( see second paragraph under powder chlorine)
Liquid Chlorine:
Normal household bleach can be used to kill germs in water, but will not kill tuberculosis germs. Regular household bleach is a solution of 5.25% Sodium Hypochlorite and 94.75% inert ingredients. The bleach I want you to use should be standard household bleach with no extra whiteners, brighteners, or scents of any kind like lemon. Many manufactures bleach labels state "not fit for human consumption", which is true (Does it need to be said? Ok, don't drink straight bleach!) Now if the only active ingredient in your bleach is Sodium Hypochlorite, it is suitable for water sterilization. Here's how you do it. Add 1/2 tsp. to 5 gallons of water if it is clear (or 8 drops of chlorine bleach to each gallon of clear water) or 1 tsp. to 5 gallons of water if the water is cloudy. Allow your water to sit at least 30 minutes. If water does not have a slight chlorine odor, repeat the dosage and let stand for 15 minutes. Now if you stock up on commercial sized coffee filters say from Sam's, you can pre-filter your water. Be sure to sterilize and clean your water container, its lid, spout, funnel after each use.
Powder Chlorine:
You may be tempted to purchase a large quantity of bleach for this purpose, but did you know that Chlorine gas would bleed through most plastic bottles? Storing bleach in a warm place will speed up the gas leakage. So over time your Chlorine concentration will diminish to a level you have no way of determining. When this happens you will have no idea how much to put in the water, making this a shaky situation. There is a way around this storage problem. You can make your own bleach by purchasing swimming pool "burn out" or "shock treatment". It must be only 65% Calcium Hypochlorite, no additional anti-fungal or clarifiers. In an extremely well ventilated area throughly mix 24.5 grams, approximately 10 Tablespoons, of powder to one gallon of water for a 5.25% bleach solution. Five pounds of dry pool bleach costs about $10-15, which will make about 92 gallons of bleach, that will sterilize 706,560 gallons of clear water, or 353,280 gallons of cloudy water. If you allocate 3 gallons per person per day for drinking, food preparation, and sanitation, $15 will take care of 100 people for one year! Not a bad deal.
http://www.stormsurvival.homestead.com/Disinfecting_Water.html
Liquid Chlorine:
Normal household bleach can be used to kill germs in water, but will not kill tuberculosis germs. Regular household bleach is a solution of 5.25% Sodium Hypochlorite and 94.75% inert ingredients. The bleach I want you to use should be standard household bleach with no extra whiteners, brighteners, or scents of any kind like lemon. Many manufactures bleach labels state "not fit for human consumption", which is true (Does it need to be said? Ok, don't drink straight bleach!) Now if the only active ingredient in your bleach is Sodium Hypochlorite, it is suitable for water sterilization. Here's how you do it. Add 1/2 tsp. to 5 gallons of water if it is clear (or 8 drops of chlorine bleach to each gallon of clear water) or 1 tsp. to 5 gallons of water if the water is cloudy. Allow your water to sit at least 30 minutes. If water does not have a slight chlorine odor, repeat the dosage and let stand for 15 minutes. Now if you stock up on commercial sized coffee filters say from Sam's, you can pre-filter your water. Be sure to sterilize and clean your water container, its lid, spout, funnel after each use.
Powder Chlorine:
You may be tempted to purchase a large quantity of bleach for this purpose, but did you know that Chlorine gas would bleed through most plastic bottles? Storing bleach in a warm place will speed up the gas leakage. So over time your Chlorine concentration will diminish to a level you have no way of determining. When this happens you will have no idea how much to put in the water, making this a shaky situation. There is a way around this storage problem. You can make your own bleach by purchasing swimming pool "burn out" or "shock treatment". It must be only 65% Calcium Hypochlorite, no additional anti-fungal or clarifiers. In an extremely well ventilated area throughly mix 24.5 grams, approximately 10 Tablespoons, of powder to one gallon of water for a 5.25% bleach solution. Five pounds of dry pool bleach costs about $10-15, which will make about 92 gallons of bleach, that will sterilize 706,560 gallons of clear water, or 353,280 gallons of cloudy water. If you allocate 3 gallons per person per day for drinking, food preparation, and sanitation, $15 will take care of 100 people for one year! Not a bad deal.
http://www.stormsurvival.homestead.com/Disinfecting_Water.html