Purifying Water

On the Modern Survival Blog you will find a handy post entitled "Bleach Water Ratio For Drinking Water". The Post mentions two ways to purify water. The first and best way to purify water for drinking is to boil the water. Boiling for 1 minute should be sufficient to assure its safety.

The Second method for purifying your water would be to add bleach. Adding bleach to your water will kill a myriad of "bugs" and should make your water safe to drink. It should be noted that bleach will lose its potency over time. Generally, in 6 months to a year after its expiration date it may only have half the strength.

The following chart will help you know how much to add to your water:

Here is a list from the Clorox website of the organisms that bleach will kill:

Bacteria
Staphylococcus aureus (Staph.)
Salmonella choleraesuis
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Streptococcus pyogenes (Strep.)
Escherichia coli O157:H7 (E. coli)
Shigella dysenteriae
Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
Fungi
Trichophyton mentagrophytes (can cause Athlete’s Foot)
Candida albicans (a yeast)
Viruses
Rhinovirus Type 17 (a type of virus that can cause colds)
Influenza A (Flu virus)
Hepatitis A virus
Rotavirus
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
HIV-1 (Human Immunodeficiency Virus)*
Herpes simplex Type 2
Rubella virus
Adenovirus Type 2
Cytomegalovirus