Potable water

[Migor]

Hello,
I'm a new owner of Mainship 390 and have a silly question:
what do you normally use for drinking water - buying jugs in store, use water filtering system from your main water tanks, or just drink it directly for the tanks?
Thanks!

 

[OldDan1943]

I drink my water from the tank.
If you are skittish, install an under counter filter in the galley.

 

[rslifkin]

We have filters on the water system. Since we put those in and gave the lines a good flush, we drink the tank water with no concerns.

 

[Scrivma1]

We have Mainship 34T, we pack gallon jugs from home well for drinking, use abut gallon per day depending on guests, usually just 2 of us for a couple of days or week. Prefer it to our filtered marina water and other refill Marinas.

 

[Bacchus]

Our 34HT we usually bring some jugs for drinking & coffee early season. I sanitize at eginning of season, flush well and after a tank or two start drinking from our tank. We do the same in a motorhome and never had a problem

 

[OldDan1943]

Yup, drain the tank at least once a year and maybe an extra one before you start your cruising.
On a long cruise, depending upon the availability of shore water or if you question the quality of water along your cruise course, this is where the water maker can remove any question or concern

 

[psneeld]

Hello,
I'm a new owner of Mainship 390 and have a silly question:
what do you normally use for drinking water - buying jugs in store, use water filtering system from your main water tanks, or just drink it directly for the tanks?
Thanks!

Depends on how often you use the tank water and where you fill it up.

If you go through it regularly and fill from a city treated source.... any old simple filter in your galley, whole boat or countertop should be fine.

 

[Giggitoni]

Hello,
I'm a new owner of Mainship 390 and have a silly question:
what do you normally use for drinking water - buying jugs in store, use water filtering system from your main water tanks, or just drink it directly for the tanks?
Thanks!

Our tanks are aluminum. We had our tank water tested for aluminum. The analytical results indicate our tank water has higher levels of aluminum than is recommended by National Drinking Water Standards. To error on the side of safety, we use our aluminum tank water for dishes, showers, cleaning, etc. We use bottled water for consumption.

 

[Sababa]

Just to be safe, we only drink wine and cocktails on the boat.

 

[North Baltic sea]

Our tanks are aluminum. We had our tank water tested for aluminum. The analytical results indicate our tank water has higher levels of aluminum than is recommended by National Drinking Water Standards. To error on the side of safety, we use our aluminum tank water for dishes, showers, cleaning, etc. We use bottled water for consumption.

We also have an aluminum tank, I haven't tested the water quality, but I wouldn't even think of drinking even a small amount of aluminum (Alzhaimer).

We use food grade water canisters with drinking water. Tap water here is cleaner than bottled water in general.

NBs

 

[ranger58sb]

We drink from our water tanks. Sanitize tanks and lines at least once/year. Fill tanks using heavy filtration. Filter pitcher in the fridge for cold drinking water and making coffee.

-Chris

 

[backinblue]

I buy generic gallons of spring water for coffee, etc and some bottled water for the bedside and head. Occasionally will drink direcly from the tank but normally save that for washing, showering, and flushing as our water supply is not huge anyway.

 

[Don L]

Hello,
I'm a new owner of Mainship 390 and have a silly question:
what do you normally use for drinking water - buying jugs in store, use water filtering system from your main water tanks, or just drink it directly for the tanks?
Thanks!

I have always drank from my water tanks. Even back when I was a weekend boat user whose boat was on a mooring and the tank water lasted months. Back in those days I would maintain a chlorine high level in the tanks (by measurement, cheap kits are available) and would filter that through a standard carbon drinking water set up for drinking use to remove the chorine.

 

[hmason]

We fill our tanks thru a carbon filter. We use tank water for drinking after it goes through a filter pitcher as well. After much research we settled on a filter pitcher called Clearly Filtered. The filters arrive on a subscription basis so we don't forget to change them.

 

[SteveK]

We also have an aluminum tank, I haven't tested the water quality, but I wouldn't even think of drinking even a small amount of aluminum (Alzhaimer).

We use food grade water canisters with drinking water. Tap water here is cleaner than bottled water in general.

NBs

How is this possible since bottled is made from tap water after going thru filtration.

I use inline carbon filter to fill. Then cold tap at galley and ice maker goes through inline filter. Taste comparison could not tell the difference between bottled and tap. So far have not done a flush of water tanks.

My thoughts on water is that it has been there for millions of years being cycled through the earth, evaporation and rain. Other than taste and foreign matter, it is still water. Drank glacier melt water (on the glacier) and could not tell any difference.

 

[Cigatoo]

If tanks are filled with “city” chlorinated water, is it necessary to add chlorine at all? One would think that the previously chlorinated water would keep things potable unless something else is introduced to the water?

 

[Iggy]

I have this aboard my boat. With a 2nd filter at the gally sink for drinking water. https://waterfixercompany.com/modelwf500.html

 

[C lectric]

We also drink from our tanks. I do however filter the water BEFORE it goes into the tanks. OUr town water is pretty good but up the coast that can change, thus the filters.

 

[AKDoug]

Just to be safe, we only drink wine and cocktails on the boat.

Me too, and beer ��. I have an r/o unit for fresh water and plastic tanks, so I drink from the tanks when I make coffee and cook. I have good access to the tanks, so when I winterize I vacuum the tanks dry with a water vac and a pex wand. The pink stuff takes too long to flush clear in the spring if you drink from the tanks…

I never take on water at the dock!

 

[Migor]

Thank you guys for your input - i've got a pretty good idea now. Like the safety of wine and beer

 

[backinblue]

Thank you guys for your input - i've got a pretty good idea now. Like the safety of wine and beer

Beer is almost all water anyway, so that counts!

 

[Delta Riverat]

I love beer in the summertime. Cheap weak (low alcohol) stuff ice cold. Love the taste, don't want the buzz -

 

[OldDan1943]

I have this aboard my boat. With a 2nd filter at the gally sink for drinking water. https://waterfixercompany.com/modelwf500.html

Now, this is something to consider.

 

[Bacchus]

If tanks are filled with “city” chlorinated water, is it necessary to add chlorine at all? One would think that the previously chlorinated water would keep things potable unless something else is introduced to the water?

Carbon filters will remove chlorination from treated supplies so its not a great idea to filter inlet to tank. Better on discharge side of pump /;shore at the galley sink for potable uses. If you want to filter supply / inlet yo tank better to use particulate filter rather than csrbon/ charcoal.

 

[backinblue]

Now, this is something to consider.

Rather pricey and also shows "unavailable"

 

[OldDan1943]

Rather pricey and also shows "unavailable"

It’s all China’s fault.

 

[OldDan1943]

Carbon filters will remove chlorination from treated supplies so its not a great idea to filter inlet to tank. Better on discharge side of pump /;shore at the galley sink for potable uses. If you want to filter supply / inlet yo tank better to use particulate filter rather than csrbon/ charcoal.

And your reasoning for not using the carbon filter on the shore water supply?

 

[rslifkin]

And your reasoning for not using the carbon filter on the shore water supply?

If you run the shore water through a carbon filter when filling the tank, you're going to at least reduce the amount of chlorine left in the water. Depending on the water source and what your concerns are, that may still be worth it, but for water that will sit in the tank for a while, it wouldn't hurt to add a little bit of chlorine back in (especially if you have onboard carbon filters that will remove it before use).

 

[backinblue]

And your reasoning for not using the carbon filter on the shore water supply?

Because it's better to have the water chlorinated. The carbon will filter out the chlorine.

 

[PM]

I use tank water for some cooking like boiling sweetcorn, making noodles boiling potatoes. I will occasionally take a sip of tank water to wash down pills. My tanks get a half cup of bleach per 150 gallons of marina water.

For coffee, lemonade, ie tea, etc I use distilled water which I make with a home distiller.

pete