So THAT'S what the bleach is for...

[Canelaw99]

I just heard this on the local news because we have so many people without power who are under a boil water order.

If you take 1/4 teaspoon bleach per 1 gallon of water, shake well, then let it sit 30-60 minutes, it is safe to drink.

I've lived in FL 8 yrs. and always saw bleach as a thing to get before a storm but wasn't sure what it was for. Now I know

[dhweather]

Nah, it's really to get rid of the mold before it starts growing good.

[Canelaw99]

LOL, well that too down here. Of course, I need bleach for mold without hurricanes Ahh...the joys of tropical areas LOL

[Praxus]

yep, bleach = chlorine...which is part of how most cities clean their water supply.

[dhweather]

If mold were a plant, we'd love it. Unfortunately, all of us coastal residents can grow it without even trying!

[Canelaw99]

Ain't that the truth dh LOL In fact, I have one a/c vent in my closet that constantly grows mold. We've tried keeping the vent closed, open, sprayed it with chlorine used to clean pools...nothing works. The stuff keeps coming back. It's the only one that has the problem to.

[Cookiely]

We had a cabin with untreated wooden walls inside. It was next to a river in a swampy area. One day we came to spend the weekend and the walls were covered with huge fungi growing out about three inches from the walls. My mother sprayed Lysol Room Deodorizer for the stale order and it hit the wall and the fungi disappeared like it wasn't ever there. It was amazing. It looked like they disappeared back into the wood. There wasn't even any residue. I would really try this if you ever have a mold problem.

[coriolis]

It's true. I design public water systems. The active ingredient in bleach is sodium hypochlorite and is the same as is used in many drinking water supplies. I did the math once on the required dosage, and 1/4 teaspoon per gallon sounds about right. I wouldn't shake it up very vigorously, though. Just a gentle swirling motion. The agitation could cause the chlorine to be stripped out of the water into the bubbles, with a resulting loss of chlorine.

A couple of other suggetions: Don't use the scented bleach. The water will taste yucky. Also, if the water is very dirty, the chlorine will get used up by reacting with any organic matter in the water. A little cloudy would be ok, like if you were running suspect water from the tap. I wouldn't do it on surface water unless it's a dire emergency. If you had to, filter the water through a coffee filter to get out the sediment, algae, etc. Then this disinfection procedure would give better results. After mixing, let it set for at least 20 minutes before using.

This disinfection DOES NOT remove chemical contamination and will not inactivate giardia, cryptosporidium, and other spore based pathogens. As always be careful handling bleach, and DON'T over dose it. If anyone's interested, I can run through the calculations again at work tomorrow.

[Shoshana]

And don't use that bleach water to make formula for babies either. If there are any microbes, that kid's gonna be one sick baby...

[bvigal]

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/faq/emerg.html
Some good info here.

[Downdraft]

Ain't that the truth dh LOL In fact, I have one a/c vent in my closet that constantly grows mold. We've tried keeping the vent closed, open, sprayed it with chlorine used to clean pools...nothing works. The stuff keeps coming back. It's the only one that has the problem to.

hook a very low wattage ultra-violet lamp up in there. No more mold.

[Canelaw99]

Thanks for the tip downdraft - will have to look for a lamp this weekend