When the subject of water storage comes up, a couple of points that I would have assumed were very common sensical seem to be frequently overlooked. I apologize in advance if these two points seem extremely elementary. But whenever the subject of water comes up, a fairly large group of people seem to have overlooked these points.
First of all, if water is to be used for washing something, it's not really important that the water be "clean." In most cases, it is merely necessary that the water be cleaner than the item you want to wash.
Secondly, if water is to be used for flushing, it's not really important that the water be "clean." In most cases, it is merely necessary that the water be cleaner than what you are attempting to flush.
Again, these points seem very obvious. But they seem to be overlooked, perhaps because for the last hundred years or so we've had so much clean water at our fingertips that we routinely use it for washing things and even flushing the toilet.
Let me offer a couple of examples. When I was growing up, our washing machine had what I thought was a very modern feature--the "suds saver." Basically, there were two washtubs next to the washer. In one of them, you put the stopper in the drain. When the washer was finished with the wash cycle, it would drain the wash water into this tub. The rinse water would go into the other tub and down the drain.
For the next load, it would draw the wash water from that tub, and the soap and water would be re-used. It was normal to use the same wash water three times or so.
As far as I know, the clothes from the third batch were as clean as they would have been with "new" soap. Other people used this system, and as far as I know, nobody died from having their clothes washed in "dirty" water.
When I mention this to people today, they are generally quite squeamish about it, and comment that it sounds very gross, etc. Honestly, I don't understand why--I think it's just that people are more squeamish these days.
When we go camping, we usually have a dishpan sitting under the water container, which we use for washing dishes, etc. After washing dishes, I sometimes use this water to wash my hands, wash another dish, dampen a cloth to wipe off the table, etc. Again, some people are squeamish about the idea of using this "dirty" water for cleaning.
Even when this water is very dirty, I sometimes use it to clean a pot or pan. Sometimes, I even use a piece of old newspaper instead of using a paper towel, or getting a sponge dirty. When I'm finished, the pot is still dirty--but it is not as dirty as when I started. I can finish washing it with an extremely small amount of clean water.
I don't enjoy hauling water, and this system keeps that task to a bare minimum.
If I were in a situation where I needed to flush a toilet, there is no reason why I couldn't use the water, even after I used it to clean that very dirty pan with the piece of newspaper. No, the water is not "clean," but it is cleaner than what I plan to flush, so it is very adequate for the purpose.
Again, I'm sorry if this particular wisdom was too elementary, but I needed to get it off my chest.
First of all, if water is to be used for washing something, it's not really important that the water be "clean." In most cases, it is merely necessary that the water be cleaner than the item you want to wash.
Secondly, if water is to be used for flushing, it's not really important that the water be "clean." In most cases, it is merely necessary that the water be cleaner than what you are attempting to flush.
Again, these points seem very obvious. But they seem to be overlooked, perhaps because for the last hundred years or so we've had so much clean water at our fingertips that we routinely use it for washing things and even flushing the toilet.
Let me offer a couple of examples. When I was growing up, our washing machine had what I thought was a very modern feature--the "suds saver." Basically, there were two washtubs next to the washer. In one of them, you put the stopper in the drain. When the washer was finished with the wash cycle, it would drain the wash water into this tub. The rinse water would go into the other tub and down the drain.
For the next load, it would draw the wash water from that tub, and the soap and water would be re-used. It was normal to use the same wash water three times or so.
As far as I know, the clothes from the third batch were as clean as they would have been with "new" soap. Other people used this system, and as far as I know, nobody died from having their clothes washed in "dirty" water.
When I mention this to people today, they are generally quite squeamish about it, and comment that it sounds very gross, etc. Honestly, I don't understand why--I think it's just that people are more squeamish these days.
When we go camping, we usually have a dishpan sitting under the water container, which we use for washing dishes, etc. After washing dishes, I sometimes use this water to wash my hands, wash another dish, dampen a cloth to wipe off the table, etc. Again, some people are squeamish about the idea of using this "dirty" water for cleaning.
Even when this water is very dirty, I sometimes use it to clean a pot or pan. Sometimes, I even use a piece of old newspaper instead of using a paper towel, or getting a sponge dirty. When I'm finished, the pot is still dirty--but it is not as dirty as when I started. I can finish washing it with an extremely small amount of clean water.
I don't enjoy hauling water, and this system keeps that task to a bare minimum.
If I were in a situation where I needed to flush a toilet, there is no reason why I couldn't use the water, even after I used it to clean that very dirty pan with the piece of newspaper. No, the water is not "clean," but it is cleaner than what I plan to flush, so it is very adequate for the purpose.
Again, I'm sorry if this particular wisdom was too elementary, but I needed to get it off my chest.
Thanks for sharing the wisdom, accepted as an important reminder.