How to Supply Clean Freshwater ? What Do You Use ?

[capt_douglas]

There seem to be two common choices: keep the gunk out of the tank; or keep the gunk out of the faucet.

If you've got multiple faucets that need drinking quality water then keeping the tank clean might be the way to go. If you've got a dedicated filtered faucet then the filter may be the way to go. Most folks seem to use Home Depot water filters and systems as the filters are cheaper and seem to have a higher cleaning capacity (particulate and carbon).

Having replaced my water tank for a non-repairable leak, I was amazed at the gunk inside. If I jerry jug water, I use a small pump to transfer the contents through an external filter assembly (cheap and easy to do). If I'm on the dock, then I definitely run the water through the filter as I've had less than pleasant smelling water come out of the hose.

If I'm looking to collect rainwater, I'll wait for the rain to wash the skies clean (depending on the intensity, 5-10 minutes) and get the salt off the deck or whatever you use to collect rain water. Many cruisers will dump the contents into jugs, bucket, or containers then transfer the contents to the fresh water tank. Other cruisers have rigged their deck fittings to allow water to either go overboard or into the fresh water tank.

In almost every case, though, cruisers add a cup of bleach to the fresh water tank when they fill.