I have lived in Missouri long enough to know that winter is not polite. One day it is fifty five and muddy and the next day the wind is howling and the ground is hard as a brick. Folks think of tornadoes and summer storms when they think preparedness, but winter outages are the ones that sneak up and stay a while. I learned that lesson the hard way back in the ice storm of 2007 when Darlene and I went three days without power and I realized I had planned for food and heat but not for water once the pump quit.

Most people assume that if they have a well or city water they are covered. The truth is that both depend on electricity somewhere down the line. When the power goes, pressure drops, pumps stop, and suddenly that kitchen faucet is just a shiny piece of metal. That is when you find out how much water you actually use in a day, and it is always more than you think.

I keep it simple now. I plan on one gallon per person per day for drinking and basic cooking, and another gallon if I want to stay even a little comfortable. That does not include flushing toilets or washing clothes. That is just drinking, brushing teeth, and making soup. In winter I bump it up a bit because dry air makes you thirstier and you end up using more water for cooking warm meals.

I keep most of my water in food grade containers in the basement where it stays cool and dark. I rotate it every six months, usually when the clocks change. I do not overthink it. I dump it on the garden or into the washing machine and refill. The important part is that I actually do it. Water that sits for three years untouched is a gamble I do not like to take.

One thing folks overlook is that pipes freeze and crack when the heat goes out. Even if the water company is still running, you may not be able to use it safely. I keep a wrench taped to the main shutoff valve so I can kill the water fast if a pipe bursts. That little trick saved me a mess a few winters back when the crawl space got colder than I expected.

Another thing I do is fill the bathtub before a big storm hits if I know power might go out. That water is not for drinking unless I treat it, but it is perfect for flushing toilets or washing hands. It buys time and peace of mind, which are both valuable when the weather is ugly and the roads are bad.

If you are on a well, this matters even more. No power means no pump. A small generator can solve that, but only if you know how to use it and have fuel on hand. I keep enough gas treated with stabilizer to run the generator a little each day just to fill containers and keep the freezer cold. I do not run it nonstop. Fuel is precious and noise carries.

I also keep a gravity filter in the pantry. It does not need power and it turns questionable water into safe water. Creek water, melted snow, rainwater from a clean surface, it all becomes usable. I hope I never need it, but hope is not a plan, so there it sits ready to go.

How I Store Water Without Turning My Basement Into a Mess

Over the years I have tried about every container out there. The blue seven gallon jugs are my favorite because I can lift them without throwing my back out. I label each one with the date using a marker and I stack them on old boards so they are not sitting directly on the concrete. Concrete can leach flavors and eventually weaken plastic, which is one of those boring details that actually matters.

I also keep a few cases of bottled water, not because I love plastic bottles but because they are easy to grab and hand out. When Wendy and her family were visiting last winter and a storm rolled in, I sent them home with a couple cases just in case. She laughed at me a little, but two days later she texted me saying the power was out and the kids were using flashlights to brush their teeth. She was glad to have the water.

If space is tight, even a few gallons is better than nothing. Stick them under a bed or in a closet. Water does not have to be fancy to be useful. It just has to be there when you need it.

Cold Weather Water Mistakes I See All the Time

The biggest mistake is waiting until the storm is already on the way. Stores get picked clean fast and nobody wants to fight a crowd for water when the roads are icing over. Another mistake is forgetting pets. Dogs and cats need clean water too, and they get stressed when routines change. Jasper, Wendy’s black lab, drinks more than you would think, especially when the house is warm and dry.

People also forget that snow is not clean water. It can be filtered and treated, but eating snow straight can lower your body temperature and make dehydration worse. It is a tool, not a solution.

I have also seen folks store water in old milk jugs or soda bottles that were never meant for long term storage. Those break down and leach flavors, and sometimes worse. Stick to food grade containers and you will save yourself trouble later.

Wendy’s Corner

Dad asked me to write a little about how this plays out for us out here in eastern Oregon, and I laughed because water is always on my mind. We are on a well and when the power goes out, that is it. No water, no flushing, no nothing. The first winter after we moved here I assumed the power company would get things back on quickly. They did not, and I learned fast.

Now I keep a row of water jugs in the garage and a smaller set in the house. The kids know not to touch them unless I say so. Luke likes to ask a million questions about how long we could last, and Charlotte mostly just wants to know if she can still have hot chocolate. Priorities.

Steve set up a simple system where we can run the well pump off a generator for short bursts. We fill everything we can and then shut it back down. It is noisy and not exactly cozy, but it works. I also keep a kettle on the wood stove so we always have hot water for washing hands or making something warm to drink.

Living out here has made me appreciate how much water equals comfort. When you have it, you barely think about it. When you do not, it is all you think about. Dad drilled that into me growing up, and now I hear his voice in my head every time a winter storm pops up on the forecast.

The kids think the water jugs are boring, but they also know that boring usually means safe. And honestly, that is a lesson I am happy for them to learn early.