Rotate Water Supply

[Hutch]

But do you need the chlorine any more after it's killed off all of the bugs in the water?

The first time you break a seal on the water, put a pump or siphon hose in it, or just don't get it quite sealed back up after it's been treated, you can/have admitted "germs".  My wife, the nurse, tells me that any "sterile" water container that gets opened is pitched out after use, regardless of how much remains.  You can culture some really nasty stuff in untreated water.  Pseudomonas comes to mind...

Now, all that being said, ya gotta have water, and any water is better than no water at all.  Don't let Perfect be the enemy of Good Enough.  BTW, chlorine bleach in bottles loses chlorine over time, just like treated water.  If you really want to store chlorine for use at some future date, get a pack of dry swimming pool treatment sodium hypchlorite.  It's cheap, a zillion times more concentrated than Chlorox, and has a near infinite shelf life.  It's ususally sold as a shock treatment for the pool.  Get that with no other active ingredient, like fungicide or algicide.

[Sawdust]

  If you really want to store chlorine for use at some future date, get a pack of dry swimming pool treatment sodium hypchlorite.  It's cheap, a zillion times more concentrated than Chlorox, and has a near infinite shelf life.  It's ususally sold as a shock treatment for the pool.  Get that with no other active ingredient, like fungicide or algicide.

Excellent advice. I do exactly this...a couple of caveats:

1) The chemical (I use calcium hypochlorite) may have a near-infinite shelf-life, but the cheap-ass plastic bags that it comes in deteriorate in about a year. I need to get some glass jars.

2) If kept in its original packaging, it outgasses. Don't keep it in a cabinet with other metallic items or metal hinges and shelf pins...major corrosion. DAMHIKT.

Sawdust

[brimic]

Another thought, though it depends on where you are regionally- what about digging/installing a hand water pump well?

[sanglant]

or a nice 500-1000 gallon tank in the attic it would really even out your water pressure  a leak would suck though

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

Another thought, though it depends on where you are regionally- what about digging/installing a hand water pump well?

Many cities won't allow you do to that.  They expect you to be on the public utilities, not screwing around with the local water table.

If you're in the country, a hand powered well pump would be ideal.

or a nice 500-1000 gallon tank in the attic it would really even out your water pressure  a leak would suck though

Better hope it doesn't freeze and split the tank...

 

[brimic]

Many cities won't allow you do to that.  They expect you to be on the public utilities, not screwing around with the local water table.

 I didn't say anything about letting the city know about it. I mean who wouldn't want a nicely painted hand pump in their yard as a decoration piece for their garden/patio. 

Tanks on roofs:

When I was in Mexico I noticed that many of the houses had big black water tanks (several hundred gallons)on their roofs- must be their way of making hot water. That wouldn't work in my region though where temps get into the lower minus 20s in winter.

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

Guerrilla well drillers?

 

[brimic]

Guerrilla well drillers?

Yeah, probably a bad idea to upset the powers that be.

[Fjolnirsson]

Couple of these could come in pretty handy...

Ok, I don't know what the heck happened there.

http://www.surewatertanks.com/tank_products.html

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I'm semi serious, though.  Don't most well drillers need official approval of some sort before they can sink a well?  If they don't have or can't get that approval, would they be willing to install a discrete well in your backyard anyway?

Honest question, I really don't know.  I'd probably be interested in doing this if it's feasible.

[sanglant]

yeah, can't even dig a well to wash your car, and water your garden. it really makes you wonder who owns land now.

[Fjolnirsson]

Ok, fixed my earlier screw up.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

pretty common to drill wells here permit to hook up to house and also for agricultural wells  . if you don't drill case and grout your well right you can contaminate a neighbors.

[Silver Bullet]

Couple of these could come in pretty handy...

Ok, I don't know what the heck happened there.

http://www.surewatertanks.com/tank_products.html

So ... how many of those do you own ?   

[Gowen]

Do 3rd world countries bottle their own water?

Why yes...  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiji_water

My understanding is that old water will taste flat.  To freshen it up just pour it between two glasses for a few minutes to add some air back into it.

[Fjolnirsson]

So ... how many of those do you own ?   

Lol. Unfortunately, none so far. For now, I'm working with the smaller 55 gallon drums. They are in the long term plan, though.

[brimic]

'm semi serious, though.  Don't most well drillers need official approval of some sort before they can sink a well?  If they don't have or can't get that approval, would they be willing to install a discrete well in your backyard anyway?

Honest question, I really don't know.  I'd probably be interested in doing this if it's feasible.

I did some asking around. Seems its fairly easy to install a well (technically easy that is). You need a well point which is a sharp spike with a perforated body that you drive into the ground with a fence post driver, screw on a length of pipe and repeat until you are at the minimum depth (In my area its 25' for drinking water, less for irrigation). My state regs require the well casing to have a concrete pad a minimum of 1' out from the well casing and at least 4" thick, with the well casing being sealed to the concrete with proper sealant or asphalt.

From the sound of the WI DNR regs, I would need a permit, but not a license to put in a Well Point.  The Regs even have nice diagrams showing how to put one in  This would fall well within the means of a determined DIYer, just need about $100 worth of parts, a pitcher or hand pump, a saturday afternoon and a case of cold beer.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

for emergency use that would be cool.  shallow wells have drawbacks though on quality/purity

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I did some asking around. Seems its fairly easy to install a well (technically easy that is). You need a well point which is a sharp spike with a perforated body that you drive into the ground with a fence post driver, screw on a length of pipe and repeat until you are at the minimum depth (In my area its 25' for drinking water, less for irrigation). My state regs require the well casing to have a concrete pad a minimum of 1' out from the well casing and at least 4" thick, with the well casing being sealed to the concrete with proper sealant or asphalt.

From the sound of the WI DNR regs, I would need a permit, but not a license to put in a Well Point.  The Regs even have nice diagrams showing how to put one in  This would fall well within the means of a determined DIYer, just need about $100 worth of parts, a pitcher or hand pump, a saturday afternoon and a case of cold beer.

Hmm.  That's promising.

I wonder how deep the water table is around here.  25 feet sounds kinda shallow.

[sanglant]

must be nice to be in a free state. here if your in the city limits, you have to have a permit to do anything.