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This article describes water tanks and other kinds of storage tanks found in buildings, captive air and traditional water storage tanks or water pressure tanks, and we provide advice about what to do when things go wrong, such as finding air and water leaks or deciding to replace a water tank.

Readers of this document should also see Water pump and pressure tank repair diagnosis & cost an specific case which offers an example of diagnosis of loss of water pressure, loss of water, and analyzes the actual repair cost and see Wells, Cisterns, & Springs for a discussion of types of drinking water sources and what goes wrong with water supplies.

© Copyright 2012 InspectAPedia.com, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use page top links to major topics or use links at the left of each page to navigate within topics and documents at this website. Green links show where you are in a document series or at this website.

Types & Uses of Residential & Light Commercial Water Tanks & Other Liquid Storage Tanks

Various types of tanks uses in and around buildings are identified and explained below, including water pressure tanks, water storage tanks, range boilers for hot water, indirect fired hot water tanks, expansion tanks in attics, basements, and on heating boilers, oil storage tanks, rooftop tanks, cisterns, water pressure booster systems. We also discuss when to replace water tanks.

CAPTIVE AIR TANKS bladder-type water tanks for Building Water Pressure Regulation

Newer "captive air" tanks use a rubber bladder to keep water and air separate. This prevents the air charge from being absorbed into the water, so you should never need to add air to those systems. At WATER PRESSURE TANKS, BLADDER TYPE we discuss this type of water tank in detail. At WATER TANKS HOW THEY WORK we provide details of how water pressure tanks work.

Loss of air in "captive air" bladder type water pressure or water storage tanks

If a "captive air" or internal "bladder" (usually rubber) type tank is installed, and if the pump is short-cycling on and off, you should turn off the pump and call a plumber.

We would suspect that the bladder has ruptured, or that the tank itself has developed a leak. We explain waterlogged water tanks and water pump short cycling in detail at WATER TANK REPAIRS where we also explain in detail what well pump short cycling is - how to diagnose captive-air type water tank problems and how to correct these conditions by repairing or replacing the water tank bladder or the tank itself.

Regardless, short cycling of the well pump would damage the pump or pump controls. These tanks are made of steel or fiberglass, and typically have an air schrader valve at the top of the tank. The air valve is used for adjustment of the air pressure in the tank at the time of initial installation. Normally you never need to add air to these tanks after initial installation. Sketch courtesy of Carson Dunlop.

The newer type "captive air" tanks, one which use an internal bladder to contain the water separately from the air charge, can also fail. The bladder can rupture as we discussed above - you need a new tank. The tank itself can develop an air leak - you need a new tank. But these failures occur less often than with the older single chamber steel water pressure tank, largely because the tank bladder holding the water supply protects the tank interior from corrosion.

On some captive air water tanks this design is reversed. For example on the WellMate™ water tank the water is in the tank and air is in the tank bladder. This difference can confuse the burst water tank bladder diagnosis procedure which we describe below. At WellMate Diagnosis we provide separate water tank diagnosis and repair advice for captive-air water tanks in which the air is in the bladder and the water is outside the bladder in the water tank.

If the captive air water pressure tank bladder is ruptured, the air charge in the tank becomes lost over time and the tank acts like a water-logged steel tank discussed below.

If the captive air water pressure tank bladder is collapsed, defective, jammed, and stuck on itself it may not accept much volume of water, also leading to a short draw-down cycle before the pump has to turn on again. This is an unusual case but has been reported to me on occasion.

A burst water tank bladder can collapse at the water tank bottom, preventing water from leaving the tank. The result is no water pressure in the building and perhaps an inability to drain water from the water tank itself. You'll need to replace the water tank bladder or the entire water tank assembly.

See these detailed articles on bladder-type "captive air" water tank diagnosis and repair:

WATER TANK BLADDERS & CAPTIVE AIR
  How Water Pressure Tanks Work
  Bladder Type Captive Air vs. Bladderless Water Tanks
  Bladder type Water Tank Failures
  Repair for Burst Tank Bladder

Bladderless Fiberglass Water Tanks

Bladderless Fiberglass Water Pressure Tanks, such as the WellMate traditional hydro-pneumatic water tank operate similar to the steel water pressure tank, that is, no internal bladder is used to maintain and separate the tank's air charge and water charge pressure. These tanks incorporate a tank-top mounted air volume control and offer the advantage (over steel water tanks) of no risk of rust perforation and leak at the water tank.

At WellMate Diagnosis we provide separate water tank diagnosis and repair advice for this water tank type.

OLDER STEEL TANKS - Bladder-less Traditional Steel Water Pressure & Water Storage Tanks

There may be lots of kinds of tanks found in buildings, storing water, fuel, hot water, or serving other purposes. We review quite a few of them here and include photographs to help you figure out what's what.

Steel Water Storage/Pressure Tanks

The water storage tank in the photographs above is leaking, having rusted through from inside the tank. (This tank is less needed for storage than to smooth or regulate the water pressure in the building as the pump cycles on and off) Leaks like the ones in these photos can also leak the air charge out of the upper portion of the tank when the in-tank water level is below the leak point. So you might trace a water pump short cycling problem to an air loss in the tank to a leak in the tank itself.

How to detect a waterlogged water tank

If a steel water tank has lost its air charge, or most of it, the condensate line on the tank will be high, near the top few inches of the tank side (unless you live in an arid climate where there is never condensation on the water tank anyway.). Sketch courtesy of Carson Dunlop.

In this condition the steel tank is called a waterlogged water pressure tank. Such tanks will also be heavy and won't be so easily rocked or moved - a simple test we make to see if the tank is empty or full of water. (Don't move the tank so much that you cause a water piping leak!

When to add air to a water tank

The discussion on how to add air to a water pressure tank at this website beginning at HOW TO ADD AIR applies principally to older steel water tanks that don't use an internal bladder to keep water and air separate.

In these simpler single-internal chamber steel tanks the air charge is lost either by absorption into the water as it passes through the tank during use, or it may be lost by leaks at the tank or nearby plumbing fittings.

Automatic ways to add air to a water tank

Some old-style bladderless steel water pressure tanks are equipped with an air volume control device which is intended to put makeup air into the tank as air is lost or absorbed. I discuss these further at 1: AIR VOLUME CONTROLS but suffice it to say these often stop working. But if you see one on your water tank you know this is a non-bladder type older style water pressure tank.

Attic Expansion Tanks for Heating Boilers

Attic expansion tanks and pressure relief systems for boilers: Don't confuse an old heating system attic-mounted expansion tank like the one shown here for a water tank storage tank or a range boiler. The heating system expansion tank will be connected to the heating system radiators or basement boiler and may have a simple overflow pipe to permit excessive water (or system pressure) to spill outside. Systems which rely on a remote attic-mounted expansion tank are less safe since than a boiler that has a pressure and temperature relief valve mounted right on or at the boiler. It's an easy fix, usually, to just add a relief valve on or at the boiler. See Expansion Tanks for details about expansion tanks and pressure tanks used on heating systems. In identifying old steel tanks found in building basements and attics, also see HOT WATER TANKS, RANGE BOILERS.

Basement Expansion Tanks for Heating Boilers

Our client is pointing to a do-it-yourself insulating job on a water heater. But that reddish-brown horizontal tank over his head is an expansion tank for the hydronic heating boiler in this building. This is not a water storage tank, it's not a range boiler, it's an expansion tank. This basement expansion tank is expected to be on a heating boiler that also has a pressure and temperature relief valve. See Expansion Tanks for details about expansion tanks and pressure tanks used on heating systems.

Indirect-Fired Domestic Hot Water Tanks

Indirect fired water heaters: In some other buildings domestic hot water is produced by cycling hot water from a hydronic or steam boiler through a loop inside of a steel tank. The water in the tank is heated by the water in the coil. Modern systems using this approach use the term indirect-fired water heater and such systems are sold by various companies such as the SuperStorTM unit shown here as the white tank to the right of the heating boiler. Indirect fired water heater tanks for domestic hot water, such as the SuperStorTM are usually located close to the heating boiler and will have both cold and hot water lines leaving the tank to supply the building with domestic hot water and a loop of piping that runs between the [usually the] bottom of the tank and a nearby heating boiler. Follow the pipes to see which pipes are performing which function.

The range boiler is an old concept in use for about 100 years. Indirect fired water heaters are a modern system and are in current sales and use.

See HOT WATER TANKS, INDIRECT FIRED for details about this type of water heater.

See WATER HEATERS for details about residential hot water systems.

LARGE WATER TANKS - Large Water Storage Tanks, Why They Are Used, What They Imply about Well Recovery Rate or Well Yield

Details about the use of large water storage tanks to handle low-flow wells or limited municipal water supply are provided at WATER STORAGE TANKS, LARGE. Excerpts are below.

As we explain at WATER STORAGE TANKS, LARGE, large water storage tanks, such as the one whose end is visible in our photo (left) usually mean that the well flow rate is very slow, even inadequate by contemporary standards. The life expectancy or future usability of the well must be questioned. We explain how people determine the necessary water tank size and volume at WATER TANK SIZE & VOLUME .

Oil Storage Tanks in Buildings

This is a typical indoor oil storage tank in a residential building. We have a lot to say about oil tanks in buildings, oil tank leaks, environmental risks, potential costly cleanups, and effects of oil tank problems on the heating system and its operation. For information about oil tank issues and solutions see Heating Oil Underground & Above ground Oil Storage Tank Leaks, Testing, Problems & Solutions, Home Buyer's / Home Owner's Guide. These online articles answer most questions about above ground or buried oil storage tanks. Watch out: What's really important in this indoor oil storage tank photo is the black wall-mounted gauge our client is pointing to. He's found an indication that there is or was a buried underground oil tank at this property - potentially a costly environmental problem if that tank leaked. Given the leakage all over the old oil tank that we can see indoors in this photo, we weren't too optimistic about what might have happened with an old outdoor buried tank. Some testing was ordered.

OPEN WATER TANKS - gravity fed water systems or pump-up rooftop systems with and without pressure-boosting pumps and water tanks

Rooftop Water Tanks or Free-standing Water Tanks at Ground Level

Plastic & Fiberglass Water Storage Tanks - HDPE Tanks

Reader Herman Voegel has pointed out that an up-and-coming area of storage containers includes spun-plastic tanks.

Specifically, new storage tank types include High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), currently available as tank storage for water, chemicals, waste oils, etc.. General HDPE containers come in all shapes and sizes and are quite rugged and relatively cheap compared to using typical 12-gauge steel home heating oil tanks.

The ruggedness of HDPE plastic containers comes from their material density which is typically at a minimum specific-gravity of 1.7, and for heavy-duty at 1.9.

Home heating oil has not yet been approved for storage in HDPE tanks, basically for two reasons:

1. UV (ultra-violet) light degrading HDPE plastics over time, making them weak, and
2. Problems with slight permeation seepage through their plastic walls.

However, fixes have been put in place to properly address these problems. UV-light is checked by using special color additives that prevent their light from penetrating and degrading the plastic walls. Permeation or seepage of oil through container walls is checked by coating them with fiberglass.

Unfortunately, even with these fixes, HDPE plastics for heating oil storage have yet to be universally approved and accepted.

Readers should also see PLASTIC CONTAINERS, TANKS, TYPES where we describe health and other concerns involving plastic tanks and other containers used for water storage.

Range Boilers for Domestic Hot Water Systems

Range boilers are vertical or horizontal hot water systems whose water is heated by circulating the water from within a water storage tank (the range boiler) through a heat exchanger which is inside or connected to the exterior of a heating boiler. The water in the hot water tank range boiler is heated by circulating its water through the heat exchanger which itself is heated by the water inside or from the heating boiler.

The sketch illustrates how a very early type of coal-fired water heater range boiler worked. As homeowners shifted fuels from coal to oil or gas and installed central heating boilers, often the range boiler water heater was adapted to work with these systems as well, as you can see in the photograph.

As with the indirect-fired boiler described next, range boiler water heating tanks are usually located close to the heating boiler and will have both cold and hot water lines leaving the tank to supply the building with domestic hot water and a loop of piping that runs between the bottom of the hot water tank and a nearby heating boiler. Follow the pipes to see which pipes are performing which function. Our photo shows a silver steel range boiler hiding back in the corner behind the newer (though pretty old) gas fired water heater. (Notice also the efflorescence on the masonry block foundation, where the downspout has been spilling by the house foundation?)

See HOT WATER TANKS, RANGE BOILERS for details about range boiler water heaters.

See WATER HEATERS for details about residential hot water systems

What's the difference between a range boiler, an indirect fired water heater, and an expansion tank?

The range boiler (HOT WATER TANKS, RANGE BOILERS) is an old concept in use for about 100 years. A similar concept is found at indirect fired water heaters (HOT WATER TANKS, INDIRECT FIRED), a modern system and are in current sales and use. But indirect water heaters use a circulator pump to cycle heating boiler water between the boiler and a separate hot water tank. Inside the hot water tank a coil containing boiler water heats the physically separate domestic hot water in the tank.

Also see Expansion Tanks for a guide to smaller tanks used to absorb pressure increases on hot water heating systems.

Rooftop Water Storage Systems

Details about rooftop water systems, tanks, and booster pumps are at ROOFTOP WATER TANKS. Excerpts are below:

Rooftop water storage tanks In some areas, Mexico, for example in our photo (above-left), rooftop water reservoirs are supplied intermittently with water from a water main in the street. See details at ROOFTOP WATER TANKS and also see CISTERNS. We discuss water pressure booster pump and tank systems in detail at PUMP, WATER PRESSURE BOOSTING

Open Water Tanks Indoors

At some locations there is an up-hill or rooftop water source which is fed into the building entirely by gravity. The open top water tank in these photos used a simple float valve to let water into this storage tank. See details at CISTERNS.

Cisterns for Water Storage

See details at CISTERNS. Excerpts are below.

Basement & Outdoor Cisterns, are often located in the basement or courtyard of buildings where they collect rainwater for future use. In the U.S. cisterns were often located in the basement of a (pre-1900) home. This cistern was originally filled by downspouts directing roof runoff into the basement.

Details about cisterns are found at CISTERNS.

Rainwater Storage Tanks & Cisterns

In arid areas such as the U.S. Southwest and parts of Mexico, very large cisterns are often placed in a courtyard where they collect rainwater for use during the dry season. The above-ground water cistern storage tank shown in our photo (left) is located in Mexico and is discussed at PASSIVE SOLAR HOME, LOW COST. Rainwater for this cistern is collected from a near-flat rooftop and channeled to a large fiberglass holding tank - the blue tank in our photograph, (above left). Piping also permits directing water into this tank from a well-fed cistern located atop the concrete block tower). See rainwater collection and storage cistern details at CISTERNS.

Water Pressure Boosting Systems

When do you need a new water tank?

Details about when to replace a damaged water pressure tank or water storage tank and also about where to locate the water tank are at WATER TANK REPLACEMENT. Excerpts are below.

When an older type (non-captive-air) tank needs replacement (for example because it has rusted through and has perforations leaking water or air, or if adding air frequently becomes a hassle, you'll want the newer type of "captive air" or "bladder" tank. If your water storage tank looks like this one, or if you see a "pinhole" leak, it may be possible to make a temporary emergency repair using a rubber washer and screw, as we describe at .WATER TANK REPLACEMENT But you need a new water tank.

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• Additional technical contributors & reference sources for this article are listed below.

Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

WATER PUMP SAFETY
WATER TANK TYPES: WATER, OIL, EXPANSION, ALL
  BLADDERLESS FIBERGLASS WATER TANKS
  CAPTIVE AIR TANKS
  CISTERNS
  EXPANSION TANKS, Attic
  EXPANSION TANKS, Basement
  EXPANSION TANKS, BOILERS
  HOT WATER TANKS, RANGE BOILERS
  HOT WATER TANKS, INDIRECT FIRED
  OIL STORAGE TANKS
  OPEN WATER TANKS, Indoors
  PLASTIC & FIBERGLASS TANKS, HDPE
  INDIRECT-FIRED HOT WATER TANKS
  PLASTIC CONTAINERS, TANKS, TYPES
  RANGE BOILERS
  REPLACEMENT WATER TANKS
  RAINWATER STORAGE TANKS
  ROOFTOP WATER TANKS
  STEEL WATER TANKS
  WATER PRESSURE BOOSTING
  WATER PRESSURE TANKS, BLADDER TYPE
  WATER PRESSURE TANKS, FIBERGLASS
  WATER PRESSURE TANKS, STEEL
  WATER STORAGE TANKS, GROUND LEVEL
  WATER STORAGE TANKS, LARGE
  WATER STORAGE TANKS, OPEN
  WATER STORAGE TANKS, ROOFTOP
WATER TANK REPAIRS
  CONTROLS & SWITCHES on WATER TANKS
  INTERMITTENT CYCLING WATER PUMPS
  SHORT CYCLING WATER PUMPS
  SHORT CYCLING CAUSES
  SHORT CYCLING CAUSE: WELL PIPE LEAKS
  SHORT CYCLING DIAGNOSIS TABLE
  WATER TANK AIR, HOW TO ADD
  WATER TANK AIR VOLUME CONTROLS
  WATER TANK AIR ADD AT AIR VALVE
  WATER TANK AIR ADD BY DRAINING
  WATER TANK AIR HOW MUCH TO ADD
  WATER TANK AIR HOW OFTEN TO ADD
  WATER TANK AIR INLET VALVE
  WATER TANK AIR LOSS SIGNS
  WATER TANK AIR VALVE REPAIRS
  WATER TANK AIR VOLUME CONTROLS
  WATER TANK BLADDERS & CAPTIVE AIR
    How Water Pressure Tanks Work
    Bladder Type Captive Air vs. Bladderless Water Tanks
    Bladder type Water Tank Failures
    Repair for Burst Tank Bladder
    WATER TANK BLADDER PRESSURE ADJUSTMENT
WATER TANK CAPTIVE AIR vs TRADITIONAL WellMate
|WATER TANK LIFE EXPECTANCY
WATER TANK PRESSURE CALCULATIONS
WATER TANK REPLACEMENT
WATER TANK SIZE & VOLUME
WATER TANKS HOW THEY WORK

• Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd., 120 Carlton Street Suite 407, Toronto ON M5A 4K2. (416) 964-9415 1-800-268-7070 info@carsondunlop.com. Thanks to Alan Carson and Bob Dunlop, for permission to use illustrations from their publication, The Illustrated Home which illustrates construction details and building components. Carson Dunlop provides home inspection education including the ASHI-adopted Home Inspection Training Program (home study course), publications such as the Home Reference Book, report writing materials including the Horizon report writer, and home inspect ion services. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.
• Amtrol - AMTROL, Inc., Corporate Office, 1400 Division Road, West Warwick, R.I. 02893 Tel: (401) 884-6300
  Fax: (401) 884-4773 The company's website is at www.amtrol.com; also see Amtrol's installation and instruction manual for their Well-X-Trol water pressure control tank, a PDF file
• Water Storage: Tanks, Cisterns, Aquifers, and Ponds for Domestic Supply, Fire and Emergency Use--Includes How to Make Ferrocement Water Tanks, Art Ludwig, Oasis Design (May 30, 2005), ISBN-10: 0964343363, ISBN-13: 978-0964343368, Quoting:
  A do-it-yourself guide to designing, building, and maintaining water tanks, cisterns and ponds, and sustainably managing groundwater storage. It will help you with your independent water system, fire protection, and disaster preparedness, at low cost and using principles of ecological design. Includes building instructions for several styles of ferro cement water tanks.
  
  
• Thanks to aerospace engineer Herman Vogel, July 2010, for providing an update on High Density Polyethylene HDPE storage tanks for water, chemicals, waste oils, etc.
  

Water Supply & Drain Piping, Wells, Pumps, Water Supply Equipment

• Access Water Energy, PO Box 2061, Moorabbin, VIC 3189, Australia, Tel: 1300 797 758, email: sales@accesswater.com.au Moorabbin Office: Kingston Trade Centre, 100 Cochranes Rd, Moorabbin, VIC 3189
  Australian supplier of: Greywater systems, Solar power to grid packages, Edwards solar systems, Vulcan compact solar systems, water & solar system pumps & controls, and a wide rage of above ground & under ground water storage tanks: concrete, steel, plastic, modular, and bladder storage tanks.
• Cheating on water tests: Testing Water for Real Estate Transactions - make sure your water test is valid
• Diagnosing Clogged Drains: Is it a blocked drain or the septic system? - A First Step for Homeowners
• Drinking Water Contaminant Levels - Maximum Allowed
• Drinking Water Supply, Contamination Levels, Water Testing Procedures
• Drinking Water Testing Advice for home buyers home owners home inspectors
• Interpreting Drinking Water Test Results and Correcting Unsatisfactory Water
• Lead Contamination in Drinking Water: Testing & Correction - Advice (This Article)
• Lead Testing & Correcting Contamination from Lead Water Supply Lines/Entry Mains - Lead Pipe Problems/Advice
• Life Expectancy of Water Pumps - Well Pumps: how long should a water pump last? What affects pump life?
• Life Expectancy of Wells & Water Tanks how long should a water well and its components last?
• Plumbing Diagnosis & Repair: Water supply, drainage, septic systems, water testing, water contamination, defective plumbing materials & products.
• Shock or Chlorinate a Well, How to - Procedure for Shocking a Well to (temporarily or maybe longer) "Correct" Bacterial Contamination
• Smart Tank, Installation Instructions, Flexcon Industries, 300 Pond St., Randolph MA 02368, www.flexconind.com, Tel: 800-527-0030 - web search 07/24/2010, original source: http://www.flexconind.com/pdf/st_install.pdf
• Typical Shallow Well One Line Jet Pump Installation, Grove Electric, G&G Electric & Plumbing, 1900 NE 78th St., Suite 101, Vancouver WA 98665 www.grovelectric.com - web search -7/15/2010 original source: http://www.groverelectric.com/howto/38_Typical%20Jet%20Pump%20Installation.pdf
• Typical Deep Well Two Line Jet Pump Installation, Grove Electric, G&G Electric & Plumbing, 1900 NE 78th St., Suite 101, Vancouver WA 98665 www.grovelectric.com - web search -7/15/2010 original source: http://www.groverelectric.com/howto/38_Typical%20Jet%20Pump%20Installation.pdf
• Water Fact Sheet #3, Using Low-Yielding Wells, Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension, School of Forest Resources, web search 07/24/2010, original source: http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/pdfs/XH0002.pdf
• Water pressure tanks - how to diagnose the need for air, how to add air, stop water pump short cycling to avoid damage - water storage water pressure tank safety.
• Water pump and pressure tank repair diagnosis & cost an specific case offers an example of diagnosis of loss of water pressure, loss of water, and analyzes the actual repair cost
• Water pressure tank failures & water pump short cycling diagnosis and repair
• Water Supply & Drain Piping, water and drain pipe types, inspection, diagnosis, repairs, problem materials, clogging, etc.
• Water Tests & Fees this water test fee schedule applies when testing is combined with other onsite building inspection services
• Water Testing: background comments on classes of water contaminants, & links to home buyer advice about water testing, drinking water, water supply
• Water Requirements, Home & Outdoor Living

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

• Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.

The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 2010, $69.00 U.S., is available from Carson Dunlop, and from the InspectAPedia bookstore. The 2010 edition of the Home Reference Book is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. InspectAPedia.com ® author/editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume.

• Crystal Clear Supply provides portable ceramic water filter purifiers and portable reverse osmosis water treatment equipment - see http://www.crystalclearsupply.com/category_s/7.htm
• Handbook of Disinfectants and Antiseptics, Joseph M. Ascenzi (Editor), CRC, 1995, ISBN-10: 0824795245 ISBN-13: 978-0824795245 "The evaluation of chemical germicides predates the golden age of microbiology..." -
  This well-focused, up-to-date reference details the current medical uses of antiseptics and disinfectants -- particularly in the control of hospital-acquired infections -- presenting methods for evaluating products to obtain regulatory approval and examining chemical, physical, and microbiological properties as well as the toxicology of the most widely used commercial chemicals.
• Potable Aqua® emergency drinking water germicidal tablets are produced by the Wisconsin Pharmacal Co., Jackson WI 53037. 800-558-6614 pharmacalway.com
• Principles and Practice of Disinfection, Preservation and Sterilization (Hardcover)
  by A. D. Russell (Editor), W. B. Hugo (Editor), G. A. J. Ayliffe (Editor), Blackwell Science, 2004. ISBN-10: 1405101997, ISBN-13: 978-1405101998.
  "This superb book is the best of its kind available and one that will undoubtedly be useful, if not essential, to workers in a variety of industries. Thirty-one distinguished specialists deal comprehensively with the subject matter indicated by the title ... The book is produced with care, is very readable with useful selected references at the end of each chapter and an excellent index. It is an essential source book for everyone interested in this field. For pharmacy undergraduates, it will complement the excellent text on pharmaceutical microbiology by two of the present editors."
  The Pharmaceutical Journal: "This is an excellent book. It deals comprehensively and authoritatively with its subject with contributions from 31 distinguished specialists. There is a great deal to interest all those involved in hospital infection ... This book is exceptionally well laid out. There are well chosen references for each chapter and an excellent index. It is highly recommended." The Journal of Hospital Infection.: "The editors and authors must be congratulated for this excellent treatise on nonantibiotic antimicrobial measures in hospitals and industry ... The publication is highly recommended to hospital and research personnel, especially to clinical microbiologists, infection-control and environmental-safety specialists, pharmacists, and dieticians."
  New England Journal of Medicine: City Hospital, Birmingham, UK. Covers the many methods of the elimination or prevention of microbial growth. Provides an historical overview, descriptions of the types of antimicrobial agents, factors affecting efficacy, evaluation methods, and types of resistance. Features sterilization methods, and more. Previous edition: c1999. DNLM: Sterilization--methods.
• U.S. Army Field Manual 21-10, Field Hygiene and Sanitation, 1988, web search 07/02/2010, original source: http://www.enlisted.info/field-manuals/fm-21-10-field-hygiene-and-sanitation.shtml
  The purpose of this manual is to assist individual soldiers, unit commanders, leaders and field sanitation teams in preventing disease and environmental injuries. The manual provides information on preventive medicine measures (PMM) to the individual soldier as well as essential information for the unit commander, unit leaders, and the unit field sanitation team on applying unit level PMM.
• When Technology Fails, Matthew Stein, Chelsea Green Publisher, 2008,493 pages. ISBN-10: 1933392452 ISBN-13: 978-1933392455, "... how to find and sterilize water in the face of utility failure, as well as practical information for dealing with water-quality issues even when the public tap water is still flowing". Mr. Stein's website is www.whentechfails.com/
• ...