Water storage and purification?

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Hi

Me Again!!!! Can i ask for a expedition how much water and were and how do people store there water on the landys? And what do you use to purify the water?

[Snagger]

I use an MoD 20L water can, similar to a Jerrycan, stored in one of the side Jerrycan lockers. Being opaque black, it prevents any light entering the can, and so inhibits mould, algae and bacterial growth. The camping suppliers normally stock translucent white cans, which while they allow easy visual checks on the content levels, allow these "nasties" to grow rapidly. Draining down and replenishing from a clean source every few days is sufficient, but I carry puritabs in case I can't replace the water as often as I'd like.

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Hi

I have looking into the black nato water carriers and they look good but you can only get 1 in a side locker and not 2 as i had hoped.

[Geobloke]

People like Allisport (http://www.allisport.com/) do water carriers for Land Rovers, but they seem to be updating their website at the moment and none of the links are working!

[Snagger]

Hi

I have looking into the black nato water carriers and they look good but you can only get 1 in a side locker and not 2 as i had hoped.You can fit two in the Wolf or Foley type carriers with the bevelled doors. If you have the older MoD 110 style lockers like me, you can stamp on one side of a fuel can to make it concave, and then fit one fuel can and one water can in the locker. This would decrease the fuel can's capacity to something in the order of 18L, and could be duplicated for the other side. I did this to carry three fuel cans and one water, before my rebuild (which included triple fuel tanks and modified can lockers to increase the tub floor space).

[Swingletree]

If you budget for 10 Litres per person per day, You'll be able to get by. That will include a wash and enough to drink in hot hot hot places. That quantity needs to go up or down depending on workload, dehydrated rations, acclimatisation etc and don't forget to premix your spare coolant.

As for purification, puritabs are good but make the water taste gopping and aren't 100% safe. An activated charcoal filter or similar then puritabs is reckoned to be one of the best methods but the filters only last for a while then need renewing.

If your not confident of the source of your water, filter, boil and puritab it.

There's nowt worse than when your trousers go crusty brown in the heat, you can't drink faster than your losing it and no-one wants to be your friend anymore! :D

[Cannonball Bob]

For purification use puritabs, iodine or even a few drops of plain bleach (about a teaspoon in a jerry can). All depends how kacky the water is to start with and although it takes some getting used to, unless you use the boil method, water will have a slight swimming-pool taste once purified. That's a good thing though. Means all the amoeba and single cell organisms are dead.

[Marc Lurie]

I have a 65 litre heavy-walled plastic tank in the back. Before a trip I fill it with water, throw in 750ml of household bleach, leave it overnight, then rinse it out twice before filling it with fresh drinking water.

The 65 litres will stay perfectly drinkable for at least 10 days, probably a lot longer.

Brigid and I usually carry a case (12 x 1.5 litre) of bottled water as well as the 65 litre tank, and we buy water wherever we can just in case. I'd rather get home with a half-full water tank than run out of water in the Namibian desert ;)

I have found that bottled water is available somewhere in virtually all towns and cities in sub-Saharan Africa, so unless you're in the bush, water is available from somewhere. I've never been in any situation where I have been unable to buy potable water for more than three or four days.

My experience has shown that I need at least 3 litres per day just for drinking. and a cursory wash can be done with about 3 litres (face, hands, underarms, b@lls with soap). A decent wash takes 6 litres or more.

Cooking doesn't use as much water as I expected, unless you're doing starches like rice, potatoes, pasta etc.

[Grizzly / Alex]

i've got 57 liters in the car and i have used a waterfilter " http://www.compass24.com/watersports/abnetshop.pl?ARTNR=135610 " in maroc andit worked grat aspecially when you consider that my wife has crohn diseasse

[mowog]

Its generally considered to be safer to take several seperate containeres for water rather than rely on one big tank. Two reasons 1 in case of contamination, 2 in case of a leak .
I use four of the ex mod black plastic jerrys . A useful aside is if you stick one on the roof rack in the sun it soon gets nice and warm, saves heating time , and I made a little adapter that screws on with a water can rose to have a nice warm shower, you can regulate the flow with the amount you release the other cap:D JMHO