Gaye Levy
This site contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Full Disclosure Here.
Over the past few days, something has become very clear to me: Backdoor Survival readers are a community. I have been reading the 176 (and counting) comments to the recent Buzz, and more than a few of you have mentioned that you learn as much from comments as the from the articles themselves. Nothing could make me happier!
Along those lines, recently I received an email from Karen in Nebraska. The topic was “What I learned about water recently” and she wrote about the lessons she learned during a planned water outage.
Normally speaking, we prep for an unexpected water outage but that does not mean a planned outage is any less convenient. (I was going to say miserable but as preppers, we are well prepared so we are NOT miserable.)
With Karen’s permission, I share her experience so that you, too, can learn from it.
6 Lessons From a Planned Water Outage
A couple of weeks ago, we had a water outage (we knew in advance they would be working on our water main for about three days.) I thought it would be a perfect time to test our preps, especially since it was so cold out.
Here’s what I was surprised by.
1. We used a lot less water than I thought we would.
We ended up finding excuses not to use water, when we knew it would take more effort.
We used baby wipes and Clorox wipes for cleaning and hygiene. We used mouthwash instead of rinsing our teeth with water. We used a lot of hand sanitizer instead of washing our hands. (I know, not the best, but mostly that was my husband and kids when I wasn’t looking!)
We ate a lot of canned soup, the kind that doesn’t need water, and we used almost all of our paper plates, bowls and cups, and plastic utensils.
2. We made a lot more laundry than usual.
We ended up using almost every piece of clothing we owned, and figured out what didn’t fit anymore or looked bad or shabby, because we didn’t want to use our water for washing clothes.
I had already not done laundry for several days beforehand because, well, busy life, so clean clothes were at a premium. Clean socks became a barter item by the last day!
3. We need to revamp our toilet strategy.
The boys could go outside for number one, but we girls couldn’t. We filled our tub up before they shut our water off, and used it all in one day flushing the toilet.
By the third day, the house was pretty stinky. It was like although the kids knew they needed to flush less, their bodies needed to go more often than usual! We were using our portable toilet and kitty litter, and putting our TP in a separate bag to go out to trash. It was still pretty stinky. So we are going to make a separate area in the basement for next time.
4. We ended up getting dehydrated a little.
Because we knew we were only going to have the water we had in the house, we all kept finding excuses not to use it. Unfortunately, drinking ended up being one of the things we didn’t do.
We had milk and juice in the fridge, and used up more of those than usual. I didn’t realize this until we ran out of milk earlier than usual, and I took a look at our bottled water. We’d only used a few bottles, where I figured we’d be almost out!
So next time we have a water test, I’ll be encouraging more water drinking. It was easy to overlook their water intake, because they were still going to school and work, and I was busy too. I won’t make that mistake again!
5. Cooking was harder than it had to be.
I didn’t realize until I looked back, but I kept choosing meals that didn’t use much water.
It was easier to open a can of soup than haul a gallon of water into the kitchen to boil something or use paper plates than haul water to wash dishes. (Plus I hate doing dishes anyway!)
I spent one whole afternoon trying to figure out a meal I could make without any water at all. (Hot ham and cheese sandwiches, canned corn, and canned peaches!) By the end of the three days, my husband said he would be happy not to have soup for several months!
6. I am not at all sure anymore whether we are ready for a longer term emergency.
This was the first time I tested my water preps, and it didn’t go at all how I thought it would.
I have several tweaks to make, and my mindset is definitely different. I am not at all sure anymore whether we are ready for a longer term emergency, especially since we took the lazy way out for a lot of things.
We wouldn’t be able to do things the way we did if the water was shut off unexpectedly and we didn’t know when it would be back on. So I will be reworking my plans and restocking my canned goods. I learned a lesson here, and I just wanted to tell someone who might understand!
The Final Word
What are the takeaways from Karen’s experience? Let me list them for you.
1. Stock up on disposable goods, including paper plates, utensils, TP, plastic garbage bags and even disposable cookware,
2. If a planned outage is scheduled, do laundry ahead of time. Actually, keeping up the the laundry is a good idea regardless. You never know when an unexpected water or power outage will occur.
3. Stockpile extra socks!!!
4. Think through how you will deal with human waste. This is where extra heavy garbage bags come into play. Some are available with odor-control features. Hint: bigger is not always better. A bag full of human waste will be heavy.
5. Even with all the preps in the world carefully stored away in your prepper-closet, there will always be surprises. Take a weekend or even a day to shut off the water and practice your preps. That is the very best way to discover your prepper strengths and prepper weaknesses.
I would like to thank Karen, once again, for sharing her experience and the lessons she learned from a planned water outage. I don’t know about you, but I am now on a mission to find some extra socks!
Enjoy your next adventure through common sense and thoughtful preparation!
Gaye
If you enjoyed this article, consider subscribing to email updates. When you do, you will receive a free, downloadable copy of my e-Book, The Emergency Food Buyer’s Guide.
You can also vote for Backdoor Survival daily at Top Prepper Websites!
Below you will find the items related to today’s article.
Hefty BlackOut Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, Clean Breeze, 90 Count : Chances are you are going to need double the amount you think you will need. I like these that are designed to keep the odors inside. If you prefer a larger bag, consider these 30 gallon bags.
No Rinse Cleansing & Deodorizing Bathing Wipes: One wipe is more than enough for a complete “bath”. These are a good backup when traditional showers are not available such as the week or weeks following a disaster. Also good for the sick room as well as camping, boating, hiking and such. Here is my review.
AquaPodKit Emergency Drinking Water Storage Plus Aquamira Filtration Kit, 65 gallon: Have you considered storing water in your bathtub? The AquaPod is a bladder that you can use in your bathtub to store water if you know that a storm, flood, or hurricane is brewing. (I call these “disruptive events”.) What I love about the AquaPod is that I can purchase refill liners, making this more than a one-time use product. I am thrilled that you can now filter the water as you siphon it out of the tub. Plus, of course, that it is made in America. How many preparedness products can boast about that? For more information, read about the All-New AquaPod Emergency Water Kit and Filter.
Hanes Men’s 10-Pack Ultimate Crew Socks: I do not know anyone that does not have a clothes dryer that eats socks. After reading Karen’s email, I ordered these for Shelly and for me? I ordered these. (My clothes are typically very conservative but I love colorful socks!)
LifeStraw Personal Water Filter: The LifeStraw is considered the most advanced, compact, ultra light personal water filter available. It contains no chemicals or iodinated resin, no batteries and no moving parts to break or wear out. It weighs only 2 oz. making it perfect for the prepper. For more information, see my LifeStraw review.
~~~~~~~~~~
Shop the Emergency Essentials Daily & Monthly Sales for Fantastic Deals!
The monthly specials at Emergency Essentials feature discounts of up to 45% off sometimes a bit more.
Every family should have at least one Tote-able Toilet
. I have priced purchasing the bucket and toilet seat lid separately and found that it was more economical to pick up this kit. I have filled my portable potty with sanitation supplies plus, of course, plenty of TP.
Emergency Essentials carries a wide variety of equipment and supplies – all at competitive prices.
49 Responses to “6 Surprising Lessons Learned from a Planned Water Outage”
You are still able to use your toilet inside without water.
Turn off the incoming water valve, flush the water out, place a liner in the empty bowl (plastic trash bag, grocery bag, etc.), lower the seat and use. Add the kitty liter/sawdust and it’s ready to use again. Seal and dispose of bags as needed.
This is an easy workable solution for the elderly, incapacitated, or very young that may have difficulty “adapting” to a new bathroom routine.
for those who need a stable place to sit, you could also get a bedside commode (people sell them for cheap on craigslist). this provides a comfy place to go, and it’s easy to dispose of the bags afterward (or to empty the pot). of course, this takes up a lot of space in your preps unless you pack carefully around it or get a folding one.
Sani-bags are used in hospitals. You can find them on amazon. They are good for 3-5 uses. Has odor control, fits the toilet. Use it, close it, throw it away will decompose,
If you have electricity, it still takes less water to run your dishwasher than to wash dishes in the sink. You have to “babysit” your dishwasher, and while it’s time consuming, it’s not that hard. Open the door, add water until the float rises, shut the door, allow it to run until it empties and starts the next cycle, open the door and add more water. Use the water saver cycle.
She said the boys can go outside for #1 ~ so can the girls ~ you SQUAT. In fact, while it’s not pleasant, especially if it is cold, you can all go outside for both #1 & #2. Or get a chamber pot and take it outside and empty it. You can buy them on eBay. A five gallon bucket also works, although you won’t be reading while using it as you won’t find it all that comfortable and will quickly be looking for a better seat. You need to empty these immediately as they will quickly smell bad just like an un-flushed toilet.
You CAN actually wear the same clothes more than once. Unless you’re working hard enough to sweat through your shirt, or you’re covered in mud etc, it won’t hurt to wear outer garments for two or three days if necessary. Underwear and socks can be rinsed out by hand in a small amount of water and hung up to air dry.
I do not recommend putting human waste in plastic trash bags, no matter how heavy the gauge of the trash bag; one tiny leak equals HUGE unwanted mess, and with a limited water supply, you better have some window cleaner etc on hand.
Window cleaner is great for spot cleaning clothes, carpets, etc. It dries quickly, it leaves very little soap residue, and because it has rubbing alcohol in it, works as a disinfectant. Keep lots of it on hand. Dollar General has refill sizes for $2.50, and the jugs you put in your car to wash your windshield are gallon sized for about the same price and work just as well. Works great for cleaning kitchens and bathrooms from counters to floors.
We’ve used home-made waterless composting toilets now for 3 years (just a wooden box with a toilet seat, and a 5-gallon bucket inside). Just think of all that saved water!! We went to a local sawmill to stock up on sawdust for the toilets. Now, instead of wasting valuable water each time, we just use a scoop of sawdust (or peat moss)…no smell at all (except that of pine wood, which is nice). When it’s getting full, we put it in a normal-looking compost heap in the back yard and cover with a thick layer of loose straw. One or two years later we have nice black good-smelling soil for our plants. There’s a lot of info about this online (particularly, look up “humanure handbook”)…if done correctly, there’s no danger of spreading pathogens. It may just be the way to save the world…or at least your family in an emergency. 🙂
Hi Donna, another way to go outside in comfort avoids squatting or sitting on a bucket rim: Get a bucket toilet seat from Amazon (keywords: ‘bucket toilet seat’. They run $10-$20 each). They are particularly important for people who can’t squat because of bad knees or balance. Even for the rest of us, a proper seat reduces stress in an already stressful time, and that is what prepping is all about.
Better yet, get two and use two buckets. If you cut a roughly six inch hole out of the bottom of one, and add two or three bricks or small boulders for stability, it will drain directly into the ground. The other bucket can be lined and hold kitty litter if you like, and can be used for solids only.
When cutting, be sure to wear heavy gloves, and point the sharp edge of a pointed knife away from you. Buckets are easy to cut through- just be careful.
If some people using the toilet have stability problems, it’s important to have a sapling or some other sturdy handhold next to it so they have something to grab onto to.
A pool noodle makes a nice 5-gallon bucket seat. Cut length to fit around top edge; slice one side to go over edge.
//www.budget101.com/showthread.php?t=450382
As an middle age+ American, I understand the need to force fluid intake to be at a certain level or health issues will result. So it might make sense to keep track of each person’s water intake to make sure everyone is getting enough to stay healthy.
And it’s great you had so many soups to keep hydrated, but for folks relying on freeze dried foods we have to plan on having enough extra water to rehydrate the meals as well as for drinking, even if we stick with your idea of baby wipes and hand sanitizer for personal hygiene. It’s why one of my first serious prepping purchases was a Berkey filter system. I’m lucky in that I have a river less than half a mile down the road and can lug water around on a garden cart in 5 gallon jugs, but having a purifying filter will be a life saver in a real emergency. That said I’m still trying to make room in my basement for a 250 gallon water tank to extend the time we can survive on our own without venturing out to get more. You can never have too much potable water. 😉
Thanks for sharing your experiences! It’s always great to hear what things other people run up against so I can see what I haven’t thought about and need to prepare for.
Really great article. Thank you Karen in Nebraska and Gaye Levy!
The most important thing I got from your article is that your family willingly participated and you all pulled together to use less water.
One last thought: animals such as raccoons would rip into a tent-like outhouse and make a mess of things, wouldn’t they. Rats!
…The best laid plans of mice and men.
Venting an ice shanty (turned into a makeshift indoor outhouse to help control odor) through a window via a vent such as they use for the newer free-standing air-conditioner units, wouldn’t work without using an exhaust fan, would it?
[Note to self: those composting units mentioned in the comments section of Daisy Luther’s toilet blog post might fit the bill here, too. BTW.]
Am I wrong in thinking that a portable ice shanty makes for a better temporary Winter outdoor outhouse than would the Summer-y tent-like temporary outhouses sold in the camping section?
Anyway, now I have something to think about while I’m at the dentist later today. I’ll have to ask, “Have you ever been ice fishing?”. Ha. “Are you experienced?”
We had about 4 or 5 days without water. We used to go South in the winter to an RV park. And we’d come home for G-kid activity in February. Usually we left the house water on. One year we had our city do a temporary shut off.
We decided that we would not have them turn it back on one year for the 4 to 5,day visit. Before we left, We filled a big covered garbage can in the back yard for flushing water, and kept a bucket of the water in the bath tub for convenience.
Flushing– [you could use rain water collected off your composition roof, as this is not for drinking and NOT for the veggie garden]
Bottled water for cooking. Microwave meals or pantry meals, sandwiches– since our refrigerator was almost empty. Baby wipes for baths, and cold cream for face cleaning.
Dirty clothing went in the hamper ( realizing a lot of clothes were left in our trailer down South.) Tries not to use pots, pans, or dishes. All disposables from our camping totes.
We have a city near us whose water was contaminated for 6-8’weeks. There was LOTS of bottled water trucked in, and probably doubled there food budget. If you didn’t have that option due to civil unrest, national emergency, etc— you’d have to have a well, good stream, or s lot of those big blue 44-55 gallon water storage containers.
Hmm, I think I might’ve just found an indoor/outdoor reason to get one of those pricey (and versatile) ice shanties fishermen use.
I’ve never spent a day on the ice in anything like that, dang, I bet I could have learned some things doing that. I.e. the unmentionables. I wonder how ice fishermen handle all that.
Also, do you think twenty Bucks is too much to pay for 100% lama wool socks? I encountered some locally and am hesitant to buy.
I read a review on Amazon about some socks advertised as 100% wool which complained that the 100% wool socks weren’t exactly 100%, there was an elastic band at the top to stop the sock from slipping. Some people might find that band a bit uncomfortable. It seems you have to sift through the reviews to find which socks have that band and which don’t.
I have some with that band and no matter how much I stretch and yank on that band, it never seems to yield and be a bit looser. I’m tempted to snip them with some scissors. However; I imagine doing so would cause an unraveling mess.
Yes, $100 is too much to pay for llama socks. There is a lovely alpaca ranch in Mora, New Mexico ( I think that’s right- Google it)— and you can probably get lovely alpaca socks for less $$$.
$100 would be too much, but $20 (which is what was mentioned) is probably not too bad. Just go to your local sports store and see what ski socks go for.
Llama or alpaca socks are amazing. But we have found they are much more wearable and last much longer if they are not 100%. There should be some other fiber or they do not wear well and they loose their shape.
Fleece socks are much better and don’t shrink like wool does. I have wool socks that are almost impossible to get on after washing.
Look for THICK fleece socks with an elastic top.
Mine have lasted for years now.
They can be hand rinsed at night and hung out to dry near a heater or put on a boot dryer to dry quickly
I’m on only a few Prepper sites so maybe this has already been said or discovered by all, but if not, I’ll put in my two cents worth. I save almost all my plastic grocery bags for bathroom use. I realize plastic takes forever to disintergrate, but in an emergency situation, they cost nothing to keep and small enough for a one time use and then to bury.
Hi Elizabeth, “I realize plastic takes forever to disintergrate” I think that the modern plastic disposable grocery bags…which are getting banned here and there…actually do disintegrate fairly fast. They seem to break down into ever smaller flakes, although I’m not sure what the tiniest flakes turn into.
That’s good to hear! Makes me feel better about using them!
those tiny flakes (or granules) don’t break down. that’s why they’re so harmful to the environment and wild animals. they eventually filter into everything–dirt, water, etc–and become part of the food chain, which is not a good thing because they have no nutritional value. that’s like a human trying to survive on a diet that’s partly styrofoam–the stuff takes up space but doesn’t nourish. many animals, especially aquatic animals, starve to death for that reason. also, of course, various toxins leach out of the plastic over time and become part of the biosphere.
Dear Teabag, do you know what happens to kitty litter? Does it break down? If buried in the woods does it hurt the trees and foliage? What about the urine in the kitty litter? Does that hurt the trees? I’ve been doing this for awhile. Instead of scooping the litter box into grocery bags and then the garbage, I started dumping it in a hole in the woods behind my house. I’m asking because you know a lot about plastic so I was hoping you could answer this question. Thanks
kitty litter is just clay, processed to have a certain texture. i assume that used litter would fertilize the trees, since it contains organic waste! it certainly shouldn’t harm the trees unless you bury so much of it that all that clay interferes with the drainage capacity of the soil.