Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

48Rob wrote:After a season or two, the possibility exists that something has been growing in that moist environment in the off season.
And of course there is always the chance that something crawled in...


Rob

EWWWWWWWwwwwwwwwwww.......good point! hahahaha

Miriam C. wrote:I also take a gal. well marked, with a 1/4 cup of bleach for disinfecting things and hands.

Miriam

Hi Miriam, That's an idea that appeals to me and mine. Save's buying those expensive commercial brands. Wonder why we had'nt thought of that

Cheers
Paul

hijack
Paul, you've obviously never fished in a place where the water may not be fit to drink. Just pulling up the top on a water bottle, (to say nothing of eathing) can make ya real sick. You don't need a 1/4 cup to gal. but that is what I use. Took me a few times to figure out what was making me sick. You don't expect it to be your sealed water bottle.

Lecture over,
Aunti M

48Rob wrote:Julie,When they're new, the blue containers make the water taste like plastic?

Put the juice of a lemon in with the first 5 or 6 fills of water. It'll cut that plastic taste in no time. Tastes good too!

I make sure that after one of our camping trips, I loosen the cap to allow air in (after I dumped out the water) to insure no mold grows, or bugs crawl in. When I'm ready to use the water jug again, I thoroughly rinse it out with a little bit of bleach.

old-timer's tip:
Hot water plus lemonade Kool-Aid (the original unsweetened kind) is a great disinfectant that's far less toxic than bleach water. (It's the citric acid.) I have uncles who were 'Nam vets who swear it makes the Mekong okay to drink. Haven't tried that myself, though.

The general survival rule of thumb I've found is having 1 gallon per person per day for drinking... and additional water for washing, etc.

Not mentioned so far in this thread is weight. Water weighs about 8 lbs per gallon. Or eight pounds per person per day, if you prefer. The 7 gallon Aquatainers hold about 56 lbs of water. One container provides minimum drinking water needs for 2 people for 3 days, plus 1 gallon for other purposes.

My Crocodile Tear has one Aquatainer, room for more on extended trips. However, my wife can't lift it when it is full. See the album for pix of the Aquatainer in the galley, over a dishpan sink.

For a three-day hike, without trailer, I can carry 3 gallons of water in four 3-liter plastic soda pop bottles. I always look at those full, heavy bottles, sigh, and bring them anyway. If I empty and refill one on the hike, I put a rubber band around the neck so I know to use it last. It will still get its 4 drops of Clorox bleach for purification, but why take chances? An Aquatainer can be bungeed to an old golf cart (with plywood floor added) to bring water for two along on a trek.

One rule about the rule of thumb... 'taint necessarily so! I remember a large guy on a Nevada trail marking trip who went through three gallons in one afternoon. Drank it in, sweated it out! I remember one wee woman who drank half a gallon in the same heat. Know thyself and thine own water needs. More water needed with kids, elderly, sick... and LOTS for tots who aren't housebroken. And please, remember the dog!

BTW, the personal test for having enough water is watching the color of your urine. The yellower it gets, the more water you need to be drinking. Drink even if you don't feel thirsty.