Off the top of my head, the only way i know that is easy to make post SHTF is to use solar stills.

They can be as complex as building one with plywood or simple as using a cup and transparent plastic in a hole

http://www.google.co.za/imgres?hl=e...5081443&page=1&tbnh=180&tbnw=214&start=0&ndsp=16&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0&tx=76&ty=72

sorry this is the best pic i can find but instead of the green foliage you can pour the salt water around the cup/container and now that i think about it, you can implement this with pee as well :upsidedown:

 

Discussed a bit in this thread: http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=110181

Dual Survivor had an episode where Cody distilled seawater that certainly seemed like its a DIY and could be made cheaply.

 

Osmosis pump too

 

Reverse Osmosis system. Look up PUR or just boat reverse osmosis water systems. One company has a kit that you buy parts for. Some from them and some locally. Distilling water works. No other way to just filter it that I know of.

 

Does a Berkey filter out salt? *shout out to the Berkey Guy!

 

Basically, yeah, you boil it and catch the condensation - that's what you drink.

 

For salt or brackish water, the only two choices are Reverse Osmosis or distillation. Due to costs the cheapest and easiest way is distilling the water. But if you have the money and you plan on staying in place then a RO setup will work, but remember the membranes will foul out and need to be replaced and they are not cheap.

 

Check this out
http://www.nitro-pak.com/products/w...water-filters-and-purifiers/salt-water-filters?gclid=CNjTjovzr7UCFYs7MgodIQUAEQ

 

I made a small scale solar still so I could understand the tech better.

Here's my video:

and then a follow up video with some changes:

My tempered glass cover was 1/4" thick. I think that thinner glass might be better as a condenser because I think it might let go of stored heat faster.

A breeze flowing over the glass definitely helped to condense water vapor faster. Probably because it removed heat from the glass faster and kept the glass cooler.

 

I made a small scale solar still so I could understand the tech better.

Here's my video:
A Small Homemade Solar Still - YouTube

and then a follow up video with some changes:
Solar Still Upgrades and Results - YouTube

My tempered glass cover was 1/4" thick. I think that thinner glass might be better as a condenser because I think it might let go of stored heat faster.

A breeze flowing over the glass definitely helped to condense water vapor faster. Probably because it removed heat from the glass faster and kept the glass cooler.

Thanks for the videos, well done and interesting.

You report that the higher the temp of the water, the better the still works, which is what we'd assume. Have you tried making some type of reflector, maybe out of mylar or mirror, that could reflect more sunlight (heat) onto the black area of the still, similar to how a solar oven works?

 

Boiling salt water won't turn it drinkable. You need to remove the salt from the water. Distilling as mentioned above is taking a container to boil the water then collecting and cooling the steam. This separates the salt from the water.

The other method is mechanical separation. There are Desalination water pumps that can do this. But they are expensive.

 

Reverse Osmosis hand pumps are available, but like other posters have pointed out they are very expensive. If you have the coin they are worth it due to the amount of fresh water they can pump out over a short amount of time. Distillation is great too, if you have the right stuff to make them and solar still don't generate a lot of water (better than nothing though) and you need to set up a lot of them for them to be effective.

 

It's either reverse osmosis or distillation. Your choice. No filter can remove salt ions; they are too small.

 

get a boat pump like what they have on sailboats they should not be to terribly expensive but are made to get you clean drinking water for your boat from the ocean

here is a overview of several different systems
http://www3.zetatalk.com/docs/Rever...erse_Osmosis/OMA_Desalination_Systems_for_Yachts_Boats_and_Motor_Homes_2002.pdf

 

Living in NYC I'm looking at this... If power was lost I'm not sure what the freshwater situation would be, but its easy to live a short walk from seawater in NYC and suburbs. Anyone know what brands would actually work?

If money and energy were no issue...
http://www.ampacpure.com/drinking_water_desalination.html

 

http://www.cruiserowaterandpower.com/

http://www.spectrawatermakers.com/

http://www.spectrawatermakers.com/

http://www.landfallnavigation.com/-sas35.html


The last is a hand powered that only makes 1.5 gal/hr. That is a lot of pumping.

 

Google "non-electric water distiller" and you'll find several products that work with a pressure cooker. It's a simple technology and it works.

I can't advertise on this board or I'd tell you which product is the best. But here's a clue: Expensive doesn't necessarily mean superior.

Good luck.

 

Build a still! They dont have to be big and they can make some good hooch too!!!

 

RO and Distillation is the only way to purify salt water to potable fresh water.

 

Watch Survivorman...

I have a good resource for all those interested in exact, step by step instructions on building a still for salt water. On season 4 of Survivorman he goes to a Mexican desert island. He builds a saltwater still out of beach refuse. Check that out on youtube for an easy how to guide on getting fresh water from salt water.