Killing Bacteria in Water

[Evensong]

This is my first post on any board so excuse me if I appear the novice that I am. I recently purchased a 1996 IP32 and just this week the water smells horrible (almost like black water). I'm assuming that I've developed some kind of bacteria in the tank. I was going to add a capfull of bleach for a day or so and then flush it out but have been told that bleach w reaks havoc on an aluminum tank. I know that I can add a little hydrogen peroxide after I've stablized the tank but are there any ideas how to initially shock the bacteria away?

[k1vsk]

You'll need to include the plumbing as well as that is more often the source of the problem or at least a major contributor. Household bleach is commonly used improperly to treat water but in your case, it might not be a bad idea to do it once as long as you flush it well before it has time to attack the aluminum - less than 12 hours and you'll be safe. Just don't do it often. Make sure you fill the tank(s) and all plumbing and keep the pressure on during the treatment interval to ensure the entire system is exposed. Afterward, flush until no bleach smell is evident. The trick to preclude recurrence is to cycle through the tank water often so avoid stagnation.
Bleach will only kill bacteria, not viruses, so beware this isn't the cure-all it's commonly believed to be. It also has essentially no residence time so its efficacy is lost over a short time. Peroxide is safer, more effective, has a longer residence time and probably cheaper so that option is a no-brainer. Store bought peroxide is useless in this application as its concentration is too low - you need 26% or stronger peroxide to be effective. This is its biggest drawback as peroxide at that concentration isn't dangerous but is only available from chemical formulators.

[hellosailor]

"Peroxide is ...probably cheaper "
Um, not if you need to buy enough 26% peroxide to fill and flush your tanks and lines, is it?

Oddly enough campers use chemicals to kill "everything" in suspect water, mainly chlorine and iodine.

http://www.medicinenet.com/******/ma...ticlekey=20511

"Traveler's Tips for Safe Water
You are ready for your vacation, yet you are still concerned about the quality of drinking water once you reach your destination. Among the more common infections that travelers can acquire from contaminated food and drink are Escherichia coli infections, shigellosis or bacillary dysentery, giardiasis , cryptosporidiosis, and hepatitis A.

Water that has been adequately chlorinated, using minimum recommended water treatment standards employed in the United States, will afford significant protection against viral and bacterial waterborne diseases. However, chlorine treatment alone, as used in the routine disinfection of water, might not kill some enteric viruses and the parasitic organisms that cause giardiasis, amebiasis, and cryptosporidiosis. In areas where chlorinated tap water is not available or where hygiene and sanitation are poor, travelers should be advised that only the following might be safe to drink:"

"Chemical disinfection with iodine is an alternative method of water treatment when it is not feasible to boil water. However, this method cannot be relied upon to kill Cryptosporidium unless the water is allowed to sit for 15 hours before it is drunk. Two well-tested methods for disinfection with iodine are the use of tincture of iodine and the use of tetraglycine hydroperiodide tablets (for example, Globaline®, Potable-Aqua®, or Coghlan's®). These tablets are available from pharmacies and sporting goods stores. The manufacturers' instructions should be followed. Chemically treated water is intended for short-term use only. If iodine-disinfected water is the only water available, it should be used for only a few weeks."

And from the CDC:
http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/yellowBoo...aterRisks.aspx
TABLE 2-2. Treatment of water with tincture of iodine
TINCTURE OF IODINE DROPS1 TO BE ADDED PER QUART OR LITER
CLEAR WATER COLD OR CLOUDY WATER2
2% solution 5 10

1-One drop – 0.05 mL. Water must stand for a minimum of 30 minutes before it is safe to use.
2=Very turbid or cold water can require prolonged contact time; if possible, such water should be allowed to stand several hours before use.


So the logical way to clean out water tanks, would be to first use soap and water. Then follow with a chlorinated water soak, minimizing the time in there are aluminum tanks. Rinse again to remove the chlorinated water, then follow with an iodine treatment, either using the "white tincture of iodine" still sold at pharmacies, or one of the products sold in camping stores for treating questionable water.

Unless you can get an awfully good price on a hundred gallons of 26% peroxide--and explain that to DHS, who are going to come around asking what you plan to do with it. Beauticia's suppliers often sell concentrated hydrogen peroxide, for mixing bleaches.

[poopdeckpappy]

Be careful with cholrine, if it smells as bad as you say ( almost like Black water ) there could be some ammona associated with the smell and Cholrine & ammona can make a deadly toxic fume

[Sailormon6]

If the boat hasn't been used for awhile, the nasty smelling stuff might just be old RV antifreeze, used to protect the plumbing system during the winter. Before you do anything else, drain it out, flush it and drain it again. It doesn't do any good to put sanitizers in it until you get all the old stuff out.

[DuncanNZ]

Why not use some home brew bottle cleaning tablets? - Sodium metabisulphite tablets (called Camden tablets in Britain?).

I would be sure to allow the gas the release to escape (ie don't let the system overpressurise). And as already suggested, flush the system well after treatment.

Duncan.
(Trailersailer, Farr 7.5)

[Freesail99]

Originally Posted by DuncanNZ

Why not use some home brew bottle cleaning tablets? - Sodium metabisulphite tablets (called Camden tablets in Britain?).

I would be sure to allow the gas the release to escape (ie don't let the system overpressurise). And as already suggested, flush the system well after treatment.

Duncan.
(Trailersailer, Farr 7.5)

If you add citric acid to raise the ph of the water your using to flush the system with the metabisulphite, it would go a long way into making it a safe system again. Flush well after use. I use this stuff everyday.

[camaraderie]

Simple...you need to shock treat your tanks and all water lines. Follow the instructions Peggy Hall of Raritan gives here:
http://www.searoom.com/fresh_water.htm

[T37Chef]

Quaternary ammonium is a popular sanitizing product used in food service. I have easy access to it but I am unsure where you can buy it retail, maybe a US Foods cash & carry store. A manufactuer is Eco Lab, http://www.ecolab.com/

I run it through my system occasionally, followed by a rinse. To my knowledge it will not react with metal, to address your concern about corrosion, but check the MSDS sheet just to be sure.

[Cruisingdad]

Make sure you run it through your hot water tank. We always had a problem with the smell coming from there.

- CD