Water Container Order Followup

Thank you to all who have participated in our group Water Container Order.  I appreciate all of you that prepare yourselves for emergencies.  Because we prepare, we WILL be better able to deal with emergencies as they come our way.

Some of you were asking how to prepare your water for storage. I would probably give your new containers a good rinse out before filling them up...

• I fill mine a couple of inches with water, pour in a little bleach, shake them up really, really good, drain, and rinse one more time with plain water, just to be sure.

Some have inquired if you need to add anything to the water - like bleach.  Be really careful with the bleach...if you use too much in your water, it can cause diarrhea! 

I got this from an article on the web:

How should I treat the water for storage?

Be sure that the water you are treating is drinking-quality water to begin with. To treat water for storage, use liquid household chlorine bleach that contains 5.25 percent sodium hypochlorite. Do not use bleach with soaps or scents added. Add the bleach according to the table below, using a clean, uncontaminated medicine dropper.

4 drops bleach per quart or liter container of water

8 drops bleach per 2-quart, 2-liter, or ½ gallon container of water

16 drops bleach, or 1/4 teaspoon, per gallon or 4-liter container of water

When treating larger quantities of water, use the following table to convert drops to standard measuring units.

8 drops = 1/8 teaspoon

16 drops = 1/4 teaspoon

32 drops = ½ teaspoon

64 drops = 1 teaspoon

192 drops = 1 Tablespoon

384 drops = 1/8 cup which is equal to 2 Tablespoons

Stir the water and allow it to stand for 30 minutes. Chlorine should be detectable by odor after the 30 minute waiting period. If the water does not smell like chlorine at that point, repeat the dose and let it stand another 15 minutes. Place caps on containers and attach labels describing the contents and when each was prepared.
Water stored in metal containers should not be treated, prior to storage, with chlorine since the chlorine compound is corrosive to most metals. Therefore, only very pure water should be stored in metal containers.

I have posted some files in the 'documents' tab at the top menu bar of the blog.  Also, you can google terms like 'water storage' and 'water purification' to find additional information.