Bottled Water or Water Purification Tablets?

[tacticalprepper]

This is something that has been playing on my mind for some time. I carry a 72 hour kit in my car all the time, and I currently have both. I decided to go against the rule of 1 gallon, per person, per day, mainly due to the fact that the rule is based on a good supply in a warmer environment. I live in South-East England and most of the time its pretty cold (even colder as you go North) and as a emergency supply I believe 1.5L per person, per day is more than adequate (Totaling 6L for 72 hours). Any more would be unnecessary weight, wouldn't it?

So I thought about the idea that to save space and weight, water purification tablets might be a better option. It rains often, and there are plenty of rivers around, so is this the better way to go?

What do you guys carry?

[pseudonym]

4 litres rotated out twice a year

Method to filter - Millbank

Method to Boil it - Trangia

Back ups - Lifesaver and spare filters.

It's in the car so weight isn't a problem.

[Moony]

Lets say you break down on a hot day and fancy a drink while waiting for the breakdown truck, what'd you prefer - a drink from a bottle of water from the local shop/supermarket, or a hike to the nearest ditch / canal to fill up your mug, put in a tablet and wait 1/2 hour ? For a 72-hour kit some tablets would be a very useful addition, but I wouldn't forgo all bottled water, cos it's just a bit OTT for me

[tacticalprepper]

Yea, I guess if its in the car I don't have to worry too much. I keep it all in a rucksack/MOLLE and try to keep it so that it can still be transported easily on foot if needed. But maybe I should add more water in a separate place?
It only really occoured to me when I heard the story of the old woman who lost control of her car and ended up trapped in a ditch. She was there for a long time, and even though the road she was on was fairly busy, she was hidden. She ended up sucking on a button from her jacket to try and release a bit of moisture into her mouth. It got me thinking, what if I was in that situation. Better to prepare and be ready for it

[Djorn]

The 8 pints or 1 gallon per day was miss understood many years ago, it was in fact we need about 1 gallon of water each day of which 70% will come from our food. I am choosing to rebottle water from the tap as the water companies have gone to the trouble of cleaning it and making sure it can sit for vast amount of time without going stale....I recycle it twice a year.

[tacticalprepper]

The 8 pints or 1 gallon per day was miss understood many years ago, it was in fact we need about 1 gallon of water each day of which 70% will come from our food.

That makes a lot more sense! To be honest, I doubt if I drink more than 3 pints of water per day normally. Makes me feel better about not keeping so much water

[Cocotte]

2 litres of water a day is the recommended amount to drink for a number of reasons. Firstly, for a country so wet, the general population don't drink enough of it. This leads to mild dehydration causing fatigue, lack of concentration and thicker blood. You can get by on 1.5L a day if you're a desk jockey so long as you top up a bit more every few days (beer hydrates more than dehydrates unless you're drinking a lot in one sitting -body will empty more than needed because it's expecting you to knock back a 5th or 6th pint in the next half hour).

Personally I aim for drinking 3 litres a day, otherwise I'm groggy and skin goes to hell. If it's not pure water (fizzes/tea/coffee) you'll need to drink more as the body uses water to process or remove whatever's in that drink.
Alcoholic drinks under 10% hydrates, although poorly (think 1 pint of strong beer = half mouthful of water).



For a car, I'd keep at least 2 litres per person simply to cover breakdowns in a regular situation, if I was going out in the arsehole of nowhere, maybe a few more.
I always keep purification tablets on hand when traveling. They're light, small and potentially life saving.

[ForgeCorvus]

I never buy bottled water (except twice in the last decade), the UK has one of the highest tap water qualities in the world.

Having water that you've bottled yourself however makes sense, in an ideal world my three-day bag would have at least a days worth (more in the car too. Remember it needs to drink sometimes as well) as well as tabs/treatment/boiling gear..... But, because in my AO we have a lot of agri-chemicals in the surface water I have to carry all my water supplies.


For Bug-in, one gallon a day includes drinking, cooking and other uses

[tacticalprepper]

I never buy bottled water (except twice in the last decade), the UK has one of the highest tap water qualities in the world.

Having water that you've bottled yourself however makes sense, in an ideal world my three-day bag would have at least a days worth (more in the car too. Remember it needs to drink sometimes as well) as well as tabs/treatment/boiling gear..... But, because in my AO we have a lot of agri-chemicals in the surface water I have to carry all my water supplies.


For Bug-in, one gallon a day includes drinking, cooking and other uses

The UK does have good-quality water, I have to say. The problem is and I don't know if its the same in your part, the water is very hard. Bottled water is not so bad however. Not only that but (I know it sounds a bit odd) but I like to do things by expiry date. I know it would be fine for a lot longer than the date suggests but that way I can be sure. the last thing we want is stale water in a potential situation

[12mp82]

Rotate, rotate, rotate, water can be easily rotated on a weekly or monthly basis, at a lot less cost than buying bottles of water (no doubt it will be found to contain horse DNA before long anyway )

I doubt 6 ltrs of water will have much hardness to it, and if it did I don't see it will be of much concern to anything.

I prefer to have a days supply with me when I go off for a few days, and then use a pocket filter to clean locally sourced water if there is no mains supply.