Boil-water and water loss

Before

• Ready.gov: store at least one gallon of water per person per day for drinking and sanitation, for several days. Infants, children, adults, and older adults each count as one person on that figure.
• Florida Division of Emergency Management describes a household kit for at least 7 days. Extra for heat, pets, and cooking is a planning choice on the calculator, labeled as an assumption.
• Keep unscented household bleach only as a backup treatment, and follow the CDC water page and the bottle label. The calculator cites the CDC drop count.
• Know how to turn off the water at the house if a pipe breaks. Write the location on your private household copy, not on a public printout.
• If you use a well, an outage can stop the pump. Stored water covers that gap. This page does not give a well-treatment recipe.

During

• If the utility or the health department issues a boil-water advisory, CDC says to use bottled water or boil tap water. Bring it to a rolling boil for 1 minute. CDC says boil for 3 minutes above 6,500 feet.
• CDC: boiling does not make water safe when the advisory is for chemicals or toxins. Use bottled water when officials say do not drink or do not use the water.
• During a drinking-water advisory, CDC says not to use water or ice from a refrigerator dispenser tied to the tap.
• CDC: brush teeth with boiled or bottled water. Be careful not to swallow water while bathing. A sponge bath is the safer wash for babies and young children.
• Ready-to-feed infant formula does not need added water. CDC calls ready-to-use formula the better option during an advisory if you are not breastfeeding.
• If the taps run dry, switch to stored water. Use the cleanest water for drinking and the rest for flushing and washing.

After

• Keep boiling or using bottled water until the same officials say the advisory is lifted.
• Flush plumbing the way the utility tells you to. If they do not give steps, wait for their notice rather than guessing a flush time.
• Replace any stored water you used, and check dates on bottles.
• If a pipe broke in the house, leave the water off until it is repaired.

Checklist

• ☐Stored drinking water for the people in the home
• ☐A way to boil water if the stove or a safe outdoor method is available
• ☐Unscented bleach kept with the label
• ☐Ready-to-feed formula if an infant needs formula
• ☐Water shutoff location known to an adult in the home

Sources

Official pages only. Open them for the full instructions.

• Ready.gov: Build a kit
• CDC: Drinking water advisories
• CDC: Water emergencies
• Florida Division of Emergency Management: Plan and prepare
• St. Johns County Emergency Management
• CDC: Protect yourself during a power outage