1. Buy a case.
2. Drink it.
3. Refill bottle with tap (or filtered) water.
4. Refill case then pack away for later use.

(If you have well-water, you are out of luck unless you treat it)

Why is well water out of luck?

I am confused.

Me to

or...

buy the 5 gallon water cooler bottles of PURIFIED water and store it indefinately. cost is around $1 per gallon and, unopened, will last for years.

That sounds like a little better idea. We have one 5 gallon jug of water saved back.

Thats right CFI you did say that once they bottle the 5 gallons and seal it, then it is good for up to 5 years or more right?

I think what stormshadow means, is that well water does not store as long because of the impurities. We reuse our bottles now, with well water. I notice after a few weeks the iron and lime settle out and make quite a mess in the bottom of the bottles. We rotate ours daily. With 3 kids we keep alot of water in the fridge and they can get a cold water when they want. Then we fill them back up, and use it again. With the cheap plastic they are using we can refill 4 or 5 times before they start to lose shape and crack.

Stainless wrote:Why is well water out of luck?

I am confused.

Well-water, if not tested and treated, is more susceptible to contain some kind of bacteria and microbial organisms. These are mostly introduced from run-off water, bad seals, back flow, or old plumbing and pumps. Even if it's not colored or doesn't smell, it could still contain bacteria or protozoa that's not noticeable unless tested.

Sometimes these can cause flu-like symptons (or worse), even though the bacteria is water-borne. One may have drank well water all of their life and never have gotten sick from it. But, it's still good to treat it (chlorination, iodine tabs, filtering) before storing it and exposing it to light, where the bacteria and microbial organisms can grow faster. Here are some links I had stashed for more info.

http://www.wellowner.org/awaterquality/coliform.shtml

http://www.bae.ncsu.edu/programs/extension/publicat/wqwm/emergwatersuppl.html

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/SS439

That is where I thought you were going, I just was not sure, and I wanted to make sure that the newbs understood, why they should not do this.

I recommend taking a UV light and "expose" your water once bottled or every year or so, just to kill off the bacteria. You can get a handheld UV light and "expose" your water bottles easily. We do it and we keep store bought bottled water for 5-10 years.