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Mark Ducati
04-12-2011, 06:46 PM
I've got a 30 gallon blue plastic water tank in the basement (in addition to my 80 gallon hot water tank in the furnace room) simply for backup water for a couple weeks to rehydrate freeze dried food/cooking/drinking...

110 gallons isn't much for a family of 4... as for toilets, I figured we go potty outside if need be as we live in the rural country.

But, I'd like a spare 1000 gallon water tank to put in our storage room and even an additional tank to put on some private property for our "bug out location"....

Yeah, the big tanks are still pretty spendy... but a 1000 gallon tank will run you $500 bucks...

I found a neat website that I thought I'd pass on:

http://www.plastic-mart.com/

El Laton Caliente
04-12-2011, 07:47 PM
Food grade drums come in 30 and 55 gallons and are fairly inexpensive especially if used.

I want one of the 2,000+ gallons for a water tower. I want to put a poly tank inside a wooden dummy structure like an old rail road tower to match the log house. That would give me a good water system for a week or two off grid.

The wife wants a large cistern to catch rail water off the garage & house roofs.

I want to tie the whole mess plus the deep & shallow wells into a fire system with a 150# or so demand pump hooked to fire monitors, hose reels and a sprinkler system.

I live in a forest...

Mac_Muz
04-13-2011, 01:35 PM
Look around in local farm stores. Recently mine came up with red brownish 55 gallon screw top barrels for 16 bucks each. I bought 5 because it was all I could fit in a toyota pick up.

These come from Greece and were filled with crushed seseme seeds, so the drums are a little oily to start. Water here isn't really any problem, but storing maple sugar sap was.

I plan to store leather in rolls in 2 of these, with silica beads dryer, and clean up the closet. These would be great to store a short long gun of some sort, some ammo and gear, but only as much as you can move some how. Ar's and Ak's would fit easy, with a tent, and sleeping bags, some MRE's and all sort of stuff.

There is a seal too, so these are air/water tight.

I might go get 5 more. These can be stacked, but are not made to lock to one another, so I will only put lighter barrels on a heavy barrel.

L1A1Rocker
04-13-2011, 02:13 PM
You are problable correct in your line of reasoning. But, for those that don't have as many to worry with, the 55 gl blue tanks work great. One of the bung hole plugs is pre threaded for an outdoor water faucet. Just drill it out and screw in the water faucet. Here is mine.

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j154/L1A1Rocker/10_12_06_2223.jpg?t=1302721718

3.5 tablespoons of plain bleach and it is good for 3 to 5 years - depending on how it is stored.

FEMA guidlines are 3 gallons of water per person per day. This figure includes drinking and hygiene uses.

Mac_Muz
04-13-2011, 05:24 PM
I was just sayin' there's another kind of barrel around for cheap.

I had a barrel just like that, still have it but cut the head off, for a maple sap storage I can dip a bucket in.

These brown barrels won't let much light in, so may not grow green things with water in them if stored outside in light. I really can't say i know that, but I think so.

The opening is enough to send a wee lad in, or maybe a petite wife for a good scrubbing!

I see no reason a spigot can't be added just like that one, but of course some way to vent air in when the water is running out is another matter.

As I said storing water here in NH is pointless. 2 days ago we had 2 rivers near me ice out, and it happened in a T storm so it was wild. Since then it sounds like a big jet is stuck in the sky, not moving and the engines are at full blast. Between there and here are 2 more little brooks that run year round.

If I stored water somebody would have me sent off to get my head examined.

The only water I do store is distilled water the De-Humidifer makes in summer, which is done in larger 7 gallon water containers with spigots as a part of the cap. I make more of that than I can use and toss most of it in the pond. The pond is alluvial and goes away in later August usually. I'ld rather drink from the brooks or rivers than that pond.

Oh! the lids on these brown barrels remind me of a large dinner dish, and might well need to fuction in that idea in shtf one day. You could build a mean weed salad for a crew in one.

filthy phil
04-13-2011, 07:38 PM
Food grade drums come in 30 and 55 gallons and are fairly inexpensive especially if used.

I want one of the 2,000+ gallons for a water tower. I want to put a poly tank inside a wooden dummy structure like an old rail road tower to match the log house. That would give me a good water system for a week or two off grid.

The wife wants a large cistern to catch rail water off the garage & house roofs.

I want to tie the whole mess plus the deep & shallow wells into a fire system with a 150# or so demand pump hooked to fire monitors, hose reels and a sprinkler system.

I live in a forest...

just started with a company that sells cleaned up drums from 30- 55 gallon to the big white 330 gal on up tanks caged in for $120. in houston

JTHunter
04-15-2011, 12:01 AM
Mark - This Old House had a recent episode where somebody wanted a "rain barrel" setup but with greater capacity. The TOH team got them a heavy vinyl bladder that can hold 1,000 gallons. They placed it under his deck where it was out of the way, protected from kids AND Sun and could be used for any non-potable use.
Just a thought.

Klawndyke
04-23-2011, 12:39 PM
Mark - This Old House had a recent episode where somebody wanted a "rain barrel" setup but with greater capacity. The TOH team got them a heavy vinyl bladder that can hold 1,000 gallons. They placed it under his deck where it was out of the way, protected from kids AND Sun and could be used for any non-potable use.
Just a thought.

I was trying to figure a way to store alot of rain water as a main source to flush the toilets and use the main line as needed ..
this would work great for something like that