Video Quiz - safe drinking water

6496 Views 21 Replies 21 Participants Last post by HondaTechnician, Apr 5, 2009

kev

Discussion Starter · Jun 26, 2008

Pop Quiz - is this water safe to drink??

The details are in the video. You should have all the information you need to make a decision.

1 - 20 of 22 Posts

ecilop

· #2 · Jun 26, 2008

The water appears to be stagnant and is not safe to drink as is. It is difficult to tell the clarity of the water from the video but may be somewhat clear if you can see tadpoles. The water would need to be filtered (pocket filter, tee shirt, etc.) and then boiled before drinking. There seems to be an abundance of tender in the area to build a fire with. I would also chemically treat it if I had iodine tablets or bleach available. There may be some run-off from oils, etc. from the logging road but much less than the mouthful I usually get when I siphon gasoline.

You can also eat the tadpoles.

armyranger10a

· #3 · Jun 26, 2008

The water is not safe to drink in the puddle without purifying it. We can assume it is not contaminated with bad chemicals if it has life growing in it. I would use my Msr Miniworks and add chlorine drops in it. But if you dont have a filter you could filter it out with a tshirt then boil it, I would add charcoal to the water to remove bad taste.

Josiah922

· #4 · Jun 26, 2008

Safe to drink as is? No
Can you make it safe to drink? Yes.

Here is what I would honestly do (if this was my only water to choose from):
1. Filter water through a coffee filter that I have in my pack into a small container
2. Boil it for 10 minutes
3. Let water cool then filter it through my MSR Miniworks.

I don't know if this is good or bad but this is what I normally do at the end of the day to get water for the next day. Never gotten sick from it. If I see water that is running or otherwise pretty clean for a stream or whatnot, I may just do steps 1 and 3.

Maurepas

· #5 · Jun 26, 2008

I'd filter, treat and drink it. If it's clear, smells OK, supports the tadpoles, probably ok.

Not my choice of a water source but probably won't kill me.

My only concern would be that it is right next to a road. If you see any type oily film, I'd skip it and look elsewhere.

HikerDad

· #6 · Jun 26, 2008

Not much water is safe to drink right from the source anymore because of things like Giardia lamblia (beaver fever).
But this water would only need to be filtered or boiled to make it drinkable.
I'd run it through a cloth before boiling to remove sand, tadpoles, etc.

Life in the water is the best clue on whether you can drink it or not.

One note, some water in more urban areas would also need a virus filter because of fecal contamination. yummy.

wengo1776

· #7 · Jun 26, 2008

im pretty sure its not safe to drink. (OH NO a quiz and i forgot to study

).

TMHonfire

· #8 · Jun 27, 2008

if i could get the water to a fire then yes but if not then no cuz the grass is dead around it...

awildchipmunk

· #9 · Jun 27, 2008

Even with filtering, boiling and bleach treatment I don't think I would want to drink it.

I was under the impression that stagnant water (toxic algae growth) in a little pool on the side of the road (vehicles fluids & heavy metals), where the dear and antelope roam (fecal mater, bacteria) was not a good source for drinking water. I don't think I would waste my energy trying to make it safe, I think I would keep moving.

Ramius

· #10 · Jul 8, 2008

If I had to drink it, first it would be filtered using my Katadyn Hiker and then boiled. If given a choice I would not drink it at all. You stated the puddle was along a logging road. I would be worried about chemical pollutants from vehicles or from loggers dumping or spilling stuff too. Even if there are tad poles, frogs do not always know the difference of what it safe or unsafe places to lay eggs or swim in. The tad poles are still in their infancy stages, so any harmful stuff in the water may not have had a chance to effect them yet.

SHTF

· #11 · Oct 20, 2008

My general rule is to stay away from stagnant water. If I "had" to drink it, I would filter and boil it first. My inclination would be to look for a better source, something like a small stream.

DCBerry

· #12 · Nov 2, 2008

Some good points made like tads can and often do live and reproduce in chemically polluted waters (we have plenty of three legged frogs in these parts). Also I see someone mentioned boiling for 10min which is unnecessary here is why boiling only kills bacterial contamination and that is accomplished at temps between 160-170F for 30min or just a few minutes at 195F and once the water boils (212F) it is ready to drink immediately as far as bacterial contamination. I'm just mentioning this so we don't spend too much time or fuel unnecessarily. My "First Need" water filter removes everything making boiling unnecessary so they claim "they" also claim these are not suppose to be relied upon for virus removal so I must also boil after filtering. What a choice kev! Although not the answer your looking for I'm sure I'd find a better water source in short time looking at the terrain. I know some virus can withstand boiling I wonder how we could cope with these? These questions always remind me of the dead man laying next to a pool of brackish water too afraid to drink the water which could have saved him. A side note I would let the water settle and do a crude filtering so as not to clog the water filter.

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kev

Discussion Starter · #13 · Nov 3, 2008

DCBerry said:
Some good points made like tads can and often do live and reproduce in chemically polluted waters (we have plenty of three legged frogs in these parts). Also I see someone mentioned boiling for 10min which is unnecessary here is why boiling only kills bacterial contamination and that is accomplished at temps between 160-170F for 30min or just a few minutes at 195F and once the water boils (212F) it is ready to drink immediately as far as bacterial contamination.....................

This reply is one of the best answers I have seen in a long time - well said.

About 200 feet on the other side of the ditch, the same direction I was looking while filming the video was a nice creek running between 2 hills.

:thumb:

Dwind

· #14 · Nov 4, 2008

would have been funny if someone had built a fire, filtered the water with a tee shirt or a sand seep, and boiled it, then came across that creek later on.

Hey, I bet those tadpoles would make great bait in that creek if its large enough-catch them in the tee shirt and maybe maybe grab yourself some perch for supper.

I love my pocket fishing kit because it has 20 feet of 6lb test line, 3 fish hooks and a few sinkers contained in an altoids can so I can literally take it anywhere.

Sorry Kev, got a bit carried away there.

:

Bugdiver

· #15 · Dec 28, 2008 (Edited)

Pop Quiz - is this water safe to drink??

In short, I'd say a resounding NO! But that doesn't necessarily mean I wouldn't drink it either.......

If I'm just on a hunt or a backpacking trip then I'd have my map, compass and GPS(as soon as I can afford a decent one, ha ha), meaning I already know the lay of the land with its available water sources and have already meticulously planned how much water to carry between those locations. I'd also have my first need PURIFIER with me anyway making this a moot point. Are you kidding me? I'm not drinking that crap! :headshake:

On the other hand, if this is a true survival situation and somehow I've been abducted by aliens and dumped into the wild with nothing but the clothes on my back and the boots on my feet, this decision gets a little trickier. It really depends on how long I've been out there and how much clean water I've been able to scrounge. If I've done my due diligence, say by tying my socks or shirt to a branch and raking it through wet grasses and leaves in the am and squeezing it out, I should be able to pass up this swill, mark the location well in case I decide to backtrack and move on in hopes of greener pastures.

Now, if I'm on day 2 or 3 without substantial water intake, there won't be much deliberation here. This is gonna save my life! I would take off a boot and a sock and remove the foot pad, fill the sock with dry grasses, coarse gravel, sand and my pocketfulls of charcoal (oh ya, you bet I made fire last night!

), stuff it in the boot, filter and drink my fill.

Noticed mud on the road too, meaning I could study the tread marks in the tire tracks, see where the majority are pointing and march at a quick step in that direction and hopefully find help before I get too sick. Having reviwed the video, there looks to be a good size puddle in the far tire track. I'm probably better off drinking from that than the long term stagnant water in the ditch. Obviously been there long enough for the frogs to breed as well as skeeters. Well, I know this response is a bit tardy but hey, I'm a noob and had to make my first post!

:

Bug

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Prof. Cecil Feio

· #16 · Dec 28, 2008

2

I'd drink the hell out of it. As is ... before I'd pull a 'Bear Grylls'!

Mmmmm! Urine. YUMMMMMMY!

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300mag

· #17 · Jan 10, 2009

kev said:
This reply is one of the best answers I have seen in a long time - well said.

About 200 feet on the other side of the ditch, the same direction I was looking while filming the video was a nice creek running between 2 hills.

:thumb:

Wow, that was you in the vid?
did you do a vid on sighting in a scope from the back of a pick up ?

If so thanks, I learned how from you.

newone

· #18 · Jan 10, 2009

Even flowing water is not safe. Giardia cyst from animal/livestock waste can be present..The temperature of the water has much to do with it..were it winter and that was thawing ice water...and one filtered it...would be a better choice..seeing the video and what you presented..stagnant water next to a road that may have been sprayed with used motor oil to hold down dust...would look around more. If no other options are available..you have to have water but would bet you have at most 3 days before anything from diarhea to dysentary to giardia may sideline you. So if you have no filters, chemicals, pots to boil in..even if it is runnign water in a stream...wouldn't waste much time getting to a safe area after drinking any outdoor source of water.

wilderman

· #19 · Jan 26, 2009

It is not save to drink

the hog

· #20 · Feb 8, 2009 (Edited)

Its got tadpoles in so its not contaminated with chemicals or toxins per se.
I would drink it after boiling and filtering with some fine net to get rid of solids, other than tha I reckon its good to go.
It is survival after all.

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