I ordered a new scepter military water can in olive drab. It holds five gallons of water. I want to have five gallons of drinking water in my basement and it might not be bad for a camping trip either.

This pushed me to it: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5geDUvZfc7dzGJd8oa6hV7msLnuEwD9FEPS0O1

We had our own water supply issues in the Hartford area about a year ago. Also, this would be great to have in the event of a hurricane.

Anyone have any experience with these cans?

http://www.sceptermilitary.com/water_containers/product_table/

I didn't see any price on those water cans. I also noticed that this is a Canadian company so you have to factor in shipping to your AO and custom (duty) fees when you purchase. You can probably find the same cans from a USA company that may save you some $$.

As for water cans in general, the 5 gallon water cans found at most outdoors stores will work fine. We have a couple that see heavy use and are holding up fine after 4-5 years. If your purchase these, ensure that you get the type that has a screw on cap for the vent hole.

These are available from Brigade Quartermaster. No need to worry about customs or import duties...

I have three in the garage right now.

Scepter cans are what the US military use right now so they will certainly handle camping duties.

However, I would point out that some people, including myself, have had cap leakage issues. Although this may be a thing of the past (the post I saw was from a few years ago, I think) you should be aware that there are three (3) caps that must be firmly sealed to prevent leakage. The big filler cap, the smaller "convenience" cap, and the vent cap.

I've already ordered mine, I went with US Cav, it was literally fourteen cents cheaper than BQ.

I posted the link to the scepter site as a manufacturers reference.

I have a couple camping style five gallon cans, but they all have spigots mounted in precarious locations, I've always felt they're begging to be broken off, or left towards the bottom, thus a small leak over time would mean an empty can.

I'll let everyone know what I think of this thing once it arrives.

Glad to hear you seem to like it timo.

Re leakage, I suppose it is possible, but these have the plastic on plastic seals, like a nalgene, so unless there is visible damage, I think I just have to make sure they're tight.

R

Sounds good to me. It should serve you well in just about any situation.

Water storage isn't really a huge issue for me. Florida, once your away from the coast a bit, has loads of water. Much of it drinkable without treatment. Not that some sort of treatment isn't wise.

Around the home I store water in re-purposed bleach and vinegar jugs, mostly one gallon. For short term emergency storage I have both five gallon buckets and collapsible five and two-and-a-half gallon containers. The collapsible units are handy as they are light and store compactly unit needed. Which makes them handy if you need to carry or store them empty.

The two-and-a-half gallon models sound redundant but five gallons of water is better than forty pound and the smaller units are handier for humping out over any distance. Or where smaller or weaker individuals are required to haul them.

Given unlimited funds and a requirement for the stored water to remain safe under the harshest conditions of man-packing, hauling, tossed around during loading, and cache in hostile conditions, and that the containers handle such abuse for years the military spec containers are justified. But my use, and my pockets, don't meet military requirements.

The Scepter water cans are great. I have a couple in my Jeep and they stand up to significant abuse. I got them after every other can I had tried had failed. Even the metal "NATO" cans would leak. They would rust through at the seams -- even those that had a coating inside.

I'm pleased to hear positive reviews. Thanks all. Money is an object, but, ultimately, water is more important to me than money!

I have >25 of them.
High Quality.

http://www.buylci.com/
Click Shop now (Top right)
Search for: Water Cans

They went up in price a bit, but still better than other places.

I have a couple with Scepter on them and some that say property of US GOV (LCI ones), they are Identical. I also have some Scepter Fuel cans (which are extremely $$ now, and hard to get but high quality).

Wow! What great prices! I've considered the fuel cans, but I'm holding off for now. I need water more than I need gasoline

How do these compare to the 7 gallon aquatinaers sold at sporting stores for $8 ($11 @ Walmart's "low" prices). I have a couple of the aquatainers and they seel a little thin, got a hole in the top of one of mine and the plasitc valves broke on both. I do like though that they use a standard pipe thread in their caps so I screw in a 1/4 turn petcock designed for water heater drains so I have hose hookup.