Aluminium Freshwater tank - bad taste

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eggagent

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The Rodman I have has a large aluminium freshwater tank. The boat is 12 years old. Basically we cannot use the water other than for washing etc due to the water tasting funny, possibly metallic or old. I've tried the additives with little success and thinking now of taking the tank out if possible and fitting a TEK tank which we had on the previous boat for 10 years with no bad taste at all.
Can this problem be overcome?

Appreciate any pointers.

thanks
Peter
 
Firstly, are you sure it's the tank? 12 year old hoses taste pretty bad and replacement may solve the problem.
Having tried most of the additive products with limited success, I now scrub my tank with a brush and detergent every three years or so. I had to add a second inspection hatch to do it but it was well worth it. One advantage of a metal tank is that they do not taste at all, so something else is at the root of your problem.
Is the water you are adding of good quality? The water on tap at our marina in Greece is very poor, brackish and almost undrinkable, so we buy good stuff from a road tanker.
Finally, a General Ecology Seagull IV filter works wonders. We have one on the boat and another in the motorhome.
 
eggagent said:
The Rodman I have has a large aluminium freshwater tank. The boat is 12 years old. Basically we cannot use the water other than for washing etc due to the water tasting funny, possibly metallic or old. I've tried the additives with little success and thinking now of taking the tank out if possible and fitting a TEK tank which we had on the previous boat for 10 years with no bad taste at all.
Can this problem be overcome?

Appreciate any pointers.

thanks
Peter
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As Vyv says, it is unlikely to be your tank-our boat has aluminium for all its tanks and the water tastes OK.

I use Milton at every fill-a cooks " splosh " and we have the filter Vyv recomends for drinking water.

We fill loose 2litre bottles and keep them in the fridge.

Suspect the pipes.
 
I agree with the above, my boat has an alloy water tank; the only problem I've had since 1978 was when topping up the water in St Peter Port in the mid 1980's, when we both suffered severe stomach upsets I looked in the tank and found fibrous weed.
 
Have you tried a good strong dose (say 2 teaspoons per gallon) of VWP Cleanser/Steriliser .....commonly used in wine/beer making? Best in warm water if possible; and left for at least 30 minutes, but no harm much longer. When I use it on beer bottles I am always amazed at the crud that floats off which ordinary bleach does not touch. (I use it on the boat tanks, but -perhaps fortunately- can't see the crud :) ). It does need several good rinses with clean water afterwards.

Edit: reduced suggested amount from 4 to 2 teaspoons
 
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What we used to clean our water tanks was one cup of bleach per 40 gallons of water, run the taps so the bleached water cleans the pipes. Leave for 12 hours then empty the tank, then flush with fresh water using each tap in turn to clear the pipes. Then fill.
 
I think the advice to clean and sterilize the existing tank my well work, but it rang a bell that the spun aluminium bottles for fuel are bare whilst those intended for drinking water are varnished inside to prevent giving the water just such a tang. The TekTanks solution will definitely work, but another alternative would be to fit a flexible bladder within the tank should sterilization fail to clear the problem.

Rob.
 
Another side to it; in the early 1990's there was a fad for having water filters fitted in the kitchen at home, - a sort of pyramid selling idea.

Fortunately not many were taken in, and nowadays I use the water from marinas etc just to boil first and make tea etc; if it's going into squash or similar - and especially if someone is seasick - I use mineral water out of a big bottle.

For coastal cruising I find my boat's water tank is used less and less these days.
 
Thanks very much for all your suggestions. I will have a go to see if it is possible to cleanse both the tank and the pipes. The water supply from Titchmarsh Marina / Essex is fine and we never had any problems. We take this water from a standpipe to small container for making tea and no funny taste at all. Lets see if Milton / VWP Cleanser/Steriliser or regular bleach does the job, will let you know.
 
vyv_cox said:
Bleach may not be a great idea with an aluminium tank. It isn't going to poison you, or corrode through the tank, but it will turn the surface of the aluminium black and can result in the formation of gels. Google 'bleach aluminium reaction' for more info, here's the first hit. http://www.ehow.com/info_8778746_bleach-do-aluminum.html
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Aluminium in drinking water is linked with Alzheimers.
I would want a lot of convincing before using an aluminium tank.
 
rob2 said:
but it rang a bell that the spun aluminium bottles for fuel are bare whilst those intended for drinking water are varnished inside to prevent giving the water just such a tang.
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Good point. Genuine (and expensive) SIGG bottles have always made that distinction. I just checked an assortment of recently purchased cheap 'imitation' aluminum bottles and all are lacquered inside except for one (a hip-flask!). So far all have stood up to various types of alcohol and/or water :D
 
lw395 said:
Aluminium in drinking water is linked with Alzheimers.
I would want a lot of convincing before using an aluminium tank.
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Wasn't that theory about aluminum cooking pans (and then only if cooking acidic things) discredited long ago?

My concerns regarding an aluminum tank would be more to do with brittleness / welding difficulty? Is there any significant cost saving over S/S .....or is it down to weight saving?
 
VicMallows said:
Wasn't that theory about aluminum cooking pans (and then only if cooking acidic things) discredited long ago?

...?
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I don't recall seeing it discredited.
A cooking pan is a bit different, 99% of the time it will be dry and generate a good tough oxide layer.
The bottom of a tank is permanently wet and you don't know what else is in the water. Various minerals, Chlorine, Fluoride,.....
And of course 'aluminium' covers a multitude of sins.


Best to experiment on 'other people'?
 
eggagent said:
Thanks very much for all your suggestions. I will have a go to see if it is possible to cleanse both the tank and the pipes. The water supply from Titchmarsh Marina / Essex is fine and we never had any problems. We take this water from a standpipe to small container for making tea and no funny taste at all. Lets see if Milton / VWP Cleanser/Steriliser or regular bleach does the job, will let you know.
Click to expand...

Good luck trying to clean the pipes, my experience is replacement is the answer, and don't forget the tank overflow pipe, they are usually the worst and will reinfect a cleaned tank at first refill.
 
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