Up a Creek Without a Bottle: How to Store and Carry Water in a Survival Situation

Final Up to date on March 6, 2021

When SHTF, or if life simply throws you a curve-ball and you end up in a survival scenario with out being ready, one of many first issues in your survival to-do checklist is to seek out water.

When you’ve discovered a water supply, although, there are two essential elements to contemplate. First, is it clear/drinkable/secure/purified? And second, how are you going to have the ability to retailer it or take it with you?

A number of methods to purify your water embody boiling, water purification tablets, utilizing a survival water filter, mixing small quantities of bleach into your water, or crafting a DIY filter out of soil and sand. However after you have clear water, how are you going to retailer it for later use or carry it with you?

Until you’re planning to take a seat again and look ahead to rescue, you’ll in all probability want to go away the supply of your water (particularly should you’re being chased by zombies). Even should you plan to stay near your water supply, you might not wish to drink all your purified water without delay, and it will probably make life a lot simpler when you’ve got containers during which to retailer your clear water.

Fortuitously, nature has given us a number of provisions with regards to the issues we’d like, together with water containers. It undoubtedly helps to have a very good survival knife available to make a few of these containers, however the place there’s a will, there’s a manner!

3 DIY Pure Water Containers:

Wooden

To create a container out of wooden, you’ll must:

1. Find a dry log or thick department. To make sure that it’s giant sufficient to construct a container, search for (or minimize) a log that’s about two ft lengthy. For those who can break up it in half, even higher–a flat floor makes issues simpler. Hardwoods are higher for making water containers just because they’re higher at holding liquid with out it seeping by means of the wooden. Additionally, keep away from rotten or cracking wooden.
2. When you’ve situated your wooden, you’ll must construct a fireplace till you could have pink sizzling coals. For those who had been in a position to break up your log in half, lay it on its facet with the freshly break up facet going through up, and place a couple of coals on the flat floor. For those who couldn’t break up it, place a couple of coals on the flattest attainable floor. Use a chunk of straw or reed to blow air onto the coals. This not solely makes them burn into the wooden quicker but in addition helps you form the container by blowing the coals within the path you need them to burn.
3. As soon as the coals cool off, take away them and scrape out the charred wooden along with your survival knife or a chunk of sharp rock.
4. Place one other red-hot coal into the melancholy and repeat the earlier steps.
5. When you’ve created a big sufficient cavity, use a rounded rock to sand down the container and take away any remaining charcoal.
6. Having a visible reference all the time helps, so right here’s a video strolling you thru the method:

Birch bark

The most effective supplies for creating containers is birch bark as a result of it’s fairly pliable, particularly when heated. To start, you’ll must:

1. Discover a birch tree (ideally one which has fallen however continues to be in good situation).
2. Use a hammer and chisel, a survival knife, or a pointy rock to chop into the tree and peel off the bark. An oblong piece of bark will work nicely to create a container.
3. Upon getting the bark in hand, warmth it up a bit till it’s very versatile. – This subsequent half will get a little bit tough to elucidate, however stick to me (or simply skip to the video under).
4. Think about you’re a toddler in elementary faculty (it’ll assist) and your trainer palms you an oblong piece of paper. You have to flip it right into a triangle-ish form. We’ll name the shorter prime and backside edges “A” and the longer proper and left edges “B.” So, to change the rectangle right into a triangle (ish), you’re taking an “A” edge and fold it to fulfill a “B” edge and make a crease. That is virtually the entire first fold of your birch container, besides that you simply received’t crease all the best way down. The space from the place the “A” and “B” edges are pressed collectively and the crease form of creates a 3rd edge to a triangle. That distance provides you the depth of your container. Cease creasing when the “third edge” of your “triangle” will get to no matter depth you need on your container.
5. Crease that “third edge” of your mini “triangle” and fold the triangle it in direction of the “A” edge (the shorter edge) of your unique rectangle.
6. For those who had been in a position to grasp that nice verbal description, give your self a well-deserved pat on the again and repeat that step with the remainder of the corners of the birch bark ensuring that the folds overlap no less than a little bit bit. This can create a field or bowl (relying on the depth and creases). You’ll be able to maintain the overlapping folded edges by creating a extremely tough clothespin out of {a partially} break up department.

If that was manner too many phrases with none footage, there’s an awesome walk-through within the video under exhibiting precisely make these folds and create your birch bark container.

Bamboo

With bamboo, you’ll be able to create both a bowl or a cup. Bamboo stalks have sealed joints, so when slicing a chunk of bamboo stalk, merely make it possible for one finish of it features a sealed joint. An additional bonus of bamboo is that it additionally accommodates water inside its hole stems.

Animal Components

The pores and skin, bladder, and intestines of animals can be used as water containers. (It is a survival scenario, so no time to get queasy right here).

1. 1. To make a water bottle from the abdomen of a giant animal, be certain that to completely clear it with water. You probably have appreciable time, you’ll be able to boil some water, take it off the warmth, and place the abdomen in it for two hours. Proceed to repeat this course of till you see the water remaining clear even after soaking the abdomen.
2. 2. Then, flip the abdomen inside out and scrape off the liner fastidiously utilizing the again of your knife so that you received’t puncture it. Do that whereas the abdomen continues to be within the heat water to make it simpler.
3. 3. When you’re completed, boil one other batch of water, take it off the warmth, and soak the abdomen for half an hour. Then, tie off the underside finish whereas the highest finish is left open. You’ll be able to fasten it closed with some cordage to maintain the water from spilling out.

Different Containers

There are additionally some ready-made containers that you should use to retailer water akin to coconut shells, hollowed out acorns, seashells, and even turtle shells (after being completely boiled after all) should you occur to hit upon any. For coconut shells, be certain that to scrape out all of the fruit inside and sand down the wooden to clean the bowl’s floor.

Naturally, in a great scenario, you’ll have a water container with you. It makes life a lot simpler, however do you have to be unlucky sufficient to seek out your self with out one, one or a couple of of those DIY containers ought to do the trick.

Creator Bio: Leighton Taylor is an outside fanatic, author, entrepreneur, and professional knife gawker. He sometimes writes one thing attention-grabbing at SurvivalKnifeExperts.com.