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Using Chlorine Bleach toDisinfect WaterAs Joe has noted several times in previous posts, the human bodydoes not last long without water. o much of our body is composedof it and it facilitates so many biological processes that we musthave a pretty steady and generous supply of it for good health.

toring and Collecting Water

toring a su!cient supply of puri"ed water is an e#cellent ideaalthough it is $uite a space hog. Additionally, there%s no guaranteethat you%ll be able to store enough for your needs over an e#tended

period of time.

econd to storing clean water would be having a dependablesource for it. Collecting rainwater is a good idea, but obviouslydependent on precipitation that may be long in coming during hotsummer months.

We are blessed with several ponds on our property. &hey give ussome peace of mind regarding our water situation. &hree of thefour are located on low spots on our land, so they pretty easily

re"ll with rainfall. 'By the way, one of them was man(made and didnot hold water for the "rst several years we lived here. )ventually,our herd of cows e*ectively compacted the bottom and sides bytheir weight as they waded in and out during hot weather and itnow holds water year round. + have heard hogs will do the samething.

+t%s really nice to have these water sources for ourselves and ouranimals, but we cannot -ust drin it as is. We must mae it potablefor human consumption. We would "rst choose from the ponds theanimals do not have access to. /e#t, we would "lter it 'more onthat another time. 0astly, we would disinfect it. &his is where thebleach comes in.

Joe mentioned in his recent piece on "rethat boiling water wille*ectively ill microbes luring within. 1eeping enough safe waterfor everyone to drin could become someone%s all day -ob if donee#clusively by "re, plus you have to wait for it to cool. Analternative is to use household bleach.

http://preppingtosurvive.com/2011/12/14/is-anything-more-important-than-fire/http://preppingtosurvive.com/2011/12/14/is-anything-more-important-than-fire/

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toring bottles of prepared bleach is a good idea. Unfortunately, itloses its potency over time, even if the seal is unbroen. &his isespecially true in warm temperatures. What we have decided to dois to also store powdered calcium hypochlorite 'concentratedbleach granules for use in maing chlorine bleach as we need it.

Where can you get powdered bleach2

We ordered pool shoc in 3 lb pacetsand have stored them ina4gamma seal5 lidded bucet. +t is important that you mae sure ofwhat you are getting. 6ou do not want an algaecide or otherchemicals mi#ed in with the calcium hypochlorite( those are notsafe for human consumption.

7ow do + use it2

Adding 389 o: 'about ;8< teaspoon of the =>? available chlorinepowder to a gallon of water will create full strength bleach. &hisbleach can then be used at a rate of about 9(3= drops of bleachadded to each gallon of collected water. At this level of usage,each pound of powdered chlorine will produce appro#imately 3@9gallons of prepared bleach, which will in turn purify thousands ofgallons of water. What a odsend you could be to your family andneighbors in preventing water(borne disease

+t is important to note that cloudy or o*(smelling water should get

additional drops of bleach. hae it well and then wait ; minutesfor the microbes to die. While it is considered safe to drin thewater after the half hour is up, the smell and taste will usuallydissipate overnight if it is left to stand uncovered.

When purifying water in a container that you will drin out of later,such as a bottle or -ug, be sure to allow some of the chlorinatedwater to cover the rim. &he easiest way to do this is to loosely putthe cap on the bottle and shae it. &his will allow some of thecontained water to splash out on to the rim. 6ou can then tightenit. &his will ill the microbes on the surface of the rim so won%taccidentally consume contaminated water.

Chlorine is generally considered a better option than iodine sinceiodine does not brea down chemically and often has a strongunpleasant taste.

lease tae care to identify any containers you "ll with bleach.ince you may not have much choice in what you can store the

http://www.inyopools.com/Products/22300006058112.htmhttp://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/diseases/diseasefact/en/http://www.inyopools.com/Products/22300006058112.htmhttp://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/diseases/diseasefact/en/

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prepared bleach in 'even old water bottles, you need to be carefulthat no one accidentally splashes it in their eyes or tries to drin itfull strength.

UDA&)E Just to clarify( +f possible, always "lter and boil$uestionable water rather than relying on chlorine bleach if youhave that choice. 6ou never want to introduce unnecessary

chemicals into your body. +n addition to the debate about whetheriardia can be e*ectively illed with chlorine, there is additionalevidence now that it should not be our "rst choiceEtrihalomethanes. &hese are harmful chemical compounds createdwhen chlorine reacts with organic material often found in watersources.

http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/ndwc/articles/QandA/OTsp99_Q_A.pdfhttp://www.nesc.wvu.edu/ndwc/articles/QandA/OTsp99_Q_A.pdf