I debated about even posting this and sounding like a fool, but here goes:
With all the possibility of flooding to the point of evacuating why is it you don't see bathtubs being pulled out of homes to use as a sort of life raft. I'm talking about one person or a child or two and maybe a little something in the way of supplies, not as a lifeboat for 20.

I searched the net and ETS and only found 1 very vague reference on the net having to do with a marine accident where the survivors used a bathtub because the ship had no liferafts. No info as to if they were in it or just swimming along clinging to it. Tubs are the obvious water storage but if the tub is underwater, or about to be, why not pull it out, plug the hole(s), and climb in? It seems like something that could be done with just a few tools and a little time.

Maybe people do it all the time and I just couldn't find it? I'm not suggesting anyone stick around in a flood when they should evac but if you find yourself needing to escape "on foot" in deep water would this be a possible alternative?

hmmm...yeah, bathtubs are really heavy...

So is water, though...

I've never thought of this before. I'm not gonna throw a bathtub in my BOB, but you never know when you might get stuck in a flood with no boat. Lol!

How would you plug the hole well? Most of the things I can think try to hold water in... Maybe a towel stuffed in tight would hold better than I imagine.

I suppose it's possible, depending on the tub, but it's not very practical.

You can pick up an inflatable boat at wal-mart for like $20 though... it won't quite fit in a backpack but it packs quite a bit smaller than a tub

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=1170678
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=1170680

The sevylor trail boat might be a good smaller one man boat for this.

or spend the bigger bucks and get an alpacka raft.

If you don't have too much place in your flat to store a boat, try this folding kayak

Strikes me as heavy, hard to propel and difficult to get out of the house --

alternatives:

build a brush raft See

brush raft instructions

get four truck innertubes and some wood:

four tube raft

or drink some soda;

2 liter bottles and duct tape raft

I am reminded of an old illustration. Oddyseus is clinging to a wooden raft while Posiedon tosses him about the sea. Now Old Oddyseus was something of a sailor but still looked rather uncomfortable. A flooded area is one of the most dangerous waters to travel. You have uncharted hazards to navigation both submerged and afloat, new and changing currents, spilled toxins and fuels waiting to ignite. And into this somebody wants to launch a bathtub, designed to HOLD water and not displace it in a manner pleasing to a naval architect sailing his Concordia. being in a flood is no different than being lost. You need to secure a safe place and wait for rescue. If you must water-bug out, do so with a proper small boat.

I have owned a bunch of homes, and lived in more apartments than I care to remember, and I have never had a tub that was not built in. Kinda hard to float away in one of those, and if you could, it would probably list to one side badly...

I agree on flood water being dangerous, with all sorts of things in it, which is what put me off the idea of inflatables. I think the scenario I had in mind was flooding came sooner than expected and it was necessary to swim for it. Being out of the water would protect me from debris, any contaminates etc, help fight hypothermia, and I guess if I covered the top it would provide a shelter of sorts.

I think the drain hole could be plugged by cutting a large piece of foam from furniture, wrapping it well in plastic wrap and squeezing it tightly through the drain hole. Some tubs are heavy but, I have seen the fiberglass ones installed and they are just sort of setting there with caulk around them so ripping one out looks simple enough. Maybe quality tubs are better installed. Apartment dwellers don't have lots of storage space. If I had to squeeze a boat in mine I'd have to flip it upside down and disguise it as a coffee table.

I'm not suggesting doing something risky and possibly fatal when all you have to do is wait for rescue but if the waters rising fast and you have to rescue yourself- maybe useful.

I liked the kayak since kayaks are designed to move around ice it should move around debris, (inflatable) but I think the bush raft would be a good option-easy to build and easy on the wallet.