My water supply in Spain comes from a water deposit - what is the easiest way to make it drinkable?

Question

The water is totally untreated and I'd love to know the easiest way to purify it? Osmosis?

Answer 1

if it is from an unpolluted ground source it does not require 'treatment'---have it tested--government labs will often do this test for free

Answer 2

A COUPLE OF TEASPOONS OF BLEACH ADDED TO EACH GALLON WOULD KILL ANY BACTERIA OR ANYTHING ELSE IN IT AND MAKE IT DRINKABLE BUT I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE SMELL.;;;  SEE THIS FOR FURTHER INSTRUCTION.    WATER PURIFICATION

1)  Clear water is a sign of pure water. Always drain long-standing pipes for 30 seconds to one minute before drinking! (Cheap remote motels?)

2)  1 Gallon water is disinfected by 8-16 drops of regular household bleach (visually about 1/4 of a teaspoon) - double that for cloudy water. Shake and let stand 30 minutes. One teaspoon will disinfect 5 gallons. Immediately after treating, water must initially have a slight smell of chlorine. If it does not - repeat the process.

3)  Household bleach is relatively harmless. The smell or “waft” of chlorine is not bad: it indicates that water is treated and germ free. Once treated and disinfected, the chlorine smell will go away in a few days.

4)  Regularly used water from large tanks may be treated once or twice a month with 1 Oz. bleach per 200 gallons or 5 Oz. bleach per 1000 gallons.

5)  Long-standing water in tanks will be disinfected w/ 1 pint household bleach per 1000 gallons. (2500 gal tanks are fine with 3 pints.)

6)  Bleach effectively kills bacteria and viruses, stops smells and then breaks down. It's effective germ killing alkaline property is completely neutralized very quickly. It does not stay chemically active in tanks for more than a few days. Most germs require sunlight to grow. Store water in the dark.

7)  If water is relatively clear: but has a noticeable smell of chlorine: it is drinkable, disinfected, and harmless. Humans need 2 quarts per day.

Answer 3

I stayed near Sorbas, Almeria, Spain. I drank the tap water by accident, it tasted fine, but I was told that it contains high levels of Sulphate that slowly poisons you. There is no cheap way of removing the contamination, Sorbas town gets tanker deliveries. We used tap water only for washing clothes and showering, we drank bottled water.

Many of the water wells in south east Spain are contaminated with Sulphate, Borate, Chloride and Bromide Salts from evaporates (dried up sea water deposits, notably gypsum) and the arid desert soils. Also, the water quality is deteriorating over time because of farming practices that causes evaporation and concentration of salts. Citrus fruits (oranges) are quite resistant to the contaminated water. Also, covering plants under plastic reduces evaporation.

In theory the water could be purified by reverse osmosis or distillation. Both require allot of cheap energy. The Gulf states use large scale reverse osmosis and distillation, but they have vast supplies of oil and gas.

Perhaps they should used the technologies use by the Moors, we saw ingenious water traps and dams built in the time of Islamic Spain, in the region where they filmed the Spaghetti Western Films (Terbernas Basin). They collected and stored water from flash floods.

Answer 4

Depends on what exactly is the problem with the water.

I suspect it has a high level of dissolved solids (tds - total dissolved solids) since you mention deposits. Then again, it could be hardness salts, or non-hardness salts.

If it is hardness salts, put some alum into a container with the water, then wait, a white substance will form and settle after sometime. Take the clear water for your use, it should be good.

On the other hand, if the water has to much of non-hardness salts (chlorides, nitrates, etc)., or too much of hardness salts, you need other treatments. Revese osmosis process is commercially availab;e today even for domestic users with needs as low as  20 liters per day. You should google for "Water treatment" + RO + Domestic + hardness  - should get you some good leads