How Can Bottled Water Improve Your Bug Out Bag?

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By Joel Jefferson •  3 min read

bottled water in bug out bagEverybody knows that you need a water supply in your Bug Out Bag, or any other preps for that matter. Bottled water comes in cheap plastic bottles that are obviously not ideal for long term use. So how can bottled water improve your Bug Out Bag?

If you are like me once you have packed your Bug Out Bag it does a lot of nothing. It just sits around.

Problem With Bottled Water

Now think about what you are using to store water in your Bug Out Bag. More than likely you fall into 1 of 2 possibilities.

  1. Your bag is packed but has empty water containers, which you plan to fill as soon as you know you’re going to need it, or
  2. You water containers are filled and in your bag, just sitting.

Neither of these is a great option.

If you do #1: What if your water source is contaminated? Or you don’t have any time at all to grab and go. Maybe every second counts.

If you do #2: When is the last time you changed that water? Your Nalgene or Big Zip water container is going to be pretty gross and possibly even contaminated if it has been sitting for weeks or months.

Solution

Pack your clean, dry, empty water containers in your Bug Out Bag. Then pack enough bottled water to fill all of your containers. Don’t waste valuable pack space. Just strap a plastic bag full of bottled water to the outside of your pack. This is a temporary set up.  Also think about keeping some water in your Bug Out Bag,.

This way, when you have to bug out, you have enough water to fill all of your containers, but it is in sealed bottles that have a much longer shelf life. As soon as it’s time to go, dump all of the water into your nice clean containers and head out, or do it in the car.

Here is the product I recommend for you to get:

Platypus Platy 2-Liter Flexible Water Bottle
  • Taste-free construction is BPA-, BPS-, Phthalate-, and PVC-free, and does not have any residual...
  • Ultralight material collapses and rolls up small enough to fit inside a pocket when empty, making it...

Last update on 2024-03-18 at 10:33 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Wrap Up

This applies to more than just your Bug Out Bag. It will probably be even more useful for a Urban Survival or Get Home Bag where you might be away form home and your larger water reserves.

*Note: Even though this is a better solution you still need to rotate your bottled water stock occasionally. It lasts a while but not forever.

Also read “6 Dangerous Urban Myths About Water”

Joel Jefferson

Joel is one of the original founders of SurvivalCache.com. After college, he joined the USMC where he served as an (0302) Marine Infantry Officer. Joel is an avid outdoorsman and spends much of his free time in the mountains. Joel’s hobby is researching survival gear & weapons as well as prepping. Read his full interview here.