Best container to transport water?

[CC58]

The 5 gallon plastic jerry cans get bad reviews about leaks.  The higher quality ones are very expensive. 

Homedepot has a 5 gallon water container by Coleman but not sure of it's quality.

Homedepot has 5 gallon buckets and Leaktite screw on lid with rubber gaskets.

What is the best solution to transporting water in 5 gallon containers?  :huh:

 

[user 423]

The Coleman 5 gall. jug I've had for years is of good quality. Maybe the newer ones are of lesser quality?

I also have an Aqua-tainer 7 gall. that it is decent (Walmart).

They also have 6 gall. jugs by Coleman and Ozark Trail.

I didn't like the Coleman (cap threads were flakey) so I returned it and got an Ozark Trail. Haven't tried it yet.

 

[iamk]

[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]I use[/font][font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif] [/font][font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]waterbrick[/font][font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif].[/font]

[video=youtube]

[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]I have several of their 3.5 gallon size in translucent blue. I like them because they stack flat and interlock with one another, and they fit perfectly under all of the desert water kiosks when filling.[/font]

[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]They are very rugged. I have dropped them a few times when loading into the van and they do not break or leak.[/font]

When stowed they've always stayed put and not leaked despite having gone down some pretty rough washboard roads.

I also have one of their 1.6 gallon green foodbricks for pet food, which are airtight and keeps the kibble fresh.

 

[tx2sturgis]

> The higher quality ones are very expensive. 


>What is the best solution to transporting water in 5 gallon containers? 

Kinda confused...do you want cheap, or do you want the best?

Gonna be hard to have both of those features in one product. 

Rotopax products are very high quality. They are not cheap.

Ozark Trail and Reliance Aquatainer are typical cheap water totes that are fairly good quality.

 

[SheepDog]

http://lexingtoncontainercompanysonlinestore.mybigcommerce.com/military-water-can/

I’ve used their fuel cans a lot more often than their water cans, but they’re both well made of a very sturdy material.  I bought the black ones per recommendation of a long distance sailor who mentioned that the black kept out the light and minimized the grown of funky stuff!

SD

 

[MrNoodly]

I use several cheap 1-gallon jugs. Buy water at the store, get a free reusable jug. (Or, if you want to look at it the other way around, pay a buck or so for a reusable gallon jug and get free water with it.) And because they're smaller than multi-gallon containers, I can fit them in various nooks in the van. And because they're small they're easy to use. They eventually wear out, but then you can use them for other things by cutting a larger opening.

I bought two 7-gallon jugs before I built out my van. I immediately realized I didn't have room for two of them, so I left it at the home of the friend where I was preparing my van. Once out on the road I realized seven gallons was a lot to lug around, and I was always transferring water to easier to handle containers. So I gave that jug away at RTR. Haven't regretted at all.

 

[trailer-t]

I have 3 of these 2.5 gallon plastic jugs (Walmart) with spigots full in my Suburban pretty much all the time. They are thin, but I have never had an issue.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Arrow-H2...MIoJOf0Pa26QIVD_DACh3d6QB_EAQYAiABEgK2RPD_BwE

 

[MotorVation]

I have two of the Reliance 7 gallon containers and one of the 2.5 containers that trailer-t added a link to. I pour my water into the 2.5 and use it from there. It's a lot easier to handle. I'll put the link to the 7 gallon below. No complaints with the Reliance but I travel with them upright or they seep a little from the breather hole plug


Walmart 7 gallon

 

[desert_sailing]

Thanks for the thread!

I was wondering if the plastic containers give an off taste to drinking water. For drinking water do you use bottles, a stainless container a special type of plastic jug?

A Berkey would be great but maybe  that will have to wait for the next round of covid cash??.

 

[iamk]

I was wondering if the plastic containers give an off taste to drinking water. For drinking water do you use bottles, a stainless container a special type of plastic jug?

The waterbricks do not give off a taste, and I use them only for drinking water.

 

[trailer-t]

The clear plastic 2.5 g walmart above don't give any off any taste. I do drain and replace the water every month or so since I don't use all that much water camping-- I'm not a full timer.

 

[desert_sailing]

This is what we used while doing most of the build out. I didn't notice any plastic taste. I don't know if just because it doesn't have a plastic taste if they are bpa free?... Is it a law now that all water containers be safe for human consumption?

I guess I better do some research before I start buying a bunch of stuff.

Those watercubes are pretty nifty. I love how they stack efficiently.  Thanks for the info on them.  I wouldn't mind a couple for food staples as well.

 

[trailer-t]

I just drained mine and refilled. Thanks for the post--It reminded me my water is from like March. I have very limited space
and these fit in the right places. As an additional observation the 2.5 gallon jugs will leak if stored upright with the big hole on the side (as opposed to on the top).
I get no leaks from the spigots on my 3 with the spigot in normal pouring position.

t

 

[MrNoodly]

I was wondering if the plastic containers give an off taste to drinking water. 

Most water I've gotten, whether from homes, parks, stores, machines, wells, springs or whatever, have an off taste of some kind.

 

[desert_sailing]

Most water I've gotten, whether from homes, parks, stores, machines, wells, springs or whatever, have an off taste of some kind.

Thats what you get for living in the city!


jk.

 

[VanForNow]

I have a recommendation for containers to avoid: those flexible/collapsible plastic ones. They sound good in theory, since when empty they take up little room.

In practice, however, I have found them to be prone to punctures, rendering them worthless, since repairing the punctures is difficult to impossible. Their plastic screw-on spouts often leak as well, even before the punctures occur.

But the thick-walled, non-collapsible plastic containers are more reliable, as are their screw-on spouts. I prefer the containers made of translucent plastic, since it is easy to check their water level when filling them.

 

[crofter]

I use recycled containers. Inside the van I have 5 or 6 gallon recycled cider jugs that I use for drinking water. In the van garage I carry some rinsed 5 gallon buckets that had laundry soap in them. They have a smaller pour spout. This is my utility water for bathing, putting out the campfire, etc. I also carry  a case of bottled water etc for drinking.
-crofter

 

[crofter]

Most water I've gotten, whether from homes, parks, stores, machines, wells, springs or whatever, have an off taste of some kind.

Or in other words, it's great to be on top of the turf. You might have to start drinking something other than water now.
-crofter

 

[user 423]

I have 3 of these 2.5 gallon plastic jugs (Walmart) with spigots. full in my Suburban pretty much all the time.  They are thin, but I have never had an issue.

Yes, they are pretty light duty. I had a 2-gallon version that was used just for purified drinking water refills.

It was dropped with about a quart of water in it and shattered. Now I just use the 1 gallon milk jugs.

 

[Dingfelder]

Regarding using random plastic containers for water, I'd be careful. In restaurants, bakeries, etc., even often in seed-growing flats, they use plastic specifically certified as "food-safe." I figure there must be a reason and higher standard. And considering the many things plastic can be made out of, using only food-safe plastics seems very wise to me, even if it costs, literally, vastly more.