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Old 27-01-2021, 22:42   #31
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

I don't for a second doubt that silver in the water kills bacteria, but what I do wonder is if it is strong enough to work then what it does it do to the good bacteria in one's stomach ?
It surely isn't selective in the bugs it kills..............
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Old 28-01-2021, 04:12   #32
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

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Originally Posted by wefleenor View Post
... Much of the literature posted above has little to do with the use of colloidal silver and its treatment of drinking water...
... On my boat I use chlorine with filters that include carbon to remove the chlorine for drinking and cooking purposes. I carry a 30ml bottle of colloidal silver when hiking case I ever get caught and need to treat local water sources...
Can you recommend a specific colloidal silver product, or give enough detailed information to select an appropriate generic product?
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Old 28-01-2021, 04:43   #33
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

Ive read the first page of replies.
I noticed that no one mentioned carbon filter on the dock hose .
I remove dock hose and use my own hose . I attach a canco carbon or charcoal filter on the end entering the filler fitting..

You have no idea what has been brewing in that fill hose while it’s sitting on the docks.

Colloidal silver is safe.
Search the web for the ‘history of silver ‘.
Learn about the reason for silverware and silver tea sets etcetera.
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Old 28-01-2021, 05:29   #34
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

What could go wrong?

https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/argyria-overview
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Old 28-01-2021, 09:31   #35
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

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Originally Posted by tamicatana View Post
What could go wrong?

https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/argyria-overview
Webmd is a left hand of the big pharma imho.
Fear mongers , but not for the supplements they recommend !

Seven reported incidents in four years.

http://www.silvermedicine.org/argyria-cases.php
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Old 28-01-2021, 12:28   #36
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

On our last boat, we used silvered vinyl tubing when we couldn't use PEX. Usually the last foot or two or something like that. Keeps the bugs and algae from growing on the inside of the tubing. It was expensive but gave us piece of mind.

Also (and we do this on our current boat) we use silvered water filters, specifically the Pentek SCBC-10.
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Old 28-01-2021, 16:20   #37
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

Research has proven: Not one single boat that has added silver to their tank water has EVER been attacked by vampires. Must be good.

All this "need" to try to make tank water some version of "sterile" is laughable. If you keep pathogens out of the tank, the water is safe to drink, and stays that way.

How do you keep pathogens out? It is very easy: Don't take on water than might be contaminated with poop. We do that by using only RO water into the tanks. If you need to take on local water from dubious sources, chlorine is the gold standard for treatment.

The rest of this is silver-plated nonsense. But if you are into it, have fun. I have some prime real estate in Florida to sell you.

I drink tank water every day. I have for 20 years. Never done ANYTHING except occasionally cleaned the tank. Never cleaned a hose, they never get dirty, unless they are in the sun. And guess what, if they get green, the biggest problem is if it peels off and clogs up the works.

Seriously, just put a 10 micron filter on your tank water and enjoy it. Find a real problem to worry about.
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Old 28-01-2021, 17:37   #38
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

Actually I never recommended its use on a boat. I think chlorine with a carbon filter to remover the chlorine for drinking and cooking is the best idea.

First one would need to be sure they were actually receiving colloidal silver and not some ionic solution of chloride or nitrate.

The only product I have personally used and tested is SilverDyne. It comes in a 30 ml bottle of 36 ppm concentration. It takes a single drop ( I used 2 drops in the highly turbid water of Africa) per liter of water. A single drop is 0.05 ml. It takes 60 minutes to deactivate bacteria, but 24 hours to have any effect on viruses.
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Old 29-01-2021, 02:32   #39
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

I've been using colloidal silver on our boat for the past +/- 10 years with great results. Before I came to know colloidal silver I was using various chlorine products with very poor results for over 20 years.

Here's the story. I went to check out my actual boat which had been sitting on the hard for 1.5 years. The water tanks were full and had been sitting for all this time. I opened a faucet and expected the good ol' rotten egg smell. Instead, to my great surprise, NO smell at all! HUH???
I asked the PO what the heck of a product he had used to sterilize the water. He pulled that tiny plastic bottle out of a locker and showed it to me. Colloidal silver. Since then I'm using nothing else than the colloidal silver to treat the water in my tanks.

Someone asked for typical product.

This: https://www.yachticon.de/en/drinking-water.html

Aqua Clean is sold as a liquid or as a solid / powder. Since it's way less expensive, I've tried to use the powder but it is too difficult to get the right dose for the relatively small tanks a typical leisure boat has. The big container is good for 50'000 L! One would need a high precision scale which I do not have.

While the liquid (that would be the small bottle on the left in the picture in the link) is more expensive, it is much easier to use. The 100 ml bottle is good for 1000 L of water.

Back then I did my "due duty research" and found that Colloidal silver works on many more different bacteria types than chlorine thus it is more efficient and in LOW concentrations it is not harmful for the human body.

With this said, we use our tank water for cooking, coffee, eventually drink it (Most often it's bottled water for us but that's another story). The water without any filtration does never smell and has no particular taste even after a couple years in the tank. Try this with chlorine!

Another point to address in the "debate" chlorine VS colloidal silver is how the boat is used. As long as the water comes from any at least reasonable clean municipal water source and is not stored for a "long" time in the tanks the smell problem does not develop. If we take the water on board and start / continue to use it the different bacteria families do not have the time to grow. A live aboard will likely never even develop the smell problem. In fact, during our vacation cruises where we use water from the tanks daily, I do not add the silver as long as the water source seems OK.
(Back then, I wouldn’t add chlorine in the scenario either.) If in doubt about the water quality, I add the silver.

Another story is when the water is stored in the tank(s) for long(er) periods of time. Like a lot of people like me who fill up the tanks and then use it (only) over the weekends. In my case, since we have learned over the years to save water, it can take us 3 months before we need to fill up again. Water sitting in a tank for three months or even more, eventually in the summer heat, anything chlorine will be evaporated in a few days and the stink starts. NOT so with the colloidal silver!

Is the silver expensive? Yes indeed it is, BUT in my case I use a couple of these tiny bottles (at most) in a year. At that point, in the grand scheme of the boat bucks the expense is not even worth to mention.

I hope this helps a bit understanding the difference between chlorine and silver tank-water treatment.

Loredo

PS since I could not use the big powder bottle for my tanks I decided to try it in the pool. Since then, no more chlorine in the pool either.

PS-2 if the water stinks in the boat and you start using the silver, give it a couple months and it'll kill the bacteria. No need to clean anything just let the "silver-water" sit and it does its thing on its own. Reports from several friends confirmed it.
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Old 01-02-2021, 06:30   #40
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

Disinfect the hoses with bleach. Then flush. No need to use chlorine or silver in the tank.
(Make a bleach solution in a bucket, about a cup/gallon. Disconnect hose from pump and use tubing to the bucket. Fill lines with bleach solution, leave it for a few hours, then flush well with fresh water. Do this at least yearly. )
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Old 01-02-2021, 06:38   #41
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

Hi, we have been using silverballs for years and years. Never a problem. Well known for keeping water fresh and clean. We als use charcoal filter for extra security abd better taste. We use our boat 6 months during the year and except for this crazy covid season, the boat is never more than 2 months alone. https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcROa0Ol8uKvVgYbMCWHpyhlyg_q6XUm6 aVkBA&s
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Old 01-02-2021, 06:41   #42
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

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Originally Posted by altinr View Post
Disinfect the hoses with bleach. Then flush. No need to use chlorine ...

Chlorine is a gas.

"Bleach" is Sodium hypochlorite, one of he most common ways chlorine is used in liquid form.

http://www.hydroinstruments.com/file...lorination.pdf

/M
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Old 01-02-2021, 06:42   #43
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

All water in the US is already chlorinated, as far as I know, so it isn’t necessary to add more chlorine, or anything else, unless you are going to store it for a long time, perhaps. Maybe time to replace hoses?
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Old 01-02-2021, 07:03   #44
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

Pick your method of chlorine flush for tank and lines. I use bottled water for drinking and coffee. Easily carried enough while single handing for a month and it increased my fresh water capacity. Carried a Brita pitcher in case needed, but didn't need it. I would consider the Brita for all drinking for ease of use and maintenance.
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Old 01-02-2021, 07:28   #45
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Re: Silver in the water tank?

Must say that of all solutions posted here, i didn’t find our very very simple, healthy and inexpensive solution to the bad smell. When our tanks are almost empty we put 2 or 3 liters of inexpensive household vinegar in and fill the tanks halfway. We let this sit for some hours and then we flush by opening all taps in the boat. After the flush we simply refill with water. We do this once a season and never ever had any bad smell in our water anymore
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