Drinking water on old boats?

[Rockinar]

What does everyone do for drinking water on old boats with questionable water tanks that probably have an ecosystem growing in them? 5 gallon water jugs? Drink it anyways?

[Sailmonkey]

Clean the tanks.

Our boat is 45 years old, as is the water tank. The water tastes great.

[Lepke]

Mine is 79 years old. But the water tanks are only about 53.
It's not hard to clean and keep clean water tanks.

[Sam Woodbridge]

I think he or she is asking. How should one know if drinking water is safe to drink on a older boat new to them? Or how to clean a older water tank with smelly water.

[Rockinar]

To clear things up, I just bought a 1993 Island Packet. Water tank are aluminum and installed under the floors. There's not really a way to clean them and I doubt anyone else did since 1993. Theres no way the water in them taste like bottled Evian. Might be good for cooking and showers. Not sure Id drink from it.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by Rockinar

To clear things up, I just bought a 1993 Island Packet. Water tank are aluminum and installed under the floors. There's not really a way to clean them and I doubt anyone else did since 1993. Theres no way the water in them taste like bottled Evian. Might be good for cooking and showers. Not sure Id drink from it.

I’ve never owned an island packet, but if you look carefully, there should be an access panel to allow you to inspect and clean the tank.

I don’t remember if you can shock treat an aluminum tank with bleach but that’s the way to go if so.

Also, a good water filter goes a long way to making tank water fine to drink and taste good.

[rslifkin]

Figure out how to access those aluminum tanks. If they've been bleached or had chlorinated city water put in them, they're eventually going to corrode through, leak, and need replacement.

[Frankly]

The IP tanks (aluminum era) are baffled and the only access is typically where the level gauge is located. Because they are essentially built in just not much you can do. Adding chlorine can create some real issues that can lead to tank failure.

What I have found over the years is the odor/ taste originates in the hoses. Chlorine and water mix left overnight will typically eliminate this. Typically just remove the hose from the tank pickup, mix up 5 gallons of light bleach water, and use the normal water pump to flush the system. Leave it overnight and next day do a really good flush of the system (this is to save the aluminum water heater).

I do this so routinely that I have a small 3 way valve at the tank pickup with a short length of tubing to make filling the system easy.

Years back (not knowing what I was facing with "water wherever"), I added a small polyethylene tank in the laz connected to the manual pump. Typically this is out drinking water and I chlorinate this system (tank and all) every year and every few years remove it for a real cleaning. This has worked out pretty well for us.

Think you will be surprised how much the water will improve if you do the hoses on your IP.


Frankly

[Rohan]

Originally Posted by Frankly

... Adding chlorine can create some real issues that can lead to tank failure.

What I have found over the years is the odor/ taste originates in the hoses. Chlorine and water mix left overnight will typically eliminate this.

I'm confused - you just said that adding chlorine can create real issues, then you recommend adding chlorine.

[BillKny]

We have a 26 year old boat with a 1000 l fiberglass potable water tank. It has been cleaned. We opened it up for the first time a week ago as part of another project. A very light layer of brown slime on the walls, not worth the time and effort to clean.

The tank receives only RO water.

It is, and will remain, our only source of drinking water.

[Frankly]

Originally Posted by Rohan

I'm confused - you just said that adding chlorine can create real issues, then you recommend adding chlorine.

The water hose system not the tank.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by Rohan

I'm confused - you just said that adding chlorine can create real issues, then you recommend adding chlorine.

Chlorine in the hoses, not the aluminum tank.

[CaptTom]

A small amount of chlorine, like from the city water supply, probably won't hurt the tank. I've read but don't recall the scientific details, but I can say I've never had a problem. I've even added a small amount of bleach overnight, then flushed well the next day. I have no problem drinking the water from my 41-year-old tank.

Aluminum oxide will show up as a whitish sand-like material in your faucet screens. You should of course take the screens all off and check/clean them occasionally anyway. A bit of "sand" isn't unusual if the screens haven't been cleaned for a long time or the water system has been sitting unused. The best thing for it is to use it; keep cycling fresh water through.

[HeinSdL]

An inspection hatch should be possible right? I installed a second one on my stainless steel water tank at the end which was not reachable for cleaning. Very happy I did that, can keep the tank in good shape.

(Surprisingly my diesel tank does not have an inspection hatch at all and is completely built in. This annoys me so to compensate I installed a polishing system, so far so good.)

[TrentePieds]

It doesn't take very long at all for chlorine (bleach) to kill any organisms in the tank. That deals with the health issue.

It doesn't take very long to fill the tank, then immediately drain it and fill it with fresh potable water. And to drain and fill a second time, then a third time, and a fourth, and a fifth. That deals with both the "taste" issue and the "potential corrosion of tank" issue since there will be no chemically active chlorine left in the tank.

As for hoses - why bother to clean them? Just install new ones.

TrentePieds