Own a Berkey water filter? Might want to re-think using it.

They used to say that the rain water in deer park / Padadena would separate into an oil and a water layer. :) Not sure if they were kidding or not, but it is pretty polluted over there.

I would suggest getting a couple 55 gallon blue water storage barrels and filling them up now, while you have potable water. Put a tbsp of bleach in each one and seal up the bung. You can live a long time off 100 gallons of water if all you are doing is drinking it and washing with a washrag enough to keep from growing barnacles. Some people also can find a food safe ISO container that holds a lot more water. I forget the capacity on them.

That soil over that way would not be too clean. I suppose you could send some off to have it tested.

If you try to collect rainwater, best not use an asphalt tiled roof, because it leaches off a fair amount of hydrocarbons as well. Steel or tile or slate roof, or stretch a poly tarp or an old sailboat sail to catch rainwater? There are clean water acquifers over there, but I think you need a deep well of around 300 feet. Then you hit some very clean water. We had deep well water at a plant on the ship channel and it was clean excellent water. But they had to give it a chlorine and brush treatment every so often to keep the bacteria from growing in it.

They used to say that the rain water in deer park / Padadena would separate into an oil and a water layer. :) Not sure if they were kidding or not, but it is pretty polluted over there.

I would suggest getting a couple 55 gallon blue water storage barrels and filling them up now, while you have potable water. Put a tbsp of bleach in each one and seal up the bung. You can live a long time off 100 gallons of water if all you are doing is drinking it and washing with a washrag enough to keep from growing barnacles. Some people also can find a food safe ISO container that holds a lot more water. I forget the capacity on them.

That soil over that way would not be too clean. I suppose you could send some off to have it tested.

If you try to collect rainwater, best not use an asphalt tiled roof, because it leaches off a fair amount of hydrocarbons as well. Steel or tile or slate roof, or stretch a poly tarp or an old sailboat sail to catch rainwater? There are clean water acquifers over there, but I think you need a deep well of around 300 feet. Then you hit some very clean water. We had deep well water at a plant on the ship channel and it was clean excellent water. But they had to give it a chlorine and brush treatment every so often to keep the bacteria from growing in it.

...


“If you try to collect rainwater, best not use an asphalt tiled roof, because it leaches off a fair amount of hydrocarbons as well.”

Unless the asphalt roof is brand spanking new, it’s not really a problem. Give it a couple of months during the rainy season and it’ll be fine. If one is really fastidious and concerned about possible hydrocarbons in the water, send some of the collected water to an open-top barrel with a draw point a few inches up from the bottom. Give it a couple of days to settle, throw in some alum to remove any larger particulates, then suction off the top inch of water that will contain any hydrocarbon which will have floated to the top. Collect water from the bottom draw point and you’re good to go.

...


“If you try to collect rainwater, best not use an asphalt tiled roof, because it leaches off a fair amount of hydrocarbons as well.”

Unless the asphalt roof is brand spanking new, it’s not really a problem. Give it a couple of months during the rainy season and it’ll be fine. If one is really fastidious and concerned about possible hydrocarbons in the water, send some of the collected water to an open-top barrel with a draw point a few inches up from the bottom. Give it a couple of days to settle, throw in some alum to remove any larger particulates, then suction off the top inch of water that will contain any hydrocarbon which will have floated to the top. Collect water from the bottom draw point and you’re good to go.

...


You might be right. There is a guy that is a self proclaimed water and foods expert on another site and he threw a big fit about people that were planning to use rainwater from asphalt roofs. I had a barrel that collected it for a while. It was pretty disgusting looking water. Shingle material degrades in the harsh Southern sunshine, and the asphalt makes a sludge on the bottom of the barrel, so I think the guy had a valid point.

In an emergency though, if your options are to die of dehydration or drink water with some hydrocarbon in it, of course everyone would drink the water even if it was nasty.

But probably should not be part of anyone's plan A or Plan B.

But to each his own. I just come on here to try and help people out.