The Best Way to Make Water Safe to Drink

Water Filters

Commercially available water filters that can remove most disease causing organisms are on the market today that are easy to use and efficient at making enough clean water for emergency use. In choosing a water filter you have to be careful since not all water filters are of the highest standards and many remove little more than some odor and perhaps improve taste.

Water filters may remove some disease organisms but not others, especially the smaller creatures that can easily slip through the pores of the filtering mechanism. Viruses are a special problem since they are exceedingly small. Most portable water filters have a difficult time trapping viruses because of this.

The best water filters for individual use are often designed for hikers, kayakers and other outdoor enthusiasts. They are small, lightweight and easy to operate.

One major drawback to water filters is that you must actually have a functioning water filter on hand in order to use it. Water filters can break down. The filter mechanism can become clogged with debris, especially if the water you are filtering has suspended particles. It is difficult to keep a waterfilter working when the temperature is below freezing as working parts of the filter may become clogged with ice.

Not all waterfilters are of the highest quality and filtering ability, so proper selection is important. And of course the user of the water filter must know how to operate the device properly in order for the filter to do its job.

Chemical Treatment

Chemically treating water to make it safe to drink has been an old time favorite. Chlorine bleach, iodine and a number of other chemicals can be poured into the water and after a time some disease organisms will have been destroyed. Again, a major drawback to this method of making water safe to drink is that you must have the chemicals on hand in order to use them.

You must also have some knowledge of the amount of chemical you need to treat water. This amount can vary according a number of factors including how contaminated the water is, the temperature of the water, and the amount of suspended particles in the water. Some chemicals used in the treatment of water have expiration dates and can loose effectiveness over time. Another potential problem with chemically treating water to make it safe to drink is the chemical itself, which may actually be a health hazard in and of itself.

It has been found the chemically treating water with iodine or chlorine may not kill all disease organisms. For example Cryptosporidium is one of the nasty bugs that may live through your best efforts using chemicals to treat the water.

Solar Water Disinfection

A relatively new way to treat water is known as Solar Water Disinfection or SODIS for short. SODIS is simplicity itself, assuming you have the correct materials and climate available. These materials are number 1 PET plastic bottles and the sun.

To use SODIS effectively, the closer to the equator you are the better since solar water disinfection relies upon the intensity of the sun and its UV rays to destroy disease causing organisms. Latitudes between 35 degrees North and 35 degrees South are the best.

The number 1 plastic PET bottles allow the suns UV light to pass into the bottle, where it reacts with the water to create hydrogen peroxide and other chemicals. These chemicals kill the organisms in the water or actually change their DNA so that they cannot reproduce.

Under ideal conditions water can be made safe using SODIS in about a day. If the sun is low on the horizon, the sky is cloudy, or the water has suspended particles then the SODIS process will take longer. If conditions are not optimal all disease causing organisms may not be eliminated. You also need a particular type of plastic bottle which may not be available.

Solar water disinfection will not work if the water in your bottles is frozen. Even in the lower latitudes, at higher elevations this could be a problem.

Since the ability of SODIS to successfully make your water safe to drink depends upon a number of variables, some experience is necessary in order to do it right. In some areas of the world SODIS is not at all efficient or even workable. In a survival situation you may still be unsure if the water you have treated using solar water disinfection is really safe to drink. Short of doing an actual laboratory analysis, how would you know?

Problems Treating Water

All of the above mentioned methods of making water safe to drink have one major drawback in common: they require the person doing the disinfection to have specialized knowledge in order to do it right. Make an error in judgment or use defective equipment and the survivor could find himself drinking disease causing organisms in his inadequately processed water.

Boiling Water

This is where boiling water comes in. Of all the ways to make water safe to drink, boiling remains the number one most foolproof method. The materials required to boil water are to be found nearly everywhere, or can be improvised. A source of fuel and a way to ignite it, and a pot of some sort. Short of using a pot to boil water, you can use tin foil or even a tightly woven basket into which water and hot rocks are added.

Boiling destroys all disease carrying organisms, including viruses. And when you have boiled water there is no mistake that you have indeed succeeded in your goal of making water safe to drink.

How Long Do You Need to Boil Water?

How long do you need to boil water to make it safe to drink? There are a number of misnomers circulating around out there about the time to boil water. Ten minutes seems to be a commonly quoted figure. Actually, all it takes is to get the water to a good rolling boil and then your done. Thats it. Once the water has reached the boiling point there is no need to continue, and to do so is merely wasting fuel.

For more information on how long you need to boil water to make it safe to drink see the Survival Topic How Long Do You Need to Boil Water?.

Do Not Mix Untreated Water with Treated Water

On a final note, it is important that you only use disinfected water for anything that will enter your body. Do not wash your food or your cooking and eating utensils with contaminated water. Do not brush your teeth with untreated water either as you will certainly be introducing disease causing organisms into your body. Avoid getting untreated water on any wounds or areas of open skin.