Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 2: Solar distillator with well
• Method 2 of 2: Allow moisture from plants to condense
• Tips
• Warnings

You can easily dry out in the desert. However, if you are lost in a desolate landscape, you can draw water from soil or plants through condensation, using the techniques described below. You are not actually "making" water, but it will nevertheless save your life.

To step

Method 1 of 2: Solar distillator with well

1. Search the landscape for dried-up river beds. These areas are the best places to look for moisture.
2. Dig some bowl-shaped holes (the more, the better) of about 50 cm deep so that the moist surface is clearly visible.
   • If you are in a dry environment, the moist surface may be a bit deeper. Dig until you hit it.
   • Do not dig the hole (s) in the shade. This process needs direct sunlight to work properly. Look around to make sure your solar distillator isn't shaded before evening.
3. Throw any plant you can find into the hole (s).
4. Place an open cafetiere, mug, cup, or canteen in the center of each hole.
   • If you have a fairly long piece of plastic tube with you, you can use it to make a connection between the bottom of the coffee pot and the outside world through the rim of the hole. You can use the tube to suck the water out of the jug without having to dismantle the distillator.
5. Place a piece of clear, plastic wrap tightly over the top of each hole.
6. Seal this cover by pouring sand along the outer edge of the plastic wrap.
   • Pour the sand 2.5 to 5 cm from the edge of the plastic wrap onto the plastic wrap. Make sure there are no gaps. The plastic film should cover the hole tightly; if pierced, the water will not condense.
7. Place a small to medium stone in the center of the plastic cover so that the plastic wrap is indented above the cup. Make sure the plastic wrap does not touch the cup or the water will not drip into it.
8. Now wait for the sun to evaporate the water in the moist soil and in the plants in each hole. The water will condense on the plastic wrap as it cannot escape from the hole, and will then drip into the cup. If you have a plastic tube installed you can drink with it.
9. When the sun has stripped the substrate of all moisture in a hole, all you have to do is dig a new hole. Instead, you could also dig deeper into the hole (s) you have already made.

Method 2 of 2: Allow moisture from plants to condense

1. Use Type-III parachute cord (or equivalent) to tie a clear plastic bag to the end of a plant or small tree branch. Do not use tape - the heat will prevent the tape from adhering properly to the bag.
2. Make sure that the bag is attached to the branch as airtight as possible. The plant excretes water through transpiration.
3. Water vapor will collect in the bag and it will condense there. Make sure that the water that collects in the bag does not drip out.
4. Wait until the evening for the maximum amount of water to condense before removing the bag.
5. Then tie the bag to another branch and repeat the process.
6. One large bag can be expected to collect the equivalent of one cup of water - you will need several bags to survive.

Tips

• Make sure that every process can take place completely. Due to the intense heat in the desert, this will probably only take a few hours; in places with less sunlight it can take half a day.
• The technique of using a solar distillator with well can also be used to purify dirty water and urine. This can be done by swapping the mug from an existing hole with a mug containing the dirty water, doing the same as before. If you don't have a mug or cup, you can also just pour the dirty water into the hole.
• Don't waste your time waiting. Instead, make some solar distillers of different designs to collect more water, and as a preventative measure in case your first distillator fails.
• In the Sahara, it is best to dig a very, very deep hole before setting up a water collector (homemade or otherwise).

Warnings

• It is quite possible that, as you dig, you will lose more water through transpiration than the distillator will eventually yield, depending on how moist the soil is, how labor-intensive the digging is and what you are digging with.
• Unlike some popular survival books, a solar distillator will not collect enough water to keep a person alive, even if it is built up on moist soil. It should be seen as a last resort.