Like any food product, fresh clean water has a shelf life. Bottled water in a 5 gallon jug sealed at the factory will last about 2 years. Like food, you should keep stored water air tight and in a dark, cool place to maximize shelf life... no air, no light, no heat.
If you have water that is old or of an unknown condition, you have the following options that will purify it.
1. Boiling - heat water to a full boil for at least 1 minute to sterilize. (This method does not address any chemical pollutants or particulate matter.)
2. Add bleach. Known chemically as sodium hypochlorite, add 4 drops of regular chlorine bleach (unscented) per quart of water. Double that if dirty water. (Try to filter dirty water with a coffee filter first to remove particles.) Shake or stir well and wait 30 minutes. A very slight bleach smell is OK. ( Or you can buy chlorine dioxide tablets made by Katadyne under the name Micropur MP1.
3. Filter it in a Berkey filter or similar quality filtering system. A filter that is labeled as a "purifier" must be certified to remove protozoa, viruses, and bacteria. But not all purifiers are equal in quality and effectiveness.
4. Iodine tablets. You can buy these under the tradenames of Globaline, Portable-Agua, or Coghland's Iodine tablets.
5. UV sterilization using the "SteriPEN." This device requires batteries.
A note on bleach:
Bleach also has a shelf life. After 6 months to a year stored bleach will have lost its original effectiveness. If your bleach is 2 or 3 years old, you can't depend on it to purify your water as in the directions above. To always have fresh bleach, make your own!
How to make your own bleach any time using plain water and calcium hypochlorite powder. Buy it at a pool store, sports store, or pharmacy. It is sold as "Pool Shock 68%" for maintaining swimming pools. Professional pool cleaners use this. (Most retail stores will carry the 48% strength only so you may need to search several stores.)
Caution: this chemical is dangerous. You must do some additional research first! (search online, e.g., YouTube for how- to videos) If uncertain, do not attempt to mix this compound.
Directions: one part calcium hypochlorite to 100 parts water will make the bleach you need. This is one-half heaping teaspoon into one gallon of water. Screw down tight and shake, wait 20 minutes. You now have fresh bleach.
Learn more about how-to topics and download free e-books at http://www.JohnEriksen.net
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