WATER for Bug-Out-Bag
It's not practical to carry 1 gallon of water per person per day for 3 days. Instead, Carry as many full water bottles as you can in your pack and have at least two alternative methods to clean dirty source water when needed.
Refer to the How to Carry Water in Your 72-Hr Kit Guidelines for some great ideas!
Drinking Water Guidelines - Later-Day Saint Church
The LDS church has drinking water guidelines that are very good.
Safest Drinking Water Material Click here to see a comparison of different materials that are safe for drinking water.
Water Filters:
Most water filters, filter the settleable & suspended solids, kills 99.999% of viruses and bacteria, and leaves good tasting water without using chemicals. However, there are some filters do not remove viruses or bacteria. Adding a few drops of chlorine (recommended 8 drops per gallon of water), or a disinfectant tablet (Aquatab) will kill any viruses and bacteria left after filtering.
Recommended Suggestion: Sawyer Squeeze Water Filter
There are many great water filters on the market and you can do an internet search to find them. The Sawyer Squeeze Water Filter is small, lightweight (3 oz.), fast flow, filters 100,000 gal., kills 99.9999% of viruses and bacteria, and it will meet all your water needs. Amazon has it for about $30. And it’s made in the U.S.A.
VIDEO: Sawyer Squeeze Water Filter
For families or groups, you may consider upgrading your water filter to function as a gravity water filter system. This will produce larger amounts of water while freeing up your time to help others. All you need is the CNOC Vecto water container, instead of using the small plastic bags that come with the Sawyer. The CNOC bladder has a much larger opening for scooping “dirty” water from a lake or stream. The CNOC can also attach to another CNOC bag or to a water bottle to form a gravity filter system. This will be an easier way to get filtered water when your busy.
VIDEO: CNOC Vector 2Liter bag demo.
VIDEO: Gravity Filter System - using the Sawyer filter and CNOC bags.
VIDEO: Does "LifeStraw" Really Remove Parasites? A Look Under the Microscope
Please let us know if you have a favorite water filter system for your 72-Hr Kit that you really like. We learn a lot from what others are doing!