I recently came into possession of a Blue plastic 55 gallon drum. Food Grade but had been used to store Apple Juice in it's previous life. Got this one for free, but I had thought that I might use to store water..after cleaning of course.

Planning on filling with water and bleach and rolling around the yard for a while..then take to car wash and soap blast the inside...repeat the bleach water process.

Any other ideas? Something I am missing? I would probably still filter the water through the Katadyn before drinking, but I am curious if the drums previous contents could cause a problem?

Personally I've found that the large containers are more of a PITA when it comes to "cleaning them for drinking purposes". I much prefer to keep the large containers for non potable purposes (ie. washing hands, hair clothes). I purchase cases of bottled H20 for drinking. They have more pros than cons for us (size/weight, familiarity). Not to mention we constantly rotate through them from regular usage. I'd love to have that 55 gal drum....I'd make sure it was clean (to whatever your standards will accept) and use it for non potable. But that is just me.

Yeah, it could be a PITA, but I'm willing to risk it. I have bottled water all over the house, stored here and there, but this would last for quite a while if it will work. I've got a 24,000 gallon pool for flushing and bathing, so I really just wanted a large supply of potable. I'll give it a try and see what happens.

After you get through washing it, I have found that filling it up and letting it set for a week or so does a lot to remove any residues. I would be careful of any soaps or cleaners you use. I have used the large containers but now I prefer the smaller ones-- could be I'm getting old and lazy. <img src="/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

Unless it has been left open to the air, a simple rinse should suffice.

Apple juice is pasturized, so the contents were mostly sterile.

Had you gotten your hands on one of my old charred-oak whiskey barrels I use to produce extra hard cider or calvados in, you could have hosted a block party on the rinse water. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Years ago a buddy of mine got his hands on about 5 (mostly) empty wooden barrels of (I think) Jack Daniels whisky that were going back to the plant via rail car. We quickly emptied them out into mason jars, garnering about 2 gallons apiece. I remember it was pretty sour at first, then it got better, and then my memory kind of fails me...but I do remember the next morning. <img src="/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" />