How To...Store Water in Plastic Bottles

One of my biggest challenges with food storage, actually, has nothing to do with food. It's the water storage part.

My problem is a mixture of no space and basic marital discord. You see, Mountain Man doesn't see the need for water storage. His argument: we live near a large body of water and we own several water purifying systems. My argument: what if our legs get cut off and we can't walk to get the water?

Just kidding. But I do feel strongly about having some drinking water in the house, and so I'm finally taking steps to have a water storage.

Because space is an issue, I am diversifying the types of storage and spreading them throughout the house in different areas according to what will fit where. I plan on having my water storage in three types of containers:

1. Store bought bottled water, for convenience when traveling.
2. Some 7-gallon containers like these. I don't have a lot of space for these, but I want some anyway.
3. Mainly in 2 liter soda and juice bottles, because they are readily available (as in, free).

So, let's walk through how to prepare 2-liter soda bottles and juice bottles to store water. I encourage you to check out the Provident Living website about water storage and purification. I've noticed that they've updated it quite a bit and I found it very informative. Even if I found it after I had cleaned out my bottles.

What you'll need is water (ha ha), bottles, and household bleach. Make sure your bottles are PETE plastic, and rinse them out in soapy water when you've finished drinking whatever is inside.

Fill up your kitchen sink or a VERY large bucket with water and add bleach. I added about a cup of bleach to a full sink of water (I have shallow sinks).

Gently insert your empty bottle into the water. You want to fill up as much of the inside as possible so the bleach solution can kill any microorganisms inside the bottle.


You won't be able to keep the bottles completely full of bleach water, so whenever you think about it roll the bottles so the bleach water has time to sit on each side of the bottle. If that made any sense.


Yes, you should use gloves.



I filled a bucket with some water and a higher concentration of bleach for the lids because the juice/soda inside the lids can be harder to get out.


I used to run my juice bottles through the dishwasher then fill them up with water and call it good. Then I noticed things growing on the inside of the lid.


Let them sit for several hours. I usually let it go all day. I like the smell of bleach.

After several hours of soaking, let the water out of the sink and rinse the bottles and lids. It doesn't have to be completely rinsed, a little bleach won't hurt you.


Nothing on the inside of these guys.




Fill the newly bleached bottles up with water. If your water comes from a reliable source (chlorinated tap water) you don't need to add extra bleach (source).



Clearly label your water bottles. You still need to rotate these regularly and having the date on them with help you rotate in a timely manner.



Store in a cool, dry space, away from direct light. Like your daughters' closet. They can't have that many clothes right? You aren't supposed to store your water directly on the ground. Anyone know why?



Start all over again. My goal is a 2 week supply for each member of the family. Wish me luck.

If you don't drink a lot of soda or juice, ask around to your friends and neighbors. I inherited my soda bottles from a soda-drinking family.

For more information on water storage, check out our series here.

Water Review

Well, we've come to the end of our water series. As I've read over the series, it looks like we have covered the most important aspects of water storage. Keep it in a cool, dark place and don't forget to purify it if you need to. The most important thing, however, is to HAVE IT! Please, please don't neglect to store water. Water is more important than food!

Finally, I wanted to share these pictures with you (above). Someone left a comment about these a couple of weeks ago, and then last week I saw a pile of them at a friend's house, so I just had to get one. I got this 7-gallon Aqua-Tainer at Walmart and it was about $8. That's a little steep for my budget since we will need about 8 of these (for 2 weeks of water), but if we buy them one at a time we'll eventually have what we need. So, there's one option for you.

I hope that by now you have at least SOME water stored up. Remember, ideally you need to store 2 weeks of water, and AT LEAST 1 gallon per person per day. If you have any more questions about water, please feel free to email us or to comment on any of our posts!

Emergency Water

If you were absolutely desperate for water, do you know where you could find it?

Hopefully, you are storing (or working on storing) at least 2 gallons of water per person for 2 weeks. However, in a pinch, there are "hidden" sources of water right in your home. A Red Cross pamphlet I have says the following:

"If a disaster catches you without a stored supply of clean water, you can use the water in your hot-water tank, pipes, and ice cubes. As a last resort, you can use water in the reservoir tank of your toilet (not the bowl).

Do you know the location of your incoming water valve? You'll need to shut it off to stop contaminated water from entering your home if you hear reports of broken water or sewage lines.

To use the water in your pipes, let air into the plumbing by turning on the faucet in your house at the highest level. A small amount of water will trickle out. Then obtain water from the lowest faucet in your home (basement, perhaps. If you live on one floor, just choose a faucet there).

To use the water in your hot-water tank, be sure the electricity or gas is off, and open the drain at the bottom of the tank. Start the water flowing by turning off the water intake valve and turning on a hot-water faucet. Do not turn on the gas or electricity when the tank is empty."

So there you have it! We can't stress enough the importance of storing enough clean water in your home; however, for an emergency, here are some options.

Finally, don't forget about outdoor water sources: rainwater, streams/rivers or any other moving body of water, lakes, ponds, and natural springs. Avoid water with floating material, an odor, or dark color. Use saltwater only if you distill it first (see directions from last week's water post). Do not drink flood water.

Water Purification

(Most of this information is straight from a Red Cross pamphlet that I have.)

In addition to having a bad odor and taste, contaminated water can contain microorganisms that cause diseases such as dysentery, typhoid, and hepatitis. If you are not certain of your water's purity, be sure to treat it before using it for drinking, food preparation, or hygeine.

There are several ways to purify water. No way is perfect, and often the best solution is to just use a combination of methods.

Below are a few easy purification methods. These methods will kill most microbes but will not remove other contaminants such as heavy metals, salts, and most other chemicals. Before purifying your water, let any suspended particles settle to the bottom, or strain them through layers of paper towl or clean cloth.

Boiling. Boiling is the safest method of purifying water. Bring water to a rolling boil for 3-5 minutes, keeping in mind that some water will evaporate. Let the water cool before drinking.

Boiled water will taste better if you put oxygen back into it by pouring the water back and forth between two clean containers. This will also improve the taste of stored water. If you still don't like the taste of your water, go ahead and add powdered drink mix, if available, or add a pinch of salt to sweeten up the taste a bit.

Disinfection. You can use household liquid bleach to kill microorganisms. Use only regular household liquid bleach that contains 5.25 percent sodium hypochlorite. Do not use scented bleaches, colorsafe bleaches, or bleaches with added cleaners.

Add 16 drops of bleach per gallon of water, stir and let stand for 30 minutes. If the water does not have a slight bleach odor, repeat the dosage and let stand another 15 minutes.

The only agent used to purify water should be household liquid bleach. Other chemicals, such as iodine or water treatment products sold in camping or surplus stores that do not contain 5.25 percent sodium hypochlorite as the only active ingredient, are not recommended and should not be used (Iodine is not as effective as bleach, but it is better than nothing. However, bleach is so cheap and easy to store - get some!).

While the two methods described above will kill most microbes in water, distillation will remove microbes that resist these methods, and heavy metals, salts, and most other chemicals.

Distillation. Distillation involves boiling water and then collecting the vapor that condenses back to water. The condensed vapor will not include salt and other impurities. To distill, fill a pot halfway with water. Tie a cup to the handle on the pot's lid so that the cup will hang right-side-up when the lid is upside-down (make sure the cup is not dangling into the water) and boil the water for 20 minutes. The water that drips from the lid into the cup is distilled.

A few tips from wikihow.com:
Both bleach and iodine work much better in warm water.

A person needs at least a half gallon of water per day to survive, sometimes more (children, nursing mothers, people who are ill, and when the weather is hot, everyone).

Use purified water for brushing your teeth.

Water that's collected through condensation (such as from plants or soil) needs to be purified. The process of condensation leaves some sediments behind, but unless boiling temperature is reached, parasites and other harmful substances may still be in the water.

A few warnings:
Commercial filters made for tap water remove basic minerals to make it taste better. They do not remove parasites or other threats that are removed through in water treatment facilities. Check the label to be sure what you're getting.

People with thyroid problems should check with their doctors before using water treated with iodine.

Water Storage Methods

Water storage will be the topic of discussion for the next few Thursdays!

Water is more important than food. After 3 days without water, the kidneys stop functioning and the damage is irreversible, even with present day technology. At least 1.5 gallons per person, per day for drinking, food preparation and hygiene should be stored with your emergency supplies. For example, 84 gallons of water should be stored for a family of four for two weeks.

Today I'll go over some methods for water storage. Next week, we'll talk about purification.

There are several ways to store water:

1. Gallon jugs. They can dissolve over time. Water can also pick up the odor of the initial contents, or bacteria could grow if the jugs are on completely cleaned before filled. While this is an option for water storage, be cautious if you decide to go this route. Do not use milk cartons.

2. Soda Bottles. Also known as pop bottles :). You will need lots of these, but they store well. Only use shatterproof (plastic) bottles. Don't use glass containers.

3. Mylar Bags (5 gal). These are great for storage, but weigh approximately 40 pounds when filled with water.

4. Barrels. These come in 5, 13, 30, and 55 gallon containers. They are great for long term storage. When filled, they are not easily moved. However, if they are clean when filled, the water will remain pure. If you store them outside (or any bottles for that matter), leave head room for freezing.

5. Metal containers. NEVER use these for water storage.

6. Swimming pools. This also includes hot tubs. Always view your pool as "backup" water only. Keep dry chlorine on hand. You should also have chlorine testers available if you intend on using pool water.

Water Storage

Water is more important than food.


You should store two weeks of water for each person in your home.  Water can be stored in old juice bottles, clean water drums, water jugs (you can buy containers specifically for home water storage).  You should store at least one gallon of water per person per day, but preferably 1.5 - 2 gallons per person per day.


Check out some of our past posts (below) for more information.


Water Storage Methods
How to Store Water in Plastic Bottles
Water Purification
Emergency Water (water in your home)
Water Storage Guidelines (from ProvidentLiving.org)