Purified water ?

[Matlock]

Early on I chose carrying bottles of water for drinking and cooking and a couple 5 gal containers of city water for washing up. This may or may not be the best option available. My boondocking is a week to 10 days at a time and I'm not hiking or climbing anymore, just out in the sticks.

Even though the "tap" water has been treated in say, Houston or Tampa, that does not mean I'll easily process their filtering results. (and I don't expect different results with a glass of sweet tea with my meal in any city).

I believe a reusable filter for cooking and drinking water from any water tap might be easier than what I'm using.

Current cost is $38 a month for bottles and a few dollars for tap water.

So I started with a search here and found this ...
In 2017 VanKitten started a thread .....
https://vanlivingforum.com/showthread.php?tid=26089&highlight=water+purifier

So what is your process, equipment and do you chill that water in the hot month's?

 

[B and C]

I just use one of those blue water filters when I fill up my fresh water tank (35 gal) and a 7 gal blue water tote (for spare capacity). This lasts me at least two weeks for everything. I do not drink chilled water as it has to be sipped to not get brain freeze. When I am thirsty, I chug-a-lug. I have a 42 Oz thermos that I fill at least twice daily to make sure I am drinking enough water (+ 12 cups of coffee) and more water if in really dry climates. My beer on the other hand...

 

[Almost There]

I don't differentiate between drinking water and 'other use' water. I simply carry about 10 gallons of water in 1 gallon jugs that I get, usually, from the blue 'drinking water' kiosks or the glacier water machines. Fortunately both my sons' home and the campground I stay in during the summer are on wells so I never need to have to drink 'city water'. When the house gets hooked up to city services this summer we'll have to start hauling water from a nearby spring!

I have 2 'milk crate' style totes from Home Depot that I can store 4 gallons each in. When a jug gets starting to look grungy on the outside I re-purpose if for use in my C-Head toilet to replace an even grungier looking one there...  

I quit using the individual bottles of water a long, long time ago. Aside from the higher cost I consider the disposable plastic to be ecologically wrong. I drink water all day from an insulated hot/cold mug that keeps my water cool far longer than it takes me to drink it. I don't drink coffee and only seldom do I make a mug of tea. Hot summer weather has not been a problem since I'm in AZ in winter and at almost 5,000 ft during the summer. I can only wish for weather hot enough to make me need to refrigerate water.

 

[Dingfelder]

I sure do like my Berkey filter. I have a PUR water pitcher and use that too, on some of the water, before pouring it into the Berkey next. This is even though I have tap water, because the taste of that is so foul even my dog doesn't want to drink it. He'll come up to the bowl, sniff it, and walk away.

 

[jacqueg]

Question - how do you secure/mount/store your Berkey when you are driving?

So far, only idea I have is to use a milk crate and bungee cords. Surely there is a more elegant idea?

 

[Dingfelder]

Do you have a table with a post holding it up? That would make things easier.

 

[jacqueg]

Do you have a table with a post holding it up? That would make things easier.

No, I use a folding TV table. Which is folded up most of the time.

 

[Matlock]

The Berkey filter system probably works best just takes awhile to filter.
They do remove both chemical and bacteria and that's the whole point.

I've use a Pur and Zero brand home filter for tap water I've filled up with on the road. Those only filter most of the lead and a couple bad chemicals like chlorine, but isn't good for the bacteria your unaccustomed to drinking. Montezuma's revenge type stuff from almost any-city USA. Your fine if you live there but traveling through means you (I) need to buy bottled or treat really well.

I do recycle the 12 oz. bottles at any medium to large grocery store including Walmarts and I used to refill from the Glacier machines when available. Much cheaper @ $1.25 for 5 gallons. The last time made me ill so I'm off that brand or at least the refill station in Asheville NC.

Anyway, thanks for the replies...

 

[lenny flank]

I quit using the individual bottles of water a long, long time ago. Aside from the higher cost I consider the disposable plastic to be ecologically wrong. 

I am precisely the opposite: I always get my drinking water in Fiji bottles, because the bottles themselves are reusable. The square shape means they fit more tightly in my backpack's pocket and are less likely to slide out, the bottle itself is made from thicker plastic that is less likely to split or get crunched when half-empty, and I can refill a bottle for at least a month at any convenient fountain before it starts getting grungy--then replace it with a new one that costs virtually nothing.

For cooking and washing, I just get one-gallon jugs from the Walmart.

 

[bigskybob]

I use only rain water.I have 5 275 gal water tanks and 1 in. of rain will fill them.I have a diy berky filter using crushed charcoal to purify it.