Preppers who live in the U.S. are very lucky because they have access to clean running water. But you will need more water when SHTF because it will eventually run out, even with careful rationing. (h/t to PreppersWill.com)
Technology has made it easier to forget crucial prepping skills
Even if you live in an area where many people have wells on their property, not everyone may know how to hand-dig a well.
There are many drilling tools available for your use, but when SHTF you might not have access to those tools, especially if you don’t have the fuel or electricity necessary to power them.
With picks, shovels and some elbow grease, you can dig a well on your homestead. Before SHTF, you can use this information to dig a well, so you have access to clean water. (Related: Water supply and prepping: A beginner’s guide to rainwater collection.)
Where to dig a well on your homestead
If you want to dig a well on your homestead, you can’t just dig a hole in the ground and hope that you locate water.
You need proper information to ensure that water will be found where you intend to dig. Study the land’s topography to get this crucial information.
Water flows downhill, including subsurface water. If you’re not sure where to dig, look for plants that require a steady supply of water.
If there is no visible surface water, the trees on your property may rely on groundwater to survive.
Similarly, a vanished brook or stream may have gone underground. Both of these regions are worth considering as potential well locations.
Tips for digging a well
Before you start digging, inspect the soil. What is the soil made of?
Is it mostly clay, gravel, sand, or rock and boulders?
Hand-excavated wells are often limited to soils that you can easily dig by hand. If there are a lot of large boulders, look for another location.
While a place full of rocks may be out of the question, you should also look for another location if the area contains soil that is very sandy since these types of soils can make your well collapse.
Now, how do you dig for water once you’ve decided to do so?
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First, secure water for your household using only shovels, picks and other manual tools.
Don’t wait until it’s too late to dig a well. Plan for your well while you still have water in your stockpile so you don’t have the added stress of finding water because your supplies have already run out.
If the dirt is too dry, the hole for your well may collapse. The same thing might happen if it’s too wet. Worse, it may quickly fill with water while you are still digging into it.
Cave-ins are another thing to consider while digging a well. To avoid this, the sides of the hole should be strengthened using the right materials.
You can do this by gathering as many boards as you can before you begin excavating. It’s better to use longer boards.
You can also install special concrete sleeves in the hole. More sleeves added will help prevent cave-ins as you go deeper. If you don’t have access to concrete sleeves, you can make do with boards.
Alternatively, you can secure the hole with a metal or plastic culvert. If you can get culverts, these are a better option compared to boards. Culverts can also be left in the hole to serve as the well’s liner.
When choosing the location for your well, avoid septic systems or areas where there have been outhouses or latrines in recent times. The odds of contamination are higher close to septic fields or any area previously used for human waste.
Digging too close can mean that you get water that is high in fecal coliform and can make you very sick.
To start digging a well, measure a circle at least five feet in diameter. Begin digging with your shovel and pick and make sure you dig evenly around the full circle.
After digging a few feet, begin lining the hole with boards. Insert them vertically or place the first length of the culvert.
Make sure the boards are close fitting and use cross members to keep the boards tight against the hole’s sides. As you dig deeper, keep hammering the boards down. This may be time-consuming, but these additional steps will help protect you from cave-ins.
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Hand-dug wells are often shallow, ranging in depth from five to 65 feet. To dig a well that deep will require a lot of effort and energy that you might not be able to afford in a survival scenario. Calculate the risks and the rewards before starting a labor-intensive activity like digging a well.
If you want to get the well done faster, you can ask your neighbors to help you dig the well and share it with them.
Before you start digging, make sure you also have a reliable path out of the well’s hole. If and when you hit water, the hole might quickly fill up so a ladder will help you get out alive.
You already have the material to line the well hole if you’re using a metal or plastic culvert. If not, you can line the sides of the well with masonry or stones. This will help stabilize the well and avoid further cave-ins.
Backfill the gap between the liner and the walls with crushed stone, gravel or tiny rocks once the well is established. This will help keep silt out of the well water.
Cap the well to prevent objects from falling into it and contaminating the water.
When SHTF, a working well may be your only source of drinking water. Choose the right spot on your homestead to dig a well, so you have access to clean water when disaster strikes.
Visit Preparedness.news for more tips on how to prepare before SHTF.
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Watch this video to learn about 10 ways to clean drinking water after a disaster.
This video is from the Truth or Consequences channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
- Homesteading 101: How to purify dirty well water.
- Prepping 101: How to store water for emergency preparedness.
- Prepping 101: Emergency water storage for beginners.
Sources include:
Five Things New “Preppers” Forget When Getting Ready for Bad Times Ahead
The preparedness community is growing faster than it has in decades. Even during peak times such as Y2K, the economic downturn of 2008, and Covid, the vast majority of Americans made sure they had plenty of toilet paper but didn’t really stockpile anything else.
Things have changed. There’s a growing anxiety in this presidential election year that has prompted more Americans to get prepared for crazy events in the future. Some of it is being driven by fearmongers, but there are valid concerns with the economy, food supply, pharmaceuticals, the energy grid, and mass rioting that have pushed average Americans into “prepper” mode.
There are degrees of preparedness. One does not have to be a full-blown “doomsday prepper” living off-grid in a secure Montana bunker in order to be ahead of the curve. In many ways, preparedness isn’t about being able to perfectly handle every conceivable situation. It’s about being less dependent on government for as long as possible. Those who have proper “preps” will not be waiting for FEMA to distribute emergency supplies to the desperate masses.
Below are five things people new to preparedness (and sometimes even those with experience) often forget as they get ready. All five are common sense notions that do not rely on doomsday in order to be useful. It may be nice to own a tank during the apocalypse but there’s not much you can do with it until things get really crazy. The recommendations below can have places in the lives of average Americans whether doomsday comes or not.
Note: The information provided by this publication or any related communications is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial advice. We do not provide personalized investment, financial, or legal advice.
Secured Wealth
Whether in the bank or held in a retirement account, most Americans feel that their life’s savings is relatively secure. At least they did until the last couple of years when de-banking, geopolitical turmoil, and the threat of Central Bank Digital Currencies reared their ugly heads.
It behooves Americans to diversify their holdings. If there’s a triggering event or series of events that cripple the financial systems or devalue the U.S. Dollar, wealth can evaporate quickly. To hedge against potential turmoil, many Americans are looking in two directions: Crypto and physical precious metals.
There are huge advantages to cryptocurrencies, but there are also inherent risks because “virtual” money can become challenging to spend. Add in the push by central banks and governments to regulate or even replace cryptocurrencies with their own versions they control and the risks amplify. There’s nothing wrong with cryptocurrencies today but things can change rapidly.
As for physical precious metals, many Americans pay cash to keep plenty on hand in their safe. Rolling over or transferring retirement accounts into self-directed IRAs is also a popular option, but there are caveats. It can often take weeks or even months to get the gold and silver shipped if the owner chooses to close their account. This is why Genesis Gold Group stands out. Their relationship with the depositories allows for rapid closure and shipping, often in less than 10 days from the time the account holder makes their move. This can come in handy if things appear to be heading south.
Lots of Potable Water
One of the biggest shocks that hit new preppers is understanding how much potable water they need in order to survive. Experts claim one gallon of water per person per day is necessary. Even the most conservative estimates put it at over half-a-gallon. That means that for a family of four, they’ll need around 120 gallons of water to survive for a month if the taps turn off and the stores empty out.
Being near a fresh water source, whether it’s a river, lake, or well, is a best practice among experienced preppers. It’s necessary to have a water filter as well, even if the taps are still working. Many refuse to drink tap water even when there is no emergency. Berkey was our previous favorite but they’re under attack from regulators so the Alexapure systems are solid replacements.
For those in the city or away from fresh water sources, storage is the best option. This can be challenging because proper water storage containers take up a lot of room and are difficult to move if the need arises. For “bug in” situations, having a larger container that stores hundreds or even thousands of gallons is better than stacking 1-5 gallon containers. Unfortunately, they won’t be easily transportable and they can cost a lot to install.
Water is critical. If chaos erupts and water infrastructure is compromised, having a large backup supply can be lifesaving.
Pharmaceuticals and Medical Supplies
There are multiple threats specific to the medical supply chain. With Chinese and Indian imports accounting for over 90% of pharmaceutical ingredients in the United States, deteriorating relations could make it impossible to get the medicines and antibiotics many of us need.
Stocking up many prescription medications can be hard. Doctors generally do not like to prescribe large batches of drugs even if they are shelf-stable for extended periods of time. It is a best practice to ask your doctor if they can prescribe a larger amount. Today, some are sympathetic to concerns about pharmacies running out or becoming inaccessible. Tell them your concerns. It’s worth a shot. The worst they can do is say no.
If your doctor is unwilling to help you stock up on medicines, then Jase Medical is a good alternative. Through telehealth, they can prescribe daily meds or antibiotics that are shipped to your door. As proponents of medical freedom, they empathize with those who want to have enough medical supplies on hand in case things go wrong.
Energy Sources
The vast majority of Americans are locked into the grid. This has proven to be a massive liability when the grid goes down. Unfortunately, there are no inexpensive remedies.
Those living off-grid had to either spend a lot of money or effort (or both) to get their alternative energy sources like solar set up. For those who do not want to go so far, it’s still a best practice to have backup power sources. Diesel generators and portable solar panels are the two most popular, and while they’re not inexpensive they are not out of reach of most Americans who are concerned about being without power for extended periods of time.
Natural gas is another necessity for many, but that’s far more challenging to replace. Having alternatives for heating and cooking that can be powered if gas and electric grids go down is important. Have a backup for items that require power such as manual can openers. If you’re stuck eating canned foods for a while and all you have is an electric opener, you’ll have problems.
Don’t Forget the Protein
When most think about “prepping,” they think about their food supply. More Americans are turning to gardening and homesteading as ways to produce their own food. Others are working with local farmers and ranchers to purchase directly from the sources. This is a good idea whether doomsday comes or not, but it’s particularly important if the food supply chain is broken.
Most grocery stores have about one to two weeks worth of food, as do most American households. Grocers rely heavily on truckers to receive their ongoing shipments. In a crisis, the current process can fail. It behooves Americans for multiple reasons to localize their food purchases as much as possible.
Long-term storage is another popular option. Canned foods, MREs, and freeze dried meals are selling out quickly even as prices rise. But one component that is conspicuously absent in shelf-stable food is high-quality protein. Most survival food companies offer low quality “protein buckets” or cans of meat, but they are often barely edible.
Prepper All-Naturals offers premium cuts of steak that have been cooked sous vide and freeze dried to give them a 25-year shelf life. They offer Ribeye, NY Strip, and Tenderloin among others.
Having buckets of beans and rice is a good start, but keeping a solid supply of high-quality protein isn’t just healthier. It can help a family maintain normalcy through crises.
Prepare Without Fear
With all the challenges we face as Americans today, it can be emotionally draining. Citizens are scared and there’s nothing irrational about their concerns. Being prepared and making lifestyle changes to secure necessities can go a long way toward overcoming the fears that plague us. We should hope and pray for the best but prepare for the worst. And if the worst does come, then knowing we did what we could to be ready for it will help us face those challenges with confidence.
