Everyone knows that they do not like microbes of silver. I do not know why, but this is a reliable fact. Therefore, from time immemorial they have been making various medications based on silver with antibacterial effects, for example, lapis (silver nitrite) and protargol. (The action of preparations containing silver is based on their ability to disrupt the enzyme systems of microorganisms and precipitate proteins.) In some countries, drinking water is no longer chlorinated, but disinfected with silver ions, turning tasteless tap water into real life-giving moisture.
For medicinal purposes and for prevention, I also make water saturated with silver ions. I carry out the process of “silvering” water with a simple boiler from two electrodes, which are silver plates (Fig. 1). As soon as the water begins to boil, becoming gray, I turn off the boiler. This water is stored for a very long time and has bactericidal properties. It is enough to add two or three teaspoons of this treated water to a jar of water, where eye or dentures are stored, the latter will retain freshness for a very long time.
As you know, in the hot season carbonated water cannot be stored in siphons for a long time. But if you find a piece of silver ring, earrings, medallion, spoons - the shelf life of water is easy to increase. To do this, you will have to flatten a piece of silver into a thin piece the size of a fifty-fifty (old) and slightly curl up so that it slides into the neck of the siphon. Now the water in the saturator will always be fresh and safe, since silver ions prevent the emergence of microflora and fauna in it. For fishing, I always took an aluminum flask for lack of silver, but in it, like Diogenes in a barrel, I always have a silver leaf. Water, drawn into a flask from a river, lake or even a swamp, after an hour or two became safe for use. (Silver can not be thrown into a flask with vodka, since vodka itself has similar properties, although more humane. It does not kill germs, but it intoxicates, and it does not concern us, as we are not up to them.)