sound enough to do this, or any, workout.  If you hurt yourself, don't come whining to me.  Check with your doctor FIRST if you have any doubt.

No, smart ass, this isn't me!

Neat Yoga Moves: Remove Lethargy With This Neat Yoga Move

By Heather Greaves


Imagine a yoga pose that can remove lethargy, stimulate the muscular, digestive, circulatory, nervous and hormonal systems, and tone all the organs. This same pose can be used to help reduce nervous tension. When practiced at the end of a session and before the final resting pose, Shavasana, it can facilitate a deeper state of release. It can also energize body and mind when done before getting out of bed in the morning.
 

As usual there are a few names for one yoga pose. This one is called Boat Pose, Stretch Pose, Navasana, Naukasana. We are often encouraged to close our eyes when practicing in order to turn the mind inward. In this pose however the eyes are kept open throughout.
Instructions:
 

Begin lying on your back palms down, feet together. Be aware of the body breathing itself and when the breath becomes steady, inhale slowly and deeply, hold the breath and then flatten the back of the waist into the ground. Flattening the lower back before lifting the body avoids compression in the lumbar vertebrae. We'll get back to the breath later.
 

The second part of this neat yoga move is lifting the upper and then lower body off the floor no more than 6 inches (15 cm); in essence balancing on the buttocks. The arms are also lifted at the same level as the toes. Palms can be facing each other at the sides of the body, or over the thighs. Unless you need to place them under the buttocks to support the lower back. Let the heart lift the head. To keep the vertebrae in the neck safe bring the chin in towards the throat, not down or away from the throat. Your ears will move closer to your shoulders. Try lifting the chest and drawing your chin in as you sit to get a feel for the move. Leave a comfortable space in the throat. Finally lift both legs or one at a time.
 

As you balance on the buttocks, hold the breath counting mentally to 5, or longer if you can. If you like, tighten the whole body. You could include fists. Then exhale and return to the floor lowering your head carefully. Definitely you do not want a pounding head pain from crashing to the floor! Feel the whole body as you rest between repetitions. If the abdominal muscles are tense, extend them when you inhale. Then repeat the exercise 4 to 5 times.
 

If you are feeling tired, perhaps you can devote 1-3 minutes a day to this powerful pose and see whether it will remove lethargy.
 

Heather Greaves is an avid yoga student and the owner of Body Therapies Yoga Training. She organizes yoga and meditation retreats and workshops in Ontario and Barbados, and has been helping yoga enthusiasts learn to teach therapeutic yoga in a certified program. For more yoga tips or to sign up for our monthly newsletter visit http://www.yogatogo.com


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Heather_Greaves

http://EzineArticles.com/?Neat-Yoga-Moves:-Remove-Lethargy-With-This-Neat-Yoga-Move&id=7263855

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Copyright 2014 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com