Water, can you make the Columbia drinkable?

[Certaindeaf]

Just drink beer like a normal person.

 

[Brutus57]

I once saw Bear Grylls drink his own pizz....

Brutus Out

 

[Caveman Jim]

Hanford is upriver. Do you trust what the government tells you about how safe the storage tanks are.

We all gotta die from something..... Id drink warm beer or my own pizz if picking were slim....

 

[albin25]

Depends on how desperate you are, and in how long you plan to be drinking it.

"Geeze Mary!...Chewy, chunky, stinky or stretchy, when you're dying of thirst it all looks like springwater... and you'll drink it filtered through your jockeys and socks if you have to. HEII! If you live long enough, someday you'll be reminiscing to the grandkids about how good it was." Gunny

 

[cigars]

Drinking rain water, Hmm. I remember reading a Weekly Reader in the 1950"s that Acid Rain was killing forest in the North East Americas. But then I found solace in a report that moving stream water over 65 feet of a graveled bed would purify water potable. Over the next 25 years I carried the same water purification tablets (unopened) as I traversed every Skyline and Pacific Crest blazed Trail I could Identify from Mid Washington to the southern Oregon Boarder and drank freely of creeks and streams without fear or incident.
Some say ignorance is bliss. I don't necessarily disagree.

You're still walking (and typing) aintcha?

 

[WasrNwarpaint]

The ONLY problem with distilling water is if there's any kind of chemical(s) in it that will evaporate and go through your condenser before (or with) the water vapors.

if your water has chemicals then your screwed and likely doesnt matter how you attempt to do purify it ....you dont know what chemicals are in there so you cant neutralize it
so frankly isnt that a moot point your going to be in trouble no matter your approach to water tainted with chemicals that you arent even aware of

as previously stated rain water is the safest choice to purify but the op is talking about the Columbia river, & if fish live in it you can purify

 

[MrMillspecer]

This might keep your urine fresh longer, in case you have company.

 

[DunRanull]

Giardia can be a problem even from pristine mtn streams in Colorado... ask me how I know!

 

[Certaindeaf]

I wonder how the Columbia river water would compare to Mexican tap water. do they drink that? don't know

 

[Vorpalis]

For short-term or emergencies, if filtered, water from the Columbia is safe to drink, both in terms of teh kemicalz and teh radiashun. It will taste river-ish, though.

 

[Camelfilter]

I'm looking up rain water collection systems right now. I'd still run it through the Berkey filter first.

They have "mini" Berkey filters nowadays. Look like old school counter top stainless steel coffee percolators. If I recall correctly, sizes range from a few gallons to a few quarts reservoir. Prices seem reasonable, in the few hundred dollars range, as opposed to 10 times that for a household Berkey filter setup professionally installed. Think they have cartridge filters.

On that note, might be worthwhile to look into "zero water" filter system jugs/cartridges over a Britta filter system to use for drinking, brushing teeth etc. At home, or can be taken with, but bulk prohibits taking with on foot.

I still have a katadyn pump filter from my hiking/cycling days, with a spare ceramic filter. Plenty of output for our household needs, or for a basecamp, kinda heavy to haul backpacking, but but perfectly sized fir cycling. The "new" units out today seem perfect to carry on foot and still have decent output for family use. They even have fittings to make it even easier-wide mouth Nalgene bottles/bladder bags etc.

 

[11Charlie]

I want to build a system for my wife's garden. Thinking if I build it right she can use it to water her garden which will act as a recycling system so that we could use it as drinking water if the SHTF.

 

[Brutus57]

We all gotta die from something..... Id drink warm beer or my own pizz if picking were slim....

Except Oly or Coors.... I'd choose Heaven or my own over them!

Brutus Out