Alternative Water Sources

Water is one of the, if not the, most important things you will need in a survival situation. You don't have to obtain it from the facet though, and most likely after a few days or weeks of SIT-X utilites will be shut down anyways.

You must hunt to find that water, places where most people will not think to look. A few examples, a buildings/houses hot water tank etc. . You may need to filter and/or boil it first-but its there.

What are some other sources that are unlikely to be thought of by average people?

[edit on 2-6-2010 by JJRichey]

wouldnt a car radiator be all rusty though and undrinkable, maybe in the newest of cars but i dont think i would dare drink out of my cars even if it was boiled twice

reply to post by chaztekno


Edited b/c drinking antifreeze is a bad idea! Dummy!

[edit on 2-6-2010 by JJRichey]

a toilet's resivoir tank, fridge water lines, freezers (once it melts)
sump holes in basements

There are certain devices you can buy if you want to get the maximum amount of rain water. But most of these are sold by snake soil salesmen and aren’t really efficient, until there really is a water crisis.

I plan on a metal roof soon, and am going to set up a 1000 gallon cistern to catch the rainwater, buried and insulated from the cold. When the snow melts from lack of roof insulation, it should fill up fast.
I have to go get my own water, I have holding tanks downstairs - 400 gallons. In the winter, the water is half frozen by the time I get it home. Other sources: a clean river can be pumped into the turtle tank in the truck.

Originally posted by JJRichey
and a vehicles radiator.

DO NOT TRY THIS. See here.

Im going to guess most people on earth use anti-freeze in their cars.

This must be the 4th water thread in the last two months. So, back to the common questions.

Are you in an urban, sub urban area, or rural?
Are you actually preparing, or currently trying to ensure you have a safe water supply, or just asking generic questions?
If/when posters give you ideas that arent going to kill you (see above link) are you going to practice these ideas or just read and say, wow, thats a good idea?
Are you in a part of the world where you are mostly dependant on city tap water?
Is your local alternative water (ponds, rivers, pools) treated with any type of chemical?

There is alot more to this than draining a hot water tank, sure that will keep you going for awhile, but if you are thinking long term, its not as easy as you think depending on where you are.

reply to post by JJRichey


Swimming pools, vending machines

The strangest one i ever heard of was one about wearing adult diapers and then putting the wet diaper in a solar still to reclaim the water for reuse.

The only complaint the person had was the smell of the water from the solar still.

Oh yeah, dummy I am forgot about the antifreeze. Won't be trying that then. Thanks! Hopefully I would have remembered that upon smelling it.

toilet tank res, thats one I didn't think of.


I'm not talking about just me, as I live in a very non-urban enviroment, not far from many fresh underground springs. This is a general thread for everyone.

If this is the forth thread about water in 2 months, so what? Water is one of your most imprortant resources!

Thanks for the replies everyone!

Originally posted by ANNED
The strangest one i ever heard of was one about wearing adult diapers and then putting the wet diaper in a solar still to reclaim the water for reuse.

The only complaint the person had was the smell of the water from the solar still.

Hmm... don't think I'll be trying that one....
Besides, wouldn't it be easier to just pee in a tin can?

Originally posted by JJRichey

Originally posted by ANNED
The strangest one i ever heard of was one about wearing adult diapers and then putting the wet diaper in a solar still to reclaim the water for reuse.

The only complaint the person had was the smell of the water from the solar still.

Hmm... don't think I'll be trying that one....
Besides, wouldn't it be easier to just pee in a tin can?

No, you would want a larger surface area for the urine to evaporate more efficiently.

Oh. . You were joking! Time to go to bed. . .

[edit on 6/2/2010 by clay2 baraka]

Plastic bag around a tree branch. Wrap tight and leave a small hole in the bottom for drippage. Might give a cup or two a day. Rotate it everyday to keep the tree limb/leaves from dying.

Holding your tongue out in damp places helps too



[edit on 2-6-2010 by Thermo Klein]

Any sort of distillery is a good idea as it cleans the water.

A basic solar still consists of some type of waterproof membrane (think big plastic sheet) and a hole in the ground.

Dig hole.

Fill with water containing debris (yes nappies but you could also just pee directly on to leaves in the hole.

Place water collecting vessel in the middle of the hole.

Cover with plastic sheet.

Seal edges.

Put stone on top of sheet above water collecting vessel.

Its also a good idea if you have a long straw to position it in the cup or tin collecting the water so you don't have to dismantle your solar still every time you want a drink.

The ide is that as the water evaporates, the vapour condenses on the sheet, runs down the plastic and drips into the cup.

As the water vaporises it leaves any pollutants behind giving you clean fresh water, even from salt water.

If your in a permanent coastal base and digging for water isn't an option due to pollution or something else. You cab build a much more effective distilling station

You need:

A water tight container (pressure cooker is good) a bath for holding cold water, salt water or non drinking water). lots and lots of heat resistant tubing and a fire.

Attach the tube to the pressure cooker where the steam release valve normally sits.

Run the tube from the cooker to the bath full of cold water.

Coil the tube as many times as possible inside the bath.

Fill the pressure cooker with the undrinkable water and place onto the fire.

This method provide more drinking water more rapidly. As thw water heats it turns to steam leaving the pollutants behind. The bath of cold water condenses the steam back into pure water before it has a chance to disappear into the atmosphere.

Bear in mind that if you attempt this with car radiator water, the alcohol in the antifreeze will evaporate first and that it what you will get out of the end of you tube. Ideal for medical purposes but will probably blind you if you drink it.

Again, i think if i were at a permanent coastal base i would take the time to build a decent size distillery for salt water. Plenty of water for distilling, plenty of cold water for condensing, and the valuable salt left in the cooker once all the water has gone. (Roman legionaries were paid in salt)

Urine for when things get tight, if you have a horse you can get a lot of it. Urine is mostly water and totaly sterile, its pretty much nature's brew on tap. You can even make a game of it and have your friend help balance you and you guys can do human keg stands to see who can drink more.
You can drink the blood of anything you find also.