OK so I have 6-55 gallon drums. I haven't filled them yet but with all this nuclear talk, I think I will fill them soon. My question is how do I treat them. I fill them with the hose and then what? I have some of that aerobic oxygen and I thought I would dump that in but it didn't come with instructions. Would anyone like to let me know how to really treat the water in these wonderful 55 gallon drums. Thank you

-- a mom (thirsty@not.com), May 25, 1999

Answers

Before you use the aerobic oxygen, I strongly suggest you check with your state university biologists and ask them about the efficacy of this product. You might also search the Web for controlled studies in reputable journals.

The Red Cross and other disaster agencies recommend chlorine bleach treatment for drinking water. More information may be found by looking in this forum's "Food" archive and searching on "Water."

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), May 25, 1999.

a mom:

If you are filling your barrels from tap water that is already treated and drinkable, there is no need to put a water treatment in it. Linda

-- newbiebutnodummy (Linda@home.com), May 25, 1999.

It probably would be a good idea to wash the barrels out with chlorinated water (bleach + water) to sanitize them first.

After filling cover tightly. Bung hole cap.

But remember that you want them to be where they should be at rest for a long time. 55 gal water = 470# x 6 = 2820#. Would like to see this kind of weight on a concrete pad, not wood floor.

-- David (C.D@I.N), May 25, 1999.

I have a number of large food-grade containers, including the very collapsible 200-gallon water bags (www.watertanks.com). I'm gambling that, whatever the reason might be I would need stored water, my municipal gravity-fed system will give me a last moment's opportunity to fill them. I have some 5-gallon portable containers filled as an initial precaution. One of my rationalizations for waiting (may or may not be valid) is that I don't want to add more bleach to the already chlorinated municipal water if I can help it.

-- Brooks (brooksbie@hotmail.com), May 25, 1999.

Ken Seger has some useful information about water treatment and storage at two pages on his site:

Bleach.txt and Water

Of course he has other useful info there as well so you might want the link to his Small List of Survival Articles.

-- Ron Rodgers (RonRodgers@Resilience2000.com), May 25, 1999.

I found this in the archives.

Actually your answer isn't flip at all! I'ld give up the notion of boiling water to kill germs though, unless you have acres of mature trees and enjoy cutting wood. Bleach is the easiest way to sterlize water. Normal household bleach (assuming it is just 5.25% sodium hypoclorite and no added whiteners or brighteners) will sterilize water in about 30 minutes - 1 tsp per 5 gallons of cloudy water, 1/2 tsp for clear. Therefore one gallon of 5.25% bleach can treat 7,680 gal. of clear water. Bleach will not kill tuberculosis germs however. The jugs that household bleach comes in are slightly gas permiable, that's why the strong chlorine smell in that aisle of the store. Therefore the concentration goes down over time. So just make your own as needed.

For only $10-20 you can purchase 5# of dry pool chlorine (shock or burn out) ~65% calcium hypochlorite, you want only CaHyp, no other ingredients for algae or fungus control or clarifiers. 24.5 grams of this (about 10 Tablespoons) can be added to 1 gallon of water to make bleach. Very important!!! Mix this outside away from walls due to the gassing of chlorine.

So for about $15 you can make about 93 gallons of bleach which will treat 700,000 gallons of clear water. So $15 covers the water needs for about 200 people for three years figured on 3 gallons per person per day for drinking, food preparation, and sanitation (flush toilets, dishwashers and laundry machines not included). Purchasing commercial coffee filters at Sam's or Costco will help prefilter the water.

-- R. Watt (rkwatt@hotmail.com), April 21, 1998.

I thought this maybe useful- Johnny

-- Johnny (JLJTM@BELLSOUTH.NET), May 25, 1999.

Newbie: if you think you can store tap water for long periods without treatment you are in for a rude surprise. Just because it doesn't have little buggies when it first comes out of the tap doesn't mean it won't get a bit contaminated later, and if untreated those new residents will reproduce. That's why the Red Cross says to use bleach.

-- Shimrod (shimrod@lycosmail.com), May 25, 1999.

It is worth mentioning that chlorine is a carcinogen; so if you store water with a chlorine treatment it is recommended that it should still be filtered prior to consumption.

-- Morrighan (matotipi@worldpath.net), May 25, 1999.

Please note. 1. Recommend using only food grade rated hose system to put in and take out - rinse hoses and containers with cleaning solution and water first.

2. Avoid garden hose - rubber or vinyl taste - no need for that

3. consider silver coins in bottom of containers like romans used to do in addition to filtering, and treating water. Yes there are web sites on coloidal silver.

-- a dad (concerned@for.health), May 25, 1999.

Shimrod-

Interesting that you caught that. I have been adding bleach to _all_ of my stored water. The "store it straight from the tap" was a recommendation of a Disaster Preparedness guy from the Oklahoma City chapter of the Red Cross!

So, thanks for catching my faux pas. Yes, add bleach to your stored water, even that drawn from the tap now.

Linda

-- newbiebutnodummy (Linda@home.com), May 26, 1999.