Preparing Emergency Potable Water: A Simple Checklist

Emergencies rarely announce themselves. Whether it’s a boil-water notice, a storm, or an extended outage, having a plan for drinking water is one of the highest-value preparations a household can make. Here’s a simple checklist.

1. Store what you can

The standard guidance is one gallon per person per day, with a two-week supply as the goal. Food-grade containers, kept cool and dark, are ideal.

2. Have a treatment method — or two

Stored water runs out. A treatment option turns questionable water into drinkable water. Boiling works when you have fuel; filtration helps with sediment; and a chemical treatment covers the microorganisms. Water Pure’s emergency potable use is dosed per the printed label — read those directions now, not during the emergency.

3. Check shelf lives annually

Most water-treatment chemicals degrade within a year or two. Copper-based solutions like Water Pure have an indefinite shelf life — the bottle you store today will work identically in a decade. That’s one item you can genuinely buy once.

4. Keep it findable

Treatment supplies buried in the garage don’t help at 2 a.m. Keep your water kit together: containers, treatment, a measuring cup, and printed instructions.

A pint-sized bottle treats a significant volume of water and takes up almost no space in a kit. Add one to yours.