How to chlorinate well water

[HeatherFeather]

We're in the process of 'ressurecting' one of our area's (Muskoka ON) original homestead claim farms. (our property titles date back to the 1860s)

Our dug well is spring fed, and stone lined, but is not currently covered, and has probably been open for the past 10 years, just covered with some boards. The test results came back with a higher than acceptable coliform count; we're expecting to clear things up once its covered properly, and have a whole home filter and UV sterilizer....but that won't be for another month or so, as we're currently without power, and septic ect, and need to do plumbing ect.

We're buying bottled water for ourselves, the cat, the dog and the adult chooks seem fine on the untreated well water, however I don't want to give it to the day old chicks we just got.

I'd like to treat it with chlorine the way that municipal supplies are...but am not sure how much chlorine to use.

I've put a half teaspoon into a 5 gallon pail and used it to wash my dishes ect. but it seemed more bleachy than what I remember municipal water to be.

Does anyone know how many drops I should put into a 5 gallon pail and how long I should let it stand before serving it to my chicks?

 

[featherz]

Not sure if they are still in business but we bought a cheap inline chlorinator for our wellwater from www.budgetwater.com. It's a little pump that attaches to a big reservoir that you put a very small amount of chlorine in - about 1/2 cup I think to 25? Gallons.. (I'd have to check). Then I use carbon filters on our faucet to get rid of any chlorine that may be left. We did it to kill the sulfur water we have here.

There's also a filter you can put in that re-cleans the water, and we did buy this, but it's been sitting in our garage unused for almost a year since hubby doesn't want to deal with it.

DIsclaimer - we had no coliform bacteria in our water, so I don't know what to do for that. They do make those little chlorine tablets for campers.. maybe those would work?

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

1 TSP will treat 5 gallons
Let it stand 30 minutes

 

[HeatherFeather]

Thanks Featherz and Bear Foot Farm.

1 tsp for 5 g? really? I tried 1/2 and it seemed like a pool. I didn't let it stand long though.

The chlorine injector sounds cool--but right now we haven't any electricity, so aquiring anything needing a pump isn't the best idea. Also its going to be short term- I'm hoping we'll have power/pump/well/septic all operational in the next 4 weeks.

thanks much.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

1 tsp for 5 g? really? I tried 1/2 and it seemed like a pool. I didn't let it stand long though

It smells strong because it evaporates quickly
Really you could probably get by with less considering all the other bacteria chickens ingest with no ill effects.

The 1 Tsp is enough to make it safe for humans​