Water is absolutely essential for human survival. Whereas a person can go a surprising length of time without food, it only takes a few days for the body to start shutting down without water. Even if you can only ingest a little as half cup of water per day, you’re much better off than having none at all.
But what if you’re stranded by the ocean? Ironically, even though our planet is comprised of more than 70 percent water, much of it is non-potable. While the human body can process a limited amount of salt, the salt content of ocean water is far too high for our bodies to process. As your kidneys struggle to filter the amount of salt in sea water, you urinate more frequently, ultimately causing rapid dehydration.
Dehydration is a known killer of people who become stranded in the wilderness, and its effects are surprisingly swift. You’ll experience dry mouth, headache, nausea, muscle cramps, and extreme thirst, eventually leading to organ failure and death. In as little as 3-6 days, what started as an adventure in the backcountry can end as a tragedy if you’re left to your own devices without any idea how to extract water from your environment. If you become lost in the wilderness near the ocean and saltwater is your only water source, knowing how to build a solar still will save your life.
A solar still goes by many names in the survival world, including solar well, condensation trap, and moisture trap. It works by using the heat of the sun to evaporate pure water from an impure source, like green leaves, sea water, or contaminated water. The design of the solar still then cools the water and funnels it toward your collection container, from which you can safely consume. A solar still will work in virtually any location that receives sunlight, and is not at all hard to construct using found materials.
Take a look at this video demonstrating how to build a solar still in the wilderness and see for yourself how viable this method of water collection for survival really is. Don’t forget to practice building your own at home before you try it in the wild — practice will markedly improve your chances of using these survival tactics successfully when it matters most!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10k-DPcLrHU]
Featured Image from zombiu26/Shutter Stock
