Our Berkey Water Filtration System
I love our Berkey water filter! I bought it in Arizona shortly after we moved there from Montana. Before we purchased the filter, I was attempting to haul 1-1/2 gallons of filtered water from the store for daily use. If I did this every few days, that was a LOT of trips from the parking lot to my apartment with jugs of water, two small children in tow. The Berkey was a lifesaver!
What to purchase for your family
For our family of three I have:
- The 1-1/2 gallon Travel Berkey (see more and purchase all of this by clicking here).
- 2 Carbon Filters (you can have 4 filters and it’ll filter faster, I don’t mind waiting a bit)
- 2 Fluoride Filters
How it works in our routine
I have my son, 4, pull up a chair and use a Nalgene bottle to fill up the Berkey as part of his morning chores. Yes, it takes him a while, but he’s up high, in the kitchen, and pouring water- this is the dream chore for a preschooler ~grin~.
If I’m making stock, kombucha, or something else that uses lots of water, I fill it up as I take water out.
The kids can easily reach to fill up their cups or water bottles, which is simpler than trying to get a big pitcher from the fridge or drag a chair to the kitchen sink. I had to show them how to stop filling when the cup was half full, but overall they do well. My daughter even fills up the dog’s water bowl without being asked.
Some Tips
- If you have a bigger family and a bigger kitchen, I’d recommend getting the Big Berkey (see all sizes and compare prices here).
- I personally like how the stainless looks, but it does show water spots. I wipe it down with a damp cloth when it starts to bother me, it’s not hard to clean.
- The kids will put their mouth under the spigot and get water that way, without a cup, I’m not sure how sanitary it is but it’s an adaptation they think is awesome.
- I replace my filters once every 6-8 months.
- The up front cost is quite a bit, but if you divide it out into daily use even the biggest system costs less than $1/day for ALL the filtered water your whole family needs and that’s just over the first year. I’ve had my system over a year now and it’s absolutely worth the investment. I seriously do not like hauling jugs of water!
- If possible, place your filter over a sturdy drawer in the cabinet, and then pull it out to hold the pot or jar you’re filling up. This allows you to multitask a bit.
We use filtered water in everything, even homemade gatorade
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GAPS Intro Chicken Stock in 4 Easy Steps
GAPS Intro Chicken stock
This is taken from What Can I Eat Now? 30 Days on the GAPS Introduction Diet Handbook. GAPS Intro chicken stock is different than stock later on, as you don’t brown the bones at all so the stock is pale. This is to prevent any harder to digest well cooked pieces of chicken from slipping through into the stock. You can still salt it to taste with sea salt, and broth is recommended to be served with every meal while on Intro.
Equipment:
Ingredients
Whole chicken or chicken pieces
Directions:
Rinse chicken. Reach inside cavity and remove giblet package if using a whole chicken. Remove giblets from package and add to the stock pot. Place chicken in the stockpot.
Fill pot ¾ full with filtered water. Cook on medium-high until bubbling, then reduce heat to low and allow to simmer, covered, at least 8 hours. When done, allow to cool then pour stock through a strainer and transfer to mason jars to store in the fridge.
To strain, I use a mesh strainer over a pitcher-style 4-cup measuring cup. This makes transferring the stock to the mason jars easier; I do one jar at a time, cleaning out the strainer as needed during the process.
Do not discard the soft gelatinous parts around the bones or the skin; reserve that and use an immersion or regular blender to blend it into your stock and soups.
The fat will rise to the top of the jars in the fridge, which can be included in soups or used as a fat for cooking.
Pick any meat off the bones that you can after the chicken stock has been removed, reserve meat to add to soups or serve alongside. Discard the remaining bones in the pot.
Pin ItThis is taken from What Can I Eat Now? 30 Days on the GAPS Introduction Diet Handbook.
Immunity Smoothie Recipe (and a great way to use leftover smoothies)…
We’ve been passing around a spring cold the past few weeks in our house. To boost our immunity we take elderberry syrup, and a couple weeks in I figured out it was easier to sneak the dose into a smoothie or popsicle than it was to spoon it out to everyone day after day. Not [...]
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Grain Free Meatballs with Grated Veggies for moisture and flavor…
Grain Free Meatballs These meatballs are packed with veggies for flavor, moisture, and nutrition. These are from the Grain Free Freezer Cooking Guide and the recipe makes enough that you’ll be able to pull out a few meatballs for lunch, or to add to red sauce and spaghetti squash for dinner, or eat as a [...]
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20 Things To Do With Your Dehydrator…
I wasn’t sure how much I would use a dehydrator, so I first borrowed one from a friend. It turns out I had that thing running day in and day out, so I quickly purchased my own. I like the Excalibur because the large square trays are easy to arrange any shaped food on, the [...]
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