DIY Water Filter

Water is essential to life, as we’re pretty darn screwed after only a few days without it. Clean water is often difficult to come by in emergency situations, making the ability to create your own filter an awesome survival skill to have.  There’s numerous options available for creating filters, but for our purposes we’ll go with one of the easiest options to make. Check it out:

Glass Jars and Filtering Container

To create a multi-level water filter, you’ll first need two sizable, clean glass jars.  One is for filtered water, the other unfiltered water. Do NOT confuse one with the other! You’ll also need a smaller container for filtering the water, such as a small plastic bottle. Poke small holes in the bottom of this bottle–they should let water through, but not the filtering materials. Cut off the top of the bottle as well for easy material placement.

Filtering Materials

Acceptable filtering materials include sand, cotton clothing, small rocks/gravel, grass, and charcoal. Coffee filters are also ideal for obvious reasons.

Layering

The next step is to layer your materials inside the filtering containers. Layer so larger particles are filtered first, then smaller particles. A good example is starting with rocks or gravel, then adding sand and charcoal, and finally the cotton or coffee filters. The cotton or coffee filter will trap the smallest particles in your water, so make sure this layer faces the small holes in the bottom of the filter.

If using charcoal, hammer it into small pieces.

The Actual Filtering

You are now ready to filter your water! Fill one of your glass jars with water, and hold your makeshift filter over the empty one. Pour unfiltered water from the first jar into the filter, allowing it to work its way through and drain into the second jar. For best results, perform this action several times.

There you have it: your own water filter!

Have you ever created a water filter? What materials did you use? Share your story in the comments section!