If this has already been covered, I apologize for not finding it and I would appreciate links to relevant material.

I've been wondering if it would be practical to set up a series of barrels, or non-operational water heaters, where the municipal water supply flows through each container before being used by the household. The goal would be to have a fresh supply of water on hand without the need to refresh it manually on a regular basis.

Pros and cons are desired and I can take the heat if it's just an outright stupid idea.

Thanks for any info that you might provide.