I am beginning to put away jugs of water. I have well water with a softener. I know how much bleach to treat the water with but is it necessary to treat the water if it is coming from a safe source to begin with?

Unfortunately, it is necessary to treat the water if you intend to store it. Here is a link to a calculator that I use for adding the right amount of bleach.

http://www.csgnetwork.com/h2oemergencypurifycalc.html

Cheers

from personal experence i would say no..i lived in a home that
had good well water..i put a 5 gallon jug away in case of power
failures and the pump would not run..this sat in a back room
for over a year and showed no change in taste or appearance..
same with good lake water..i take a jug of canoe country water
from the last lake i paddle out of in northern minnesota on
the last trip of the year and save it over the winter..it never
shows any change --i have a glass in the spring and put the
rest on the tomatos as sort of a welcome summer rite..

I take back my first post. I think it is prudent, but not necessary. I do it as part of our water storage program, including sanitizing the containers before filling them.

If the water ends up stored for longer than you intended, in less than optimal containers and conditions, 8 drops of bleach per gallon of water seems like easy and cheap insurance against dysentery to me.

and i'll say that in some parts of the country i would filter,
boil and treat water before i store it..and then i would only
use it to wash dishes--water quality changes so much from
place to place that you have to use your judgement on this..

if the water is sterile, and the container impermeable, it will stay sterile until the container is breached-loss of sterility is event-related, not time related. There may be an issue related to leaching of chemicals from the container itself into the water, or through the container if it is water tight, but not impermeable. if the water is not sterile, but is potable at the time of storage, bacteria will multiply if they have something to eat-its the argument against using recycled milk jugs for storage. Maybe the right answer is to save your clorox and plan on treating the water after you open it. Much of the world survives on water that is not as clean as the water in my cellar sump. Chances are that the water you store will be okay, and certainly better than nothing. Most of the diseases that are transmissible by water take longer to kill you than does dehydration, and most of those diseases are self-limiting or treatable.

I've stored water for years without bleach. If the water and the containers are clean to begin with, what is going to contaminate them?

I keep my water cool and dark, and it's always there when I need it. It may taste kind of flat, but all I have to do is pour it back and forth between two clean containers, and that seems to do it.

Sue

The Alameda County Water District (California) has a FAQ on storing water for use in emergencies that gives their recommendations on treating water for storage:
http://www.acwd.org/faq.php5?category_id=57#18

Thanks for the replies. To be on the safe side I will treat the water wth 8 drops of bleach per gallon. This should ensure no algae growth. My plan is to put away several 7 gallon jugs to start and find maybe drive a point this summer. Water at 30 feet is supposed to be good. My house well is 200 feet and the water has a high iron level so use without a softener is not an option. My other choice put is a disconnect switch from the power grid and set up a generator to run the well pump and softener to draft water as its needed.

Huck

Most algaes won't grow without light. I live in the moss capital of the U.S., if not the world, Washington State.

Sue