Self-sufficiency on the rise...

[MadHatter]

What are some good options for water filtration for a large group? Boiling is cumbersome. I have a live spring creek but it travels through a lot of critter poop to get to my place. Thanks.

Filtration as in taste good?
Hard to beat charcoal/activated carbon.
As simple as filling a barrel with it and processing your water through it however you see fit.
You can make it all yourself if so inclined, and you seem like an inclined person .
You can also order it for cheap, in bulk.

Filtration as in safe to drink(bacteria being our biggest concern)?
Bleach or chlorine is the cheapest and easiest when talking off grid, if we leave boiling it out.
UV treatment is a option, but when you are talking bulk water, you better have a big UV light and lots of batteries, or have a way to run it off generator power until you run out of gas, in which case your right back where you started.
Distillation is another option but you better have a pretty good size set-up when talking large group.
Have a way to generate pressure, RO works as well, but I don't know anyone running RO in a off-grid situation.

[Chew]

Filtration as in taste good?
Hard to beat charcoal/activated carbon.
As simple as filling a barrel with it and processing your water through it however you see fit.
You can make it all yourself if so inclined, and you seem like an inclined person .
You can also order it for cheap, in bulk.

Filtration as in safe to drink(bacteria being our biggest concern)?
Bleach or chlorine is the cheapest and easiest when talking off grid, if we leave boiling it out.
UV treatment is a option, but when you are talking bulk water, you better have a big UV light and lots of batteries, or have a way to run it off generator power until you run out of gas, in which case your right back where you started.
Distillation is another option but you better have a pretty good size set-up when talking large group.
Have a way to generate pressure, RO works as well, but I don't know anyone running RO in a off-grid situation.

Definitely talking about safe water. I bought some bulk powdered type bleach several years ago and had the formula marked on it. But I need to renew that. Was thinking more of running it from rooftop or with a 12v pump into the big plastic totes or barrels and then filtering as it left the barrel. Maybe sand/charcoal/etc?

[MadHatter]

Definitely talking about safe water. I bought some bulk powdered type bleach several years ago and had the formula marked on it. But I need to renew that. Was thinking more of running it from rooftop or with a 12v pump into the big plastic totes are barrels and then filtering as it left the barrel. Maybe sand/charcoal/etc?

Rain water, you're good with that method.
The creek you mentioned, your most definitely not good with that method.

[Filletem]

What type of hand pump have you researched. I know they can be pricey.

Most hand pumps are for shallow wells 30 or 40 feet. I don’t know if they have them for deep wells.

[BrianL]

Couple of easy things to do to prepare for a foreseeable event is fill up your bathtubs with water. Between the regular tub and that dang corner jacuzzi tub I can quickly store over 100 gallons of fresh water in just a few minutes. If I caulk the overflow drain in the tub I can get another 75-100 gallons.

There is a big difference between self sufficient(few days to couple months) and self sustaining(1+ years). I could get to self sustaining if I had to, assuming no gas/diesel/propane/electricity but wouldn't like it. All wood heat/cooking source is about the only thing I would really need to add.

[Laketex]

I'm locked into suburbia for at least a few more years, especially with land prices through the roof, but I've been doing what I can for a bit now. Making small steps toward it as time/budget allows. Also have other goals which slow us down some. I've got a thread up in DIY, but so far, we have some 25-30 year food supplies laid back in mylar and buckets. We have a garden, not huge, and not great on production in it's first year, but we're hoping for better this coming spring. We have it planted to winter hardy stuff right now. Bought a trio from Chew, and working on getting them mature to start breeding tamuks. Have 3 fruit trees in the ground, but not producing yet.
Have blackberry and blueberry bushes growing. Redoing the landscaping and prioritizing edible landscaping. Have rain water barrels, not installed yet. have 3 - 325 watt solar panels that are going on the rabbit sheds and actual shed soon...just a stand alone system, not tied into the grid for powering the outbuildings, fans, heat lamps, whatever else. Planning on buying more long term stuff from the LDS cannery next month. Berkey water filtration. Generator and 40 gallons of gas on rotation. Tools, knowledge, and experience happening daily. We want to be prepared for most things for a short and long term basis, but it's not entirely consuming our lives.

On the short list for future:

learning canning
learning and employing harvesting heirloom seeds
ducks/chickens/quail/?
fishing more

Some folks collect all the stuff with no idea how to practically use it. Our goal is hands on knowledge and experience and knowing how/why/when to use the things we have. I grew up pretty handy and learning stuff. Like somebody posted above, most seem to have no skills that translate to adapting and overcoming in a new scenario. I think most here have those skills and that's a huge step in being resilient.

[Mitchell8]

Couple of easy things to do to prepare for a foreseeable event is fill up your bathtubs with water. Between the regular tub and that dang corner jacuzzi tub I can quickly store over 100 gallons of fresh water in just a few minutes. If I caulk the overflow drain in the tub I can get another 75-100 gallons.

There is a big difference between self sufficient(few days to couple months) and self sustaining(1+ years). I could get to self sustaining if I had to, assuming no gas/diesel/propane/electricity but wouldn't like it. All wood heat/cooking source is about the only thing I would really need to add.

Bathtubs been full since the election!

[91cavgt]

When it comes to prepping, the rule to keep in mind is the rule of the 3’s.


You can live for 3 minutes without air.

You can live for 3 hours without shelter in some cases

You can live for 3 days without water

You can live for 3 weeks without food



Use the rule of 3’s to prioritize your preps. In case Yellowstone blows her top, and because Most of my family has allergies, I keep a good HEPA air filter in the house and of course a way to run it if the power goes out. We live in a 1st world country so we all have shelter. A good quality water filter is good to have, at home, and in every vehicle you’ve got. Now you can start working on the food aspect.


Remember, two is one and one is none. Things break down at the worst possible time, it’s Murphy’s Law.


Rice and beans will get you a long way, they are cheap, easy to store, and easy to prepare. At some point though, you are going to want other tastes and you are going to need vitamins and minerals.



Above everything else though, you have to have a reason, a desire to live on when things get bad. If you have no reason for living, it doesn’t matter how prepared you are, you will die quickly. Get your heart right with the good Lord and He can and will show you the way!

[Zmaxhunter]

What are some good options for water filtration for a large group? Boiling is cumbersome. I have a live spring creek but it travels through a lot of critter poop to get to my place. Thanks.

https://www.berkeywaterfilter.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAnuGNBhCPARIsACbnLzo1dG4Q51ONO1GPbQzoztGkx00V_DV2ShQuZF-TpWDpRDKniLlh6hcaAu8_EALw_wcB

One of the best

[Chew]

https://www.berkeywaterfilter.com/?g...caAu8_EALw_wcB

One of the best

Thanks! Looks like most are out of stock (see my first post on the thread )

[Etxnoodler]

Those talking about rabbits, quail, and even chickens for the city/ suburb people, what are you planning on feeding them if it’s a long term situation? At least rabbits and quail will have to be in a pretty good pen and almost 100% relied on you for food. Chickens in a populated area aren’t going to last long foraging.
Just something to think about and Im curious if anybody has solutions.

[91cavgt]

When it comes to cooking you have to be VERY careful with open fires. Not only to make sure you don’t catch anything else on fire that was not intended to, but also the smoke. Smoke can be seen for a LONG way away. If you only cook at night then you need some way to stop the light from the fire from giving yourself away to others.


Gas stoves are great for the short term, I’ve got several myself. Look into solar cookers. There are MANY out there that will work as long as the sun is shining. Or, you can make one yourself with 1”X1” mirrors (you need around 150 of them or so), a tube of adhesive, and a satellite dish. You have to be careful with these though. I’ve built one before that could ignite a log on fire if held in the focused light within seconds.


I don’t own a satellite dish, but I do have a bunch of those mirrors, adhesive, and some other basic things to make one if need be. There are satellite dishes pretty much everywhere and they are easy to find.

[Etxnoodler]

Something to consider is long term food supplies that can’t/ won’t be stolen by the people raiding others for supplies. As mentioned before trees that produce edible products and don’t require a lot of upkeep and pesticides. Vegetables with a long shelf life and don’t have a lot of pests. Mushroom cultivation.

[El Paisano]

OK, so how many of y'all grew up without air conditioning in SE TX. I did, but must admit that we got AC when I was in high school. We didn't know anything else so we didn't know how hot it was. You can do without if you make some changes.

[OTL91]

If crap really hits the fan, private property isn't going to matter unless you can defend it. You could have 1,000 acres with all the beef, timber, water, etc. in the world but unless you can keep people away from your stuff it will not last long. Takes a lot more people than most would imagine to really secure a large area... even more people if you are having to conduct sustainment activities (planting crops, cooking, cutting firewood, etc.). I will have my Ranger handbook handy when it all happens.