Well, you have a lot of questions there. Ill try to get some of them. First off, I have a 20g planted aquarium. I have a small hang on filter, NO air, a DIY CO2 injection. I change my water about every 4-8 weeks and do 1/4 of my water, five gallons. I have a gravel substrate with fertilizer tabs in it topped off with sand. I stated that so you can see what direction Im coming from. Now how are you setting this up? Do you take the water out and water a garden? Do you have planters above the tank and the roots grow into the tank? Are you speaking of aquatic plants and the plants are submurged in the tank? I have soft water, I have a RO set up for my well water on my sink. That water is just about pure. I add salt to it and 'flourish' brand micro nutrients to make the water like river water with out the toxins (no motor oil in my water, bad joke, I know). I add 1/4 tsp of epsom salt to increase hardness and 1/4 tsp baking soda to increse pH because of the CO2 injection. With that the pH ends up 7 and the hardness is still soft. In the past I had my tank at another house where I only had tap water that was medium hardness. All the plants grew the same. Unless you are growing aquatic plants, I would not worie about the hardness. There are some difficult aquatic plants that need soft water but I can not think of any earth rooted plants that need soft water. I have a bunch of bonsai and potted plants and sometimes I use the aquarium water but for the most part they get hose water. Im drifting away from the topic. Let us know how you have this set up. I hope my rambling was helpful.

I was considering buying a soda siphon to make my own sparkling water. I have two important questions in this regard: First, how does the fizziness compare with that of store-bought stuff like Poland Spring sparkling water? Second, as the tank gets emptied, does the remaining water tend to go flat as it finishes up? Thanks

Once clean, I don't think you will have any problem with stains. I am 75 and never had a problem. You just have to clean them often and the ones rarely used need to be flushed occasionally and cleaned. I try to keep the use of chemicals to a bare minimum, so I use soap and water for most cleaning. I use cheap dish washing liquid to clean the stools and have been doing that for 2 or 3 years. If I buy shampoo that I don't like I use it to clean the stool. I haven't seen any problems doing that. My neighbor said, "but it's not sanitary", my reply was I don't drink out of it. LOL

A lot depends on for what events/contingencies you're preparing. Some of the list is humorous. "Big dogs"? Kind of goes with goats & chickens? Liquor for bribes! And seeds? Probably should include an alternate mate to repopulate the world! LOL Ease up folks, some of it clearly was for entertainment purposes. But there are basic items I can't excuse people for not having in stock. If you don't have a supply of batteries in your refrigerator drawer, purchased when free or cheap, you deserve to suffer during a power outage. Again I endorse the crank flashlights/radios (until analog radio is turned off of course). I would suggest going with propane for lantern and stove fuel rather than the white gas ("Coleman" type) fuels. That stuff is explosive. If you doubt it, take a tablespoon and throw it on a campfire sometime. But be back a ways when you do it. A 20# propane tank can have splitters on it to run multiple lanterns and a stove, even a heater, much more safely than the white gas. Heavy garbage bags make excellent makeshift raingear. And don't forget about firestarters. If you're talking emergency situations, I'd suggest waterproof matches. Make your own by dipping the wooden matches in paraffin wax. Firestarters are many different kinds. Save some dryer lint. Works great. Keep it in a coffee can. Dip some cotton string in paraffin wax. Some books of matches waterproofed (with? yes, paraffin) works too and even the end pieces from candles you use in the house at holidays. A hatchet is a good idea to keep handy too. Essentially, camping fans will do fine in a lot of emergencies. Other cooking sources are your propane grill, kettle grill if you have charcoal and starters. A good alternative to thermal underwear is sweatpants and shirts. Even southerners often have these. Depending on the clothes sizes you can put a pair under and over a pair of jeans. Or the flannel lounging pants under and sweats over them. A few cans of waterproofing spray like Scotchguard will help keep them and you dry. Another little camping tip. Oh, and instead of a dedicated toilet, a portable toilet is made easily from a 5 gal pail, seat if you want to get fancy or even a folding camp stool or a lawn chair! A camp shovel and squat will work too. And if truly an emergency, modesty goes out the window. Fasten the toilet seat to the 5 gal pail and you won't have to argue about who left the seat up! :) Wire clothes hangers can be versitile tools. Use them to make your own lantern hangers, repairs, tie things together, and you can even hang clothes! (To dry and more.) Can also be used as a weapon to beat off people trying to steal your rats, chickens, goats and big dogs! ;) Personally, I think I would use duct tape instead of stockpiling screen patching but the idea of all of these suggestions is to get you thinking. I really think that doing some research on camping tips and tricks would be of great benefit to a lot of people. I live a rather modest life, austere to the view of many. But when the power was out for a week here the last time, I survived quite well. Comfortably under the circumstances and even had some luxuries that many others didn't. I had tv, radio, light, food, water, telephone... Not a huge disaster compared to some, but being prepared not just with supplies, but also in a state of mind. My last suggestion. On these ideas, why not put together a 3 ring binder or something with lists of what to do in certain situations? For instance, power outage, turn off as many breakers as you can, the crank flashlights are located in the hall closet, 1st aid tips, important phone numbers, insurance info, etc. Even ideas for food, crackers & PB (sans-salmonella, eat first from the frig, etc.) and how about including notes like check on the handicapped neighbor, your elderly relatives, etc. Could be helpful. Even though I disagree with some of the ideas, I do like these lists minnie_tx. Keep 'em coming. I like going through them and see how they compare to my checklists and I get ideas from most all of them. I appreciate your efforts.