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Sanitary water may be found in closed containers (C) Daniel FriedmanHow Much Disinfectant to Purify Drinking Water
Water disinfectant concentration & necessary wait time

This drinking water disinfection article gives the details of the amount of different types of disinfectant needed to treat drinking water - the disinfectant concentration needed to make water safe to drink.

We explain the increased treatment time or contact time needed depending on the actual chlorine concentration in different bleach products, the actual water temperature and depending on whether or not the treated water is cloudy.

This article series outlines methods to purify or sanitize drinking water in an emergency following a disaster such as an earthquake, flood, or hurricane.

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How Much Disinfectant to Use in Drinking Water?

Sanitary water may be found in closed containers (C) Daniel FriedmanArticle Contents:

The amount of disinfectant needed to purify water depends on how contaminated the water is to begin with. If you are using liquid iodine and have no better authoritative information, try a teaspoon of iodine per gallon of water. Other experts recommend:

The table below is derived from U.S. Army field manual FM 21-10 Chapter 2: Individual Preventive Medicine Procedures

Drops of Bleach to Be Added to a One Quart Canteen For Emergency Drinking Water
Available Chlorine Clear Water Cold or Cloudy Water
1% 10 20
4—6% 2 4
7--10% 1 2

Wait Time & Water Temperature when adding a disinfectant, before drinking water

Water Disinfection Does Not Remove All Contaminants

Municipal water supplies are generally safe as their water treatment efficacy is monitored regularly as required by federal regulations. But private water supplies may be unsafe and are almost certainly unsafe after disasters such as flooding.

Watch out: as we report throughout this article series, different disinfection methods vary in their effectiveness in combating different types of water contaminants. If you rely on a single disinfection method, for example chlorine disinfection, your water supply could still be contaminated by cryptosporidium, or if chemical contaminants are present, those, too, might remain.

Details are at WATER DISINFECTION LIMITATIONS.

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