Question: How do I ensure that the drinking water that I store for emergencies is safe to drink? Instructions say to use chlorine. Where do I buy it and what brand is it? How long will the stored water be safe to drink? The drinking water that I stored prior to a storm has been used after the storm to water my garden.
Answer: The Honolulu Board of Water Supply recommends one drop of mild chlorine bleach per gallon of tap water stored in a sanitized, sealed container, while the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say you can store clean tap water without bleach and disinfect it later, if necessary. Replace the stored water after six months, the CDC says.
As for the chlorine, many brands of widely available liquid household bleach will work; choose one with sodium hypochlorite as the active ingredient, that is labeled as disinfecting (“disinfects” or “kills germs”) and without added scent. For example, regular Clorox disinfecting liquid bleach will work, but splashless Clorox won’t (it’s not a disinfectant), so be sure to read the label.
Here are instructions from the BWS website, where a video at 808ne.ws/4cS2trr shows the process:
“1. Use clean containers: Don’t use containers that stored food with strong odors (mayonnaise, pickles, etc.) as the water will pick up the odor during storage.
“2. Disinfect containers: Wash containers thoroughly, then rinse them in a mild bleach solution (one capful of liquid bleach to one gallon of water), and then rinse thoroughly (with plain water).
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“3. Fill container with water from the tap: Fill the container to the top, keeping a minimal amount of air between the water and the cap. To ensure the water is safe to drink, add one drop of mild liquid bleach per gallon of water, cap and store in a cool, dark place.
“4. Extended Storage: If you plan to store water for four weeks or longer, add one half cap of mild liquid bleach per gallon of water, cap and store in a cool, dark place.”
The BWS emphasizes that the chlorine bleach used for sanitizing and storage must be the disinfectant type. Label the stored containers as drinking water.
The CDC says “unopened, commercially bottled water is the safest and most reliable source” of drinking water in an emergency. Store- bought water also has an expiration date, so check the package. If you choose instead to store tap water, the CDC offers similar instructions as the BWS, except about adding bleach to the stored water. Rather than doing that, the CDC says to “store a bottle of unscented liquid household chlorine bleach (label should say it contains between 5% and 9% of sodium hypochlorite). You can use bleach to disinfect your water, if necessary, and for general cleaning and sanitizing.” For the CDC’s step-by-step instructions, go to 808ne.ws/45Gfz7n.
Q: During the recent power outage we had no TV and wanted to save our iPhones for emergencies. So we turned to our transistor radio for news and alerts. We were unable to find a radio station with current and continuous news on the weather. Is there a radio station that offers this service during an emergency? We would be so grateful if you could provide that station’s frequency number.
A: It sounds like you need an NOAA Weather Radio, a special receiver that continuously broadcasts weather reports directly from the National Weather Service on very high frequencies that basic AM/FM radios cannot receive. On Oahu, NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts at frequencies 162.450 MHz (call sign WWF39, Hawaii Kai) and 162.550 MHz (call sign KBA99, Mt. Ka‘ala).
Simple, battery-operated NOAA Weather Radio receivers are inexpensive and generally available at retail outlets that sell disaster-preparedness supplies, although you should check to make sure they’re in stock before heading to a store in person. For more information, including about how to choose and use the device, see weather.gov/nwr/faq.
Otherwise, the designated emergency radio stations on Oahu are KSSK (92.3 FM, 590 AM), KRTR (96.3 FM), KZOO (1210 AM, Japanese language) and KNDI (104.7 FM, multicultural).
The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency lists all the emergency radio stations throughout the state, including NOAA Weather Radio, on its website, dod.hawaii.gov/hiema.
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 2-200, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email [email protected].