Water - justifying a watermaker

[MarkJ]

Ummm, I better mention the other bit about having a water maker.... voyages.... we have done a 20 day, an 18 day and a coupla shorter ones... without a watermaker that meant 20 days without a shower.... and 18 days without a shower... actually it was more than 20 dyas because when we arrived we couldnt get water for 4 days so we were in town smelling like, ummm, well not good, for 4 days!
Now, being a blokey-bloke I can do without a shower for a while - in fact I reckon I smell better! But Nicolle disagrees!

Washing clothes on restricted water is a hassel.

Washing dishes is a pain in the neck with 1 inch of water in the bottom of the sink.

After spray has coated the deck a few buckets of fresh would be a luxury! Fresh water keeps the damp air at bay as it evaporates where salty water hangs around.



All the best

Mark

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by funsailthekeys

The price of water in the Bahamas is crazy. Water and electricity is half of the marina bill. hope this helps.

Actually water is readily available in the Exumas and free if you know where to go. Good RO water too.

[Cheechako]

A Water maker is very convenient for sure. Just use a lot of water and your maintenance should be minimal. Buy a unit with minimal elelctronic controls, keep it simple and understand how it works. Theres nothing like a fresh water rinse when you get out of the water or when there's no wind and your dripping with sweat!

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Vasco

Actually water is readily available in the Exumas and free if you know where to go. Good RO water too.

I note that have you haven't shared any local knowledge about "where to go" for free R/O water.
May we might assume that, what may be possible for the few; may be impossible for the many?

[Auspicious]

Originally Posted by GordMay

I note that have you haven't shared any local knowledge about "where to go" for free R/O water. May we might assume that, what may be possible for the few; may be impossible for the many?

In George Town, you can get free water at the tap on the Lake Victoria dinghy dock behind the Exuma Market grocery.

[AnchorageGuy]

we have used the water at the dinghy dock and sometimes it is OK and sometimes it isn't. Another plus for having a watermaker. Availability is not always the issue but quality many times is. The worst water we found in the Bahamas was at a marine in Nassau and it was not drinkable and loaded with salt water.

[Janice]

Thanks all! I just needed a little oush.

Janice
sailacious.com

[swagman]

Hi Janice,
I think you made the right choice.
FWIW we always checked our water for parts per million (PPM) before filling tanks and as a guage, UK tap water measures in our location around 230 ppm. Evian from the bottle tends to measures around 100 ppm.
Our water from various Caribbean marinas last year ranged between 360 to 550ppm - and whilst dirt as measured in PPM is not bacteria - the more one goes up the scale the worse it tends to taste.
Our simple Pure 80E (and we've had no issues in 3 years of virtually constant use) still gives water measuring around 150 ppm - almost to the Evian quality.
Plus we showered each day on our Atlantic crossing..........
Worth it.
JOHN

[Vasco]

On our trip from Miami to the Exumas we try not to take on water at Nassau. Nassau water is hit and miss depending on the state of the reservoir as the water is shipped in from Andros and sometimes the tanker is laid up. The water in Georgetown is excellent RO water. In the old days the water there was questionable but for the last few years it's been excellent. Good RO water. Another spot where good RO water is available is Black Point. There is also good cistern water at Normans Cay. So there's plenty of water in the Exumas. In addition you can buy RO water in many marinas in the Bahamas, usually about fifty cents a gallon.

[Tellie]

Originally Posted by Janice

Thanks all! I just needed a little oush.

Janice
sailacious.com

Once the initial sting passes you'll be happy you have one. Which type did you buy?