(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.)
Two is one right? In addition to the filter in each kit, a water purifier was included. The difference between the pair is that a filter is uses mechanical or physical means to restrict the passage of solids (dirt or microorganisms) to achieve safety. A purifier in contrast uses chemical or ultra-violet methods to sterilize water. The Aqua Research H2gO purifier uses brine (here it is table salt dissolved in water) electrolysis to generate a concentrated chlorine solution that is mixed into your source water to disinfect it. This is very similar to the oft-referenced use of plain bleach or specific swimming pool shock products to disinfect water for consumption.
Although I do not know the specifics of this unit’s mechanics, I spent a considerable time working with larger brine electrolysis units early in my career. By surrounding a pair of oppositely charged electrodes with a salt water solution, the disassociated sodium and chlorine ions can recombine in the aqueous (water as solvent) solution to form dissolved chlorine gas, chlorine dioxide, sodium hydroxide and possibly hydrogen peroxide. The addition of an ion permeable membrane between the electrodes can influence the quantity of each compound produced, though my research did not find evidence that the H2gO uses one.
Aqua Research’s purifier has an estimated life span of 10,000 cycles where a cycle is capable of generating enough chlorine solution to treat between 1 and 20 liters. A minimum contact time of 20 minutes is recommended, though I encouraged our family members to mix the chlorine into five gallons and wait over night as certain protozoa oosts (eggs) require extended contact times to achieve inactivation (the EPA and Aqua Research recognize four hours of contact time at a free chlorine concentration of 4 mg/L (same as 4 parts per million) as the minimum time sufficient for oost sterilization).
The H2gO kit includes a brine mixing bottle and a set of chlorine test strips. We included additional test strips and went through the operation of the units with mom, dad, sister and nieces when we gave them their starter kits. Lastly, the purifier unit has a built-in solar charger for the internal battery and is also rechargeable via USB.
The final portions of the water treatment system were a collapsible Reliance brand 5-gallon water container with a selection of food grade tubing to adapt the Reliance spout to the Sawyer Squeeze filters in line barbed adapters and a set of food grade five gallon buckets with lids. The assembled system as designed would then consist of the collapsable Reliance jug placed on an elevated position such as a countertop top filled with untreated water tied to the Squeeze filter element via clear rubber tubing reducing in size from ½ inch inside diameter down to ¼ inch ID. A second section of ¼ inch tubing leads from the discharge side of the Sawyer into one of the clean 5-gallon buckets where the filtered water is collected for disinfection by mixing in the chlorine products generated by the H2gO. The chlorinated water can be given a stir, tested using one of the chlorination strips and then capped with the bucket lid to fully disinfect overnight before drinking or cooking with the following day.
In order to make this system function better, I explained using the “cleanest” source water possible and suggested pre-filtering through a towel or cheese cloth held in a colander and pointed out that the filtration system was closed so pressure would need to be added atop the collapsable water jug to generate water flow. My recommendation was to add books to the top of the jug.
Medical Kits
The last time I added basic medical supplies to our home inventory; I took the time to assemble bandage kits for our families. A conscious decision was made to provide wound care only supplies out of fear that a random over the counter med could have a detrimental drug interaction with a prescription one of our parents was taking. The wound care supplies were divided between two one-gallon storage bags with injury size used as the sorting criteria. The basics bag contained alcohol prep pads, sterile gauze in 2×2 and 2×3 inch sizes, 2×2 and 4×5 inch antibacterial gauze, 2×3 inch non-stick bandages, a pair of instant cold packs and a 3 inch by 15 ft elastic bandage. We knew that the households kept peroxide, rubbing alcohol, antibiotic ointment with a large selection of Band-Aids and sought to complement what was already on hand without repeating.
The bag with larger wound treatment supplies contained multiple pair of nitrile gloves, a bottle of saline wound wash, a small package of body wipes, 4×4 sterile gauze pads, 5×9 inch wound dressings, a pack of butterfly wound closures, a roll of medical/athletic tape, one trauma dressing and a package of bleed stop granules. My in-laws’ kit also contained additional Quick Clot impregnated dressings given that he has been on blood thinners for many years to help mitigate his risk for strokes. Experience has shown us that once his skin is broken, getting the bleeding to stop is crucial.
The final medical adjacent item added to the starter kits was a can of Boost Oxygen. These are compressed air craft air/ 95% oxygen blends with a dispenser shaped to fit the user’s mouth. They are not a medical device and are certainly not a replacement for a rescue inhaler but are useful for helping someone regain their breath if they have become winded. I added these to our stocks last winter after spending 6 weeks recovering from a lower respiratory infection. There were times when I could not catch my breath. So I went looking for a solution. Each cannister is “rated at” up to 200 inhalations.
My father lost lung capacity after having portions of each of his lungs removed to treat lung cancer and also had spells recently where his ability to breathe efficiently was diminished. It was this pair of experiences that tickled a memory of having seen the canned oxygen at a sporting goods store and warranted adding them to our medical preps. I found that there are two different-sized Boost Oxygen products and also take note that there are “flavored” options such as orange and peppermint.
For hygiene, each kit contained five bars of Ivory soap sealed in mylar to minimize scent leakage. Each also contained a medium-sized plunger to use as an agitator in the event laundry had to be done, a pack of clothes pins and several hundred feet of Tough Grid 750 paracord. I couldn’t resist the stereotype and also added one four-pack of TP.
Some Storage Food
Lastly, for general preparedness supplies each starter kit included a Midland ER10VP NOAA weather radio, gorilla tape, multiple types of Bic lighters, a pack of Uco storm matches, 10-inch zip ties, a Sharpie marker and a six-pack of 1-gram Super Glue tubes. A last-minute addition was a 325-count box of Federal copper plated .22 LR and a 25-round box of Fiocchi home defense buck shot. I pray society never devolves to the point where we need the .22 LR to scrounge up dinner or the buckshot for protection. But, if they need a little more common ammo they will have it.
As mentioned earlier, each family maintains a respectable pantry so we leaned heavily into familiar prepper fare when selecting foods. For staples, each kit included ten pounds each of all purpose flour, white corn meal, long-grain white rice, pinto beans, angel hair pasta, sugar and table salt. They included five pounds each of grits, elbow macaroni and fettuccini pasta. The final dry staples included dehydrated potato in both sliced and shredded forms, rolled oats, coffee, and a case of chicken ramen. Other than the salt, sugar, and ramen, all of the above were portioned into mylar bags with oxygen absorbers. Further, these staples were packaged in 5-gallon buckets where no single bucket weighed more than 25 pounds.
The foods included in the kits to help round out the staples included canned chicken, pasta sauce, a #10 can of dehydrated stew vegetables from Emergency Essentials, packets of beef and chicken bouillon and a salt-free Mrs. Dash seasoning blend. A half dozen varieties of Knorr rice sides in their original packaging, a family size Ready Wise chicken gumbo mix and container of Nido whole dried milk completed the bulk storage food selection.
For a few quicker prep meals, the kits each included a #10 can from Mountain House with either beef stroganoff or chili-mac as well as one 3,600-calorie survival/ration bar for each person. A P-38 can opener was stored between the sealed Mtn. House can and its removable plastic lid. Lastly, each kit contained a single 750mL bottle of vodka. With gratitude and a tip of the hat to St. Funogas’ for the recent articles on Just In Time Food Storage, I recognized the need for containment after the mylar was opened and included a box of 1-gallon freezer bags.
With the three kits delivered (see photo at the top of the article) would you care to guess the responses? The first was accepted with reluctance and open doubt that such an assortment would ever be necessary. During the days after Hurricane Helene, that initial assessment changed to one of understanding, and the value of preparedness took root. The second was received with gratitude and lots of questions by some who had never considered preparedness. And the third was received with a mix of tolerance and exasperation with my wife’s interpretation being that the items would be stored away and forgotten by the time we returned home.
Whatever may come, we tried. I am glad that we did. It took us almost three years to slowly gather the items to assemble three of these “preparedness starter kits”. With the exception of the fuels and solar panels, four 5-gallon buckets and both a 12-gallon and a 27-gallon storage tote were needed to hold the contents. Prior to delivering these kits to our relatives, I told my wife that if nothing else, being able to broach the subject of preparedness in this way lets me feel better knowing that we tried one more time.
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