Maintaining Drinking Water Tanks

[Pblais]

If you choose to use chemical purification, you need to be aware of what your tank and other water delivery system parts are made of. Chlorine does not go well with stainless.

It trashes the hoses too. Chorine treatment based on the recomendations of Peggy Hall (of Head Mistress fame) is 8 oz of Clorox (household) bleach per 25 gallons of water or about 1 oz per 3 gallon. You fill the tank with this solution. You let it sit a few hours then open all faucets until you smell it coming out, then shut the facets off, then let is sit no longer than 24 hours. Then drain the water tank using all the faucets to purge all the lines. You might see stuff come out too.

To remove excess chlorine taste or odor which might remain, prepare a solution of one quart white vinegar to five gallons water and allow this solution to agitate in tank for several days. Then flush with clean water again.

You don't get better results by adding more chlorine. The idea is enough to do the job without trashing the tank or the plumbing.

[Chief Engineer]

Sorry, I don't do boat water.......Ya never know where it has been.

Unless it has been mad into "Tugboat Coffee/Tea/Oatmeal" first.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Pblais

... Chlorine treatment based on the recommendations of Peggy Hall (of Head Mistress fame) is 8 oz of Clorox (household) bleach per 25 gallons of water or about 1 oz per 3 gallon...

Peggy Hall has requested that her old “Marine Sanitation: Fact vs. Folklore” article be removed from several website’s, as it’s “woefully out of date”, but, nonetheless, remains available here:
the boatbuilding.community - Marine Sanitation: Fact vs. Folklore

[Sandero]

Our tanks are monel, but have no inspection port or access to clean them. In spring when at dockside I use some chlorox and flush the system out. But I imagine there is crap in there so we don't drink the water and for that we use bottled water. The 2 gallon jugs with a pop out spigot sits perfectly on the shelf above the gally sink.

We don't actually drink all that much water so this works out fine. We do use water for coffee, tea, pasta and rice and all those are boiled so were we to use the tanked water it is not all that harmful (I suspect).

The trouble with water systems is that if you don't use a lot of flow, things grow or have time to set up shop. And since boaters are stingy with water they are not flushing the system enough and being "wasteful". So by being frugal with this precious resource, they are creating the conditions for it to go south on them.

I am not frugal with water since it is free in the states dockside. I simply use as much as we need and fill up the tanks as needed. I use the motor time to run to and from the dock to run the refer and make some hot water and charge the batts. We're advised to run an "unloaded" diesel as little as possible so this protocol is a way of getting the refer, hot water, and batt recharge and fresh water without harming the diesel.

On the other hand when we don't have access to fresh water, such as passage making we revert to frugal mode, but then we are running the engine periodically for batt charging, motor sailing, and so forth.

I suppose that the key here it to have easy access to water and the ability to get your boat to it. Night time at gas docks seems to be a good time for that too, when no one is complaining that you are cutting into their businss.

[Pblais]

Peggy Hall has requested that her old “Marine Sanitation: Fact vs. Folklore” article be removed from several website’s, as it’s “woefully out of date”, but, nonetheless

She has her own forum now and still suggests the same trreatment.

Forum: The Head Mistress

[nautical62]

Let me amend my above - be careful what chemicals you use in your tank in more concentrated amounts to clean your tank. Higher concentrations of chlorine and stainless do not mix well. You can use iodine as a sanitizer for ss tanks.

[GordMay]

Thanks for the updated link to Peggy Hall, Paul.
I don't disagree with the advice, and only posted Peggy's "out of date" caution as fair warning.

[Stillraining]

Originally Posted by Pblais

Given they are only 10 microns and you need a filter of 0.2 microns it isn't that great. But what the heck if you can't see it it must be OK.

FWIW.


Drinking Water Systems

The SOLID CARBON BLOCK FILTER
and Its Advantages



The heart of the point-of-use systems is the highly compressed carbon block filter blended of selected activated carbons to adsorb chlorine and filter a wide range of organic materials. The filter media combines the technology of electrokinetic adsorption with mechanical straining for the removal and retention of impurities down to the submicron range.
Water is forced through the pores of the densely compacted carbon block, where a combination of mechanical filtration, electrokinetic adsorption, and physical/chemical adsorption takes place to reduce or eliminate a wide range of contaminants. Solid carbon block technology, unlike other forms of filtration/purification, can reduce chlorine, taste and odor problems, particulate matter, and a wide range of contaminants of health concern such as cysts (cryptosporidium and giardia lamblia), VOCs (pesticides, herbicides, and chemicals), certain endocrine disrupters, trihalomethanes (cancer causing disinfection by-products), heavy metals (lead, mercury), turbidity, and asbestos. Solid carbon block filters do not remove healthful, naturally-occurring minerals, require no electricity, and do not add salt or silver to the water, which provide for refreshing, delicious, and safer drinking water from your tap.

• Removes 100% of Chlorine
• Reduces a wide range of contaminants of health concern
• Microstrains physical matter down to sub micron range (0.5 micrometer)
• Tests and certified by NSF International to reduce contaminants being considered as established or potential health hazards
• Treated up to 500 Gallons of water; replacement filter can easily be changed
• Does not waste water
• No electricity required
• Does not remove trace minerals that are beneficial to good health
• Does not add salt or silver to the water
• Provides spring fresh, delicious drinking water

Advantages

• Filters do NOT remove healthful minerals
• Products come complete with all necessary hardware and materials for installation
• Easy low-cost filter replacement
• Product performance certified and registered in CA, CO, IA, MA & WI
• Uses an exclusive three-stage compressed activated carbon block filtering element (see above)
• Outstanding Customer Satisfaction Guarantees
  • 30 day money-back guarantee
  • 1 Year warranty on all accessories
  • 25 Year warranty on product housing
• Made of FDA approved materials
• Unrestricted flow design - source water pressure dependent
• NSF Tested and Certified to Standards 42 and 53
  • Chlorine and particulate matter
  • Cryptosporidium and Giardia
  • Trihalomethanes and Turbidity
  • Lead and Asbestos
  • Pesticides
  • Various volatile organic compounds
• Accepted for use aboard some interstate carriers

[Pblais]

The filter media combines the technology of electrokinetic adsorption with mechanical straining for the removal and retention of impurities down to the submicron range.

It's only a 10 micron filter! All magic aside it won't change what it can't deliver. A 10 micron filter can filter to submicron level? Sounds pretty much much magic to me. I wear glasses so maybe I'm more limited in my vision.

Please explain the magic of "electrokinetic adsorption". Must be pretty powerful stuff.

[AnchorageGuy]

Beside that the 500 gallon limit means using a bunch of filters. Don't know what these things cost. We have lived aboard for over 17 years, cook, drink and bath in the water from our tanks, which are 30 years old on our previous boat with no ill effects whatsoever. The new boat tanks are 28 years old and after a couple of months aboard, still no ill effects. Those tanks have been filled from a lot of different sources from even third world countries.

[dacust]

Originally Posted by Pblais

Please explain the magic of "electrokinetic adsorption". Must be pretty powerful stuff.

See this abstract on a symposium presentation about electrokinetic adsorption in charcoal filtering. Doesn't really explain it, but it does show it's at least a legitimate term.

-dan

[MidLandOne]

Originally Posted by dacust

See this abstract on a symposium presentation about electrokinetic adsorption in charcoal filtering. Doesn't really explain it, but it does show it's at least a legitimate term.

I personally wouldn't settle for any filter that uses anything less than meso-frequency traveling wave electro-kinetic adsorption myself. Electro-kinetic adsorption by itself just won't do the job .

[Stillraining]

OK.. OK guys ..yuck it up..I didnt invent the thing..

Just posted what I read.......at least I have one friend around here thanks Dan...

Boil away you scallywags...

Paul...where do you get this 10 micron limitation thingy from?

[PeteD]

Standard practise here in Oz is to chuck a couple of handfulls of baking soda into the tanks to get rid of the taste (after all the cleaning/chlorine etc). As someone else also said "use them!"

[dacust]

Originally Posted by Stillraining

....at least I have one friend around here thanks Dan...

Yeah, I got your back. BUT...

Originally Posted by MidLandOne

I personally wouldn't settle for any filter that uses anything less than meso-frequency traveling wave electro-kinetic adsorption myself. Electro-kinetic adsorption by itself just won't do the job .

I gotta admit that sounds pretty impressive. Meso-frequency traveling wave electro-kinetic adsorption has GOT to be better, 'cause it's so new I can't find that ANYWHERE on the internet...