# Inexpensive Water Purification



## sailaway

Has anyone else tried this? My friends hang out in India alot and claim they have never had any problems getting sick by purifying their water this way. I have done this back packing and never had any problems either. I take a gallon of water from the stream and put a few small swimming pool chlorine chrystals in it,(fewer chrystals than the size of my small finger nail) shake it up until disolved, let it sit an hour, then add 5-7 drops of hydrogen peroxide to your water and shake again, let sit a couple of minutes and you have good, safe drinking water. My friends also add a couple of drops of hydrogen peroxide to street food they buy in India and claim they have never gotten sick from food by doing that.


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## NaeKid

I haven't heard of doing that before, it would be something to remember.


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## jebrown

Sailaway
This is a dangerous practice literaly.
The chlorine used for swimming pools is a different chlorine used to disinfect water. 
Common household bleach should be used. Plain bleach not scented or anything else added.
If you read any competent book on survival this is mentioned.
The chlorine used in swimming pools can at the least cause nausea, vomiting, cramps and the all time favorite, diarrhea.
It can also attack the lineing of the stomach as well as the intestines.
I heard about a few people from hurricane Katrina who had severe stomach problems by using pool chlorine to disinfect water. Several people sought shelter in one home and used the pool chlorine to purify some water. No it wasn't conatminated by other chemicals.
Hydrogen peroxide is a very weak antibacteria solution. I would rather depend on heat from cooked food rather than peroxide.
It works on bactera only if at all and not virusus or any food poisonings.


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## sailaway

Jebrown, thanks for your input. I didn't know this, your probably right. I was told and have used 4-5 chrystals of chlorine to a gallon. The hydrogen peroxide I was told would neutralize the chlorine and turn it into basically water. I have never had problems with this in the past, but will consult with some one who has an understanding of the Atomic Chart and find out more and report back.


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## SurvivalNut

I agree with jebrown. This is mad science at best.

Calcium Hypochlorite=Bleach=Pool Chlorine but not all Pool Chlorine = Calcium Hypochlorite. There can be "mixed" brands or solutions.

There is a EPA website that provides the formula for reconstituting Calcium Hypochlorite Crystals into emergency water purification bleach, and it is good to know, but it is not a casual haphazard mix.

When backpacking I like to use my iodine generator for the same purpose you mentioned. It is quick and easy. Again, there are drawbacks to it as well for some.

Here is the EPA web link: Emergency Disinfection of Drinking Water | Safewater | Water | US EPA


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## Canadian

I'd just bring a water filtration kit. You can buy a good two micron one for a few bucks at a camping store.

As for the street food as long as the place is busy and has a long line up and the food is cooked to a really high temperature you'll be fine. You could even bring your food thermometer with you and probe your food before you eat it. Anything above 71 degrees C should be very safe to eat. Anything over 100 should be great. 

The ambient temperature there can be 30 to 40 degrees C so getting the temperature of the street food to over 71 degrees would be a snap.


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## Brimso357

If you are willing to use one for domestic purpose, then you should use good filter systems. But, if you travel most of the time, then you should carry UV ray light bars.


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## allen_idaho

For domestic purposes, I would actually suggest building yourself a solar still. It is cheap, effective, and does not need replacement chemicals or filters. As long as there is sunlight, you can make clean, pure water out of any water source. And if you build one in tandem with a parabolic trough, you could probably increase your output pretty easily.


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## booter

You can find a lot of detailed, step-by-step information on the WHO/World Health Orginization website, search around until you find the field reports on 'water purification'. They approach things from a perspective that the reader is not going to have access to; sophisticated, state of the art, 1st world materials. So they purposely make it reproduceable with; common materials, readily available, and relatively inexpensive.


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