Questions tagged [water]
Applicable if water is relevant to the question and none of the more specific tags concerning water are applicable.
44
questions
18
votes
4answers
7k views
Surfacing out of a sunken ship/submarine - Survival Tips
Here is a scary scenario:
Let's say you were in a ship or submarine that sunk to the bottom of the ocean.
No scuba gear, no oxygen tank, nothing.
The depth of the ocean is such that nitrogen ...
4
votes
3answers
72 views
Looking up fish species by body of water and vice versa
U.S. here (and specifically New York state but that's probably irrelevant). Is anyone aware of any websites, apps or DEC resources that allow you to look up what fish species live in any given lake/...
40
votes
7answers
9k views
How do people drown while wearing a life jacket?
Recently, I heard of three tourists from Germany drowning in a lake in Alaska. Their boat overturned and they ended up in the water. All three of them were wearing life jackets. This is what I don't ...
2
votes
4answers
268 views
What is the best way to cross a wide river in winter?
Conditions:
I live near a wide (~1000ft or 300m) and fairly deep river across from the area where I work.
This area is slightly earthquake prone -- near a fault line that has had multiple magnitude 7+...
8
votes
8answers
338 views
Keeping water from freezing while cross country skiing
I cross-country ski in the winter, usually not more than 2-3 hours, but it can get quite cold, -15, -20°C, and I'm often on a frozen lake exposed to wind that rapidly rips the heat out of anything.
...
6
votes
4answers
216 views
Should I travel through freezing areas with hot or cold water in my RV tank?
This question is specific to the hot water tank in an RV. In my case it is 6 gallons, propane heated and insulated with the only exterior contact the access panel, as seen in most standard RV's in ...
3
votes
2answers
207 views
Single walled plastic vs vacuum insulated water bottle for hiking and everyday use
I’ve been seeing an increasing number of vacuum insulated water bottles and was wondering would a plastic(single walled) or a vacuum insulated water bottle be better for...
Everyday (going from home ...
7
votes
2answers
460 views
Water filters: is there always a tradeoff between longevity and safety
My research thus far has acquainted me with a kind of trade-off: one can try to minimize the amount of contamination (from bacteria/parasites) or one can try to minimize the amount of particulates ...
4
votes
2answers
920 views
Portable desalination hand pump filter life?
I was looking into portable desalination hand pumps. and I found this one one Amazon for $959 it says
the Katadyn Survivor 06 is the world's smallest hand-operated desalinator and can easily fit ...
5
votes
1answer
113 views
Can I get fresh water from ocean plants?
In the answer to Can I get fresh water from ocean fish flesh? I learned that the water I can get from eating fish has a low enough salt content that it will hydrate me, BUT the high protein count will ...
15
votes
1answer
3k views
Can I get fresh water from ocean fish flesh?
Ocean water has about 35 Grams of salt per liter. For the human body salt content in body fluids is about 9 Grams per liter. See related question How much sea water can I safely drink?
While it is ...
38
votes
4answers
13k views
Ways to desalinate water when “lost at sea”?
In recent news reports that all seem to be saying the same things:
Jakarta Post Indonesian teenager survives 49 days adrift in Guam waters
NPR: 19-Year-Old Survives 49 Days At Sea After Floating Hut ...
4
votes
2answers
423 views
Reclaiming water lost from breathing
What can we do to bring water loss from breathing down to the absolute minimum possible?
Techniques or devices useful to adventurers with no frequent water access is what I am looking for, such as ...
3
votes
0answers
74 views
Name of this northern pine fishing lure?
Can any tell me the name of this fishing lure or where I might find a distributor?
10
votes
1answer
179 views
What is the expected flowrate of a bucket brigade?
A naive estimate of one gallon bucket a second is 60 gal/min for a well staffed and equipped line, but is there any data on how much water can be moved by bucket in less than ideal conditions?
...
12
votes
1answer
1k views
Are there reusable inflatable life vests (or PFDs)?
Inflatable life vests and PFDs that I have seen so far are meant to be inflated in emergency (either by mouth or CO2 cartridge). I didn't use them myself but they don't look like they could be ...
26
votes
5answers
3k views
How to transport personal belongings while swimming long distance?
What is common way how to transport personal belongings while swimming?
I am talking about scenario when I need to cross a lake by swimming. I would like to take my stuff (wallet, cell phone, shorts, ...
12
votes
8answers
4k views
How to keep paper from being damaged by water in the outdoors?
Sometimes people will keep notes or things they see in the outdoors or keep a journal and paper getting wet and then wrecked is a big problem.
The other obvious use is printing maps off from the ...
9
votes
1answer
192 views
How to find water in thick tropical forests?
A couple of years ago, we hiked up to a place in the western ghats during the month of December (end of it). Which is actually the end of winter in the Indian subcontinent. The biggest problem we ...
5
votes
2answers
790 views
Titanic survival, ice cold water?
When the RMS Titanic sank, there were not enough life boats, many hundreds of people went into the cold water and many died from hypothermia.
The water temperature in the area where Titanic sank, ...
6
votes
2answers
40k views
What is the minimum amount of water per day to survive?
I am disabled in the wildness, there are no natural water sources available. I have 2 gallons (7.5 liters) of water. The only practical solution is to sit and wait for rescue. I will be resting in ...
8
votes
2answers
1k views
How can I care for a wound that will be immersed in water?
I got a fairly bad cut on my leg, not quite bad enough for stitches but will probably leave a scar. I have a camping trip planned this weekend at a lake where we will go swimming and kayaking. I ...
10
votes
1answer
252 views
What's the ecological impact of bird-baths?
When reading this question (What is the ecological justification (if any) for bird feeders?) on bird feeders I wondered if there would be an ecological impact on having a bird bath.
Especially in ...
3
votes
1answer
691 views
Aftermarket access panel to clean inside fresh water RV tank?
When I was searching for boat inspection plates amazon example I saw a review where someone had bought one to install in the top of their RV fresh water tank to make cleaning inside easy. I thought ...
4
votes
1answer
135 views
Is all ocular fluid potable?
Many years ago I read that buffalo hunters would drink the liquid out of buffalo's eyes to gross out the greenhorns and tenderfeet (people new to the West). Attached to this anecdote was a claim that ...
4
votes
1answer
840 views
What is the name of the water-boiling chemical bag?
There was an invention that allowed you to boil water by putting a bag of chemicals in a bowl with some water and/or food. I don't remember its name and I would like to use it while hiking. (other ...
10
votes
2answers
281 views
Allergic to Neoprene and need water shoes
Really hoping someone else may be able to help me. I am very allergic to neoprene and am looking for some shoes to wear in water and in the pool. Almost all the shoes have neoprene in them -- so ...
11
votes
2answers
1k views
How do I make sure my cliff-diving location is safe?
I like cliff-diving, but I am always scared that there might be a rock hidden in the water. If it is a popular spot, then I just trust that someone has already done the work, but what if I am going ...
12
votes
6answers
22k views
How to freeze a water container without deforming it?
I like to take a frozen Nalgene bottle of water to my Bikram Yoga class. The problem is, every bottle I have used so far becomes deformed and, as can be seen in the picture below, the bottom bulges ...
6
votes
4answers
300 views
Where can I find public water tap for cleaning/bathing in the Netherlands?
We are wandering around Netherlands (on foot, hitch hiking, bicycle). We don't sleep in camping site, we put our tent anywhere "in the bush".
We are use to travel on this way in Southern Europe but ...
24
votes
3answers
10k views
Can you boil an egg in dirty water?
I'm going on a one day hike, and I want to cook an egg whilst on it. I'd like to avoid carrying excess water, and the route goes past a couple of waterfalls and several streams, so there is no problem ...
12
votes
1answer
873 views
Is it possible to 'moisture trap' from trees while thru-hiking?
I'm toying with the idea of collecting water from tree leaf transpiration, while hiking:
Obviously, vegetation with larger leaf surface area (and certain types) would be better than others.
But is ...
18
votes
10answers
3k views
How do you flavour your water on camping trips?
Always drinking pure water can be boring and tasteless, especially when you have to filtrate it or use sterilizer/purification tabs which might cause the water to taste really bad.
What are easy (...
6
votes
2answers
3k views
Is it safe to drink hot water? How hot can it be?
Many mountain hikers recommend drinking hot fluids, because they provide a lot of energy. According to the discussion "Does eating snow help dehydration?", the actual calorie gain is minimal, however ...
22
votes
3answers
3k views
Washing dishes with seawater or freshwater?
When backpacking in a coastal region, you sometimes have access to both fresh water (e.g. a stream) and salt water (sea, bay, etc.).
If you do not treat the water used for washing dishes, what are ...
19
votes
3answers
4k views
What is considered a water source, and why is it recommended to camp so far from them?
I've read one one of the US national forest or wilderness websites that when camping in the wild, one should camp at a certain distance from a water source. Should I understand a water source to mean ...
15
votes
6answers
61k views
Is it safe to drink out of a rusty thermos?
I've got a thermos for coffee and/or water storage that I use on hikes and for bike touring since it keeps things hot for hours. However, it seems like the inside is rusting a bit.
Is this safe to ...
6
votes
5answers
15k views
Replacement tap for Coleman 5 gal. water carrier
We have couple Coleman 5 gal. water carriers. They are nice sturdy canisters, but they have major weak spot: their taps are of poor quality and easily broken — both ours are, and seems like a lot of ...
14
votes
3answers
412 views
Finding water in the dry wilderness
If I'm in the wilderness in a dry, hot climate without much vegetation and I'm running low on water, what land features and other potential signs can I look for to guide me to a drinkable water source?...
18
votes
4answers
2k views
Formula for rough amount of water to carry on hike?
Is there a formula which can be used (I'm thinking one that gives amount of water needed factoring in time or distance covered and temperature) to roughly work out the amount of water that needs to be ...
15
votes
6answers
5k views
Is it a good Idea to drink grape sap if you have no clean water?
In spring, the grape vines are so full of watery sap that a cut from my pocket knife causes it to trickle out fairly fast, and it can be collected in a container. Someone told me that it is a good ...
26
votes
8answers
29k views
How to keep water cold in hot weather?
When doing outdoor sports like hiking or biking I'll always take a lot of cold water with me. I love to drink cold water and I feel more refreshed compared to drinking warm or not-so-cold water. But ...
18
votes
2answers
871 views
Where are good places to look for water sources when I have run out on a multi-day hike?
Luckily this has never happened to me, but even the most prepared hiker can often get themselves into difficulties if they run out of water. My question here is in your experience in remote arid ...
33
votes
9answers
23k views
How much water should be carried while hiking in the desert?
I live in the Arizona desert, and during the summer, despite my best intentions, I always seem to end up doing some hiking in the summer heat.
What is a good formula to figure out how much water I ...
