TCM Revolver

and I'm thirsty!!
Water is the essence of all life. A human can go upwards of 2 weeks with out food, but only a couple days without water.

"But Revolver, we live right by the ocean, why not just grab a cup?? "

Any elementary student can tell you that salt water will kill you, but the question is why?

All that extra salt in seawater means that, if drank, it causes the person to suffer the effects of dehydration much faster. Salt naturally dehydrates by absorbing water. The kidneys respond to an increase in salt by taking more water from the body to flush out the extra salt. Aside from faster dehydration, which makes a person thirstier, drinking seawater also causes hallucinations, cramps and other health problems. Ultimately, death quickly ensues.

Lets do some math, Salt + Water = Dead (Dead + You = Bad)

Assuming we live in an area that does not have regular access to a fresh water source, and a behemoth is lurking in the water pumping station, what is a fella to do?

*fanfare playing* Desalinization!!

Desalinization is the process of removing salt and other minerals from seawater, making it safe to drink. In the "non-zombie" world, there are de-sal plants all over the place. But with no power, or someone to run it, these are nothing more than an indoor swimming pool.

The good thing is that the process is easy to duplicate. Essentially, boil the saltwater and collect the steam.


Now, what can we use? Esentially anything that can boil water and something to collect it. At home, I used a tea kettle, a glass bowl, Icepack and a measuring cup...







I put in 3 cups of saltwater into the tea kettle and got a yield of just over 2 cups (66%) of drinkable water. (I know it's drinkable because I drank it) The reason I used an ice pack is to increase the amount of condensation collected. The same principal as a cold drink on a hot day. This is essentially what they do in a de-sal plant, only a lot more refined.

In summation, the next time you are in LA LA land and you find yourself hole up in an apartment building, you may not live through the night, but at least you won't be thristy.

Always aim for the head
--Revolver

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