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Stock Up On Water

Monday, May 26, 2008 11:27:57 AM
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Stock Up On Water

Hurricanes mean a lot of water -- but not a lot to drink.

Life can be even harder if you are not prepared for a storm by having all your supplies, especially the most basic of all the essentials -- water.

Power outages and flooding last year led to thousands of Central Floridians on both public and private wells scrambling to replenish their personal water supplies.

Those on private wells who choose to stick with their own water should store it in old water jugs. Experts recommend adding eight drops of bleach per gallon.

Remember to use old water jugs and not milk jugs. Despite attempts to clean the milk jugs, bacteria could remain and grow over time.

The best bet, though, for everyone is bottled water. Just be sure to keep it in the right place.

"I would store it in as cool as a place as you can store it, away from any direct sunlight so it doesn't have the ability to have algae spores grow out," said John Cochran, an environmental manager for the Seminole County Health Department.

How long can you keep the water? The Red Cross said that spring or drinking water can safely be stored for up to two years, but recommended that it be replaced on a yearly basis.

Expiration dates on bottles don't mean the water is necessarily bad. Like food, the "use by" date or "sell by" date is typically a quality issue rather than a food safety issue.

Above all, stock up! Storm or no storm, water is one of the items in your storm supply kit that will be used, especially under that hot Florida sun.


During hurricane season, News 13's team of meteorologists will have tropical updates at  21 minutes and 51 minutes past every hour.

 

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