Drinking water from the water storage tank

[Gullsea]

Hi all,
I am a Dutch newbie on this forum, but I?m kicking off with my burning question straight away?
This summer I'm going to hit the water for a few weeks with my "new" boat with 150 litre water tank, and I'm really afraid I will get sick on board due to drinking contaminated water :blue: Does anyone here has the same fear, and if so, what do you do to prevent getting sick

In the Dutch boating scene people are usually pretty easygoing when it comes to the safety of water on board (for drinking, showering, cleaning, etc..) Well, I am certainly not a coward, but prevention is better than cure ... I am curious what your opinion is when it comes to using filters (membrane / carbon / UV / etc) and adding chemicals to the fresh water tank

Thanks in advance for your reply!

 

[Gyrene]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

I got dysentery in Vietnam, and I don't recommend it...
If you boil the water for tea or coffee, you'll be fine.
I also have read they have filters now for use by campers - might want to look into those.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

We bring the drinking water aboard in bottles. . . Use the water tank system for everything else.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

I don't trust the plastic in older boat systems, or even newer ones for that matter. Tons of chemicals that leech out, BPA and others. My rule of thumb is that water storage tanks are for non-potable use only, drinking/cooking water is bottled.

 

[Gullsea]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

I got dysentery in Vietnam, and I don't recommend it...
If you boil the water for tea or coffee, you'll be fine.
I also have read they have filters now for use by campers - might want to look into those.

We bring the drinking water aboard in bottles. . . Use the water tank system for everything else.

So bottled or boiled water for drinking should do the trick? That's confirms what I hear a lot within the Dutch boating scene :lol: Not that many people I know are using filters for their daily drinking water needs. Besides 'classic' filters I also heard smt about purifying water with UV, is anyone familiar with that?:watermelon:

 

[Splat]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

When backpacking I use a UV pen to steralize water. It's made by Steri-pen. It's not perfect, but is quicker than boiling and using iodine tabs.

The catch to using the pen, is it won't steralize the water on the threads of what you are drinking from, the UV light won't pass through a Nalgene bottle. So if I dip my bottle into a stream the water inside will be treated, but the water remaining on the sides touching my lips is not. Wiping the threads clean is recommended, and I haven't gotten sick yet.

The steri-pens are becoming more and more popular with travelers going to third world countries as well.

 

[garbageguy]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

Not sure what size boat you have, but if it has a water tank its probably big enough to carry some drinking water. I "disinfect" my water system every season (there's plenty of info on that here and other places), but I always bring a supply of fresh water in an insulated water jug for drinking. To me, it's a simple way to be sure you have safe water, and in the event you don't have power for your freshwater pump, you still have water to drink

 

[ssobol]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

A UV pen (or light) can kill bacteria and micro organisms if the dwell time is long enough. If the liquid passes through the light too quickly not all the contaminating organisms will be killed. A good UV setup will circulate the water continuously through the UV light. UV light does nothing for chemical, mineral, or heavy metal contamination. A UV light will also not do anything for off tastes. For instance, the UV light may kill the bacteria but you are still ingesting the remains, if the quantity of dead material is high enough you'll probably taste something.

Even water you get from the tap will eventually go off if stored long enough. The water from the tap is pure enough to drink, but is not sterile (ask your water company for a water quality report if you really want to know what is in it). There is enough sources of contamination by the time it gets from the tap to the storage tank that some bacteria will get in the water and will eventually multiply enough to at least give the water a bad taste, if not worse. Some people say putting a drop or two of plain chlorine bleach in the water (depending on the quantity) will lengthen the storage time considerably without giving the water a chlorine taste.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

UV light does nothing for chemical, mineral, or heavy metal contamination. A UV light will also not do anything for off tastes.

That part can't be understated... UV light will not make unsafe water safe to drink. It simply kills any microorganisms that happen to be living in it. If the water system itself has issues (leeching chemicals, contamination, etc...) UV will do nothing.

 

[Cheetah 210es]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

Camping stores have sterilizing tablets that work ok, but leave a nasty aftertaste. Stick to bottled water for drinking.

 

[Gullsea]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

A UV pen (or light) can kill bacteria and micro organisms if the dwell time is long enough. If the liquid passes through the light too quickly not all the contaminating organisms will be killed. A good UV setup will circulate the water continuously through the UV light. UV light does nothing for chemical, mineral, or heavy metal contamination. A UV light will also not do anything for off tastes. For instance, the UV light may kill the bacteria but you are still ingesting the remains, if the quantity of dead material is high enough you'll probably taste something.

Interesting product... will check out the website right ahead!

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: Drinking water from the water storage tank

Close to 400 Euros will buy a heck of a lot of bottled water. And beer!