By Louise L Bash
H20 IS LIFE
Two-thirds of the human body (by weight) consists of water. We need water for circulation, respiration, and converting food to energy. Water is the body's most important nutrient, after oxygen. To put it plainly and bluntly, you need water to live. After 3-5 days, you need water or you'll perish. You can make it 3 weeks without food, but only 3-5 days without water.
Your body loses water constantly through sweat, urine, and even breathing. You must replace the water your body loses for your organs to continue to work properly. Dehydration occurs when you're losing more water than you're taking in.
Three days of storage is recommended by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) should your regular water source become inoperable. Unfortunately, your source of water could be out longer than 3 days or become contaminated during the crisis. Therefore, three days of water storage is the minimum. You should have at least two weeks worth of water on hand in inventory. The golden rule to remember for how much water one person needs a day is this; one gallon of water per person, per day. So for a single person, that's 14 gallons of water. For a family of four, that would mean you'd need 56 gallons of water.
Now since we know the importance of having plenty of water on hand, let's now talk about proper container and storage of water.
CONTAINERS
If you plan to store water in a plastic container for the next you need to make sure you choose the right type of container. Some plastic containers are not made for this purpose and will leach harmful chemicals into water over time. Empty, used milk jugs are the worst to store water for this very reason.
To ensure the container you choose is safe for long term water storage, make sure it is "food grade." Most of these containers will also have a "HDPE 2" (which stands for high density polyurethane type 2) or LDPE (low-density polyethylene) that is BPA and phthalate free, it will not add taste or odor to the water.
Water storage kits, drums, totes are idea to store your water. The kits are "food grade" and either HDPE or LDPE. The kits can store as little as 5 gallons of water to as much as 300 gallons of water. Therefore, you have options to consider for your needs; either mobile to keep in your vehicle or stationary such as your "bug out" location or home. Also, many of these kits can easily be stacked to limit the amount of space that is being used in your inventory.
Commercially manufactured bottle water is a thought to consider as well. Keep bottled water in its original container and do not open until you need to use it. Observe the expiration or "use by" date that is printed on each individual bottle. Store in cool. However, a lot of room in your inventory space will be taken up to accumulate enough of these bottles for adequate survival means.
As we know, H20 is essential to survival. The challenges are knowing how much to accumulate for that unexpected and sometimes unannounced crisis, and knowing the right storage container to use. Hopefully, you now have a better understanding to answer both of those questions.
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