PEP-C sells used, food grade poly barrels for emergency water storage to local residents in the Gig Harbor and Key Peninsula areas of Washington state. In addition to emergency water supply storage, these barrels have a multitude of uses. Use them as rain barrels, store a variety of dry goods in them, or as your family’s 72 hour emergency kit container. We recommend you stash your emergency water barrels unobtrusively outside your house so that you can access them easily following a major disaster such as an earthquake.
We’re currently unable to ship our food grade barrels to residents outside of our local area due to the high shipping costs. However, you may be able to find what you’re looking for by referencing “barrels and drums” in the yellow pages of your phone book or searching for them online.
Water barrel delivery is available in our service area of Pierce county west of the Narrows Bridge. If you’re a buyer in a nearby area outside our service area, please call and arrange for a meeting place to pick up water barrels.
We’re happy to announce that water barrel delivery is now available for Gig Harbor and Key Peninsula residents in Pierce county west of the Narrows Bridge! If you’re a buyer in a nearby area outside our regular service area, no problem – just give us a call and we’ll work out a meeting place for you to pick up your water barrels.
Frequently Asked Questions About PEP-C Water Barrels
Q: What was in these barrels? Are they ok for storing water?
A: The Emergency Barrel are made of food-grade poly; they previously held food products, such as Coke syrup, soy sauce, vinegar, pickles…We recommend cleaning them thoroughly prior to using them for your own food products.
Q: What do I use to preserve, or sanitize, the water?
A: It’s very important that you review our water purification instructions by clicking here. You should only ever use plain, unscented liquid chlorine bleach with 5.25% to 6% Sodium Hypochlorite as the active ingredient for best results. And because chlorine bleach tends to lose about one-third of its potency per year, be sure to mark your bottles with a date and rotate them along with your other emergency supplies. If you need to use up old stock, just remember that you’ll have to use more bleach in proportion to purify the water.
Q: How much bleach should I use?
If your municipal water system chlorinates the water before it reaches your home, you likely won’t need to add any more unscented liquid chlorine bleach for storage. If you don’t get your water from a municipal system, you’ll want to chlorinate it yourself before storing it. Here at PEP-C, we recommend the following amounts:
Q: How long does it last then? Forever?
Although you may not need to add unscented liquid chlorine bleach to your water for storage if you get pre-chlorinated water from a municipal system, it’s generally recommended that you chlorinate your water for storage if you don’t get it from a municipal system. Although many people believe sanitized water in sealed containers will last for a long period of time, FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) recommends changing the water every six months. To do this, empty your water barrel(s), re-clean them as you did when you first purchased your barrel(s), fill with fresh water and add sanitizer. A good way to remember to do this is to mark the date on your calendar for when you need to change your stored water so you don’t forget.
