Killing Bacteria in Water

[k1vsk]

"Effectivity" is probably not the right choice to make a point. For years until recently in the medical profession, acetone was used to disinfect skin at the site of an injection which was arguably the proven standard of the time. As with many things, knowledge and science change, usually for the better, and now acetone is no longer used for numerous health-related reasons.

[sailaway21]

I agree most emphatically with hello's comments. The only thing that is going to keep water completely sanitary for a year is to can it under high heat conditions. I wouldn't touch the stuff with a ten foot pole. Outlandish claims tend to make me suspicious, even of the product's primary function. This stuff may keep bacteria from growing for a year, but that doesn't mean I want to drink it.

[Joesaila]

We used a 7% bleach solution to disinfect a 'working' ambulance. Bleach kills everything and its effective time is about 30 minutes. So a new mix had to be used each time. Hydrogen peroxide is less effective but is safer. I have freinds who cooked a lot of food in a bleach/water solution while in the Phillipines and while the food tasted...like bleach they remained free of the stomach problems for the entire year.

[hellosailor]

Sailaway, you're a genius. And I deny ever having said that.

"high heat conditions." Well, since the PROBLEM comes from these being aluminum tanks and that makes chlorine a bad thing...No problem! Just add hot water heater elements into the water tanks, and BOIL THE DRINKING WATER SUPPLY, IN PLACE.

Boil, flush, repeat, yum yum. Add the dispenser tap for tea and coffee.

AFAIK pasteurizing is done at 176F, so "boiling" might not even be necessary.

[RichH]

Killing bacteria in water is NOT something that you really want to do. You need to kill it at the source - you must FIRST kill the bacterial colony that is growing/thriving on the tank walls and internal surfaces of the tankage. The simple answer is: soap and water and a scrub brush.

Mechanically scrubbing will loosen the bacteria colony that has taken up residence on the walls and in the tubing. Without mechanical scrubbing away the biofilm (calcyx) shock sanitizations with chlorine/clorox are next to useless as a single shock sanitization (@20-50 parts per million of Chlorine) will be next to useless as it will only penetrate the outtermost layers of the biofilm, leaving viable bacteria underneath.
The supposed shock sanitization that you see touted for 'boats and RVs' in actuality are from standard procedures for the comissioning of NEW equipment (one that does not have an established biofilm).

Get inside the tankage and scrub away most of what you can reach with a long handled brush, then vacuum out. Then shock sanitize with clorox. If your tank does not have access ports, then consider to shock sanitize MANY times until you are confident (verify indirectly by looking into a removed fill hose, etc.) that the biofilm is destroyed.

Peroxide in 'drugstore' concentrations .... you'll need to FILL the tank with 5% peroxide to affect shock sanitization. At greater than 5% hydrogen peroxide is a DANGEROUS chemical that should not be used if you dont have the expertise.
Quaternary Ammonium ... ditto you need the strict expertise to use it as you MUST then use 'test strips' to be SURE that the 'quat' is fully rinsed out of the tank.
Peracetic Acid plus Hydrogen Peroxide is probably the BEST disinfectant ... but again you MUST have expertise and use the 'test strips' to be sure that ALL the Peracetic Acid mix is removed.

If you are in an area of the country that has a lot of dairy, you might want to consider to hire a dairyman to come in and caustic clean the tank - he will use lye and other strong caustics that will totally dissolve the bacterial scums and slimes, then rinse and VERIFY that the tankage is now sanitized and safe. From THAT (cleaned and sanitized) starting point simply keep enough clorox in the tank water (just enough so that you can barely discern the noxious chlorine smell) and that will prevent or diminish future bacterial growth.

BTW.... get RID of any filter that contains carbon from your distribution system .... its a nutrient source for bacteria. If you must use a carbon filter, use it when you FILL the tank OR place it on the very end of the spiggot so that the carbon filter drains when you are done using it.

The simple answer is: HYGIENE - soap and water and a scrubbing brush!!!!!

hope this helps.

[sailingdog]

Be aware that any strong bases or acids will probably damage the materials used in a modern boat's fresh water system.