Comments on: To Disinfect Water Cheaply, Just Add Sunlight (and Salt or Lime Juice)

By: Pippa

Pippa — Sun, 20 May 2012 14:23:00 +0000

It works even better if the bottles of water are placed on shiny corrugated steel, usually available anywhere as it’s use for roofing. Sorry if this was in the video – link here too slow to watch. (Will keep the link and see it when I get home!)

By: Jess

Jess — Fri, 18 May 2012 06:03:29 +0000

@IW
yes they addressed in the video the concerns of this method. some resorted back to boiling because of the free radicals released by the plastic bottles. One man understated this by saying that we are constantly exposed to free radicals, but i personally would not drink these free radicals because why would i want to expose my body to these by drinking them….

By: SC

SC — Fri, 18 May 2012 04:18:23 +0000

@IW, I expect if you’re in a position where you’re depending on disinfecting your water in a bottle with sunlight, you’re probably not in a position to be too picky about the possibility of a few chemicals from the bottle finding their way into the water as well. Thirst or dysentery will both kill you a lot faster than BPA will.

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 18 May 2012 00:41:59 +0000

@Michael A Smith – “lime juice, on the other hand, cuts down the amount of time necessary to disinfect a two liter bottle of water” – yes, instead of salt and bentonite. The last paragraph of the article explains how certain compounds contained in lime juice kill pathogens.

By: IW

IW — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:55:47 +0000

Any word on what chemicals are leeched into the water from the plastic bottle being exposed to sunlight?!

Any word on what percentage of actual UV light makes it through the glass, if a glass bottle is used to avoid leeching of chemicals from the plastic ones?!

By: Kevin N

Kevin N — Thu, 17 May 2012 03:05:57 +0000

Sunlight is the best disinfectant. -Louis Brandeis

By: tOM Trottier

tOM Trottier — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:44:29 +0000

Pasteurising works too – raise it to 62C for a few seconds. Boiling is overkill.

By: Michael A. Smith

Michael A. Smith — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:39:07 +0000

@G Wilkins – only if your sun-tea has salt and bentonite in it, and is not cloudy. Or are they saying you can use citrus *instead* of salt and bentonite?

By: G Wilkins

G Wilkins — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:21:31 +0000

Does that mean adding lemons to your sun-tea while it’s brewing will negate the potential bacteria bloom that people are worrying about these days?

By: Dave F.

Dave F. — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:59:18 +0000

When in need of clean water and only cloudy is available, I will be sure to ask for it with a lime and on the rocks (of salt).