How Much Water Do I Need?
Well, it comes down to how long you want to prepare for, and how comfortable you want to be.
Try to stock at least a 28 day supply. Each person child or adult in your household will need one gallon of water per day. One half gallon of water each day for drinking. The other half gallon is for adding to food and washing.

While you can skimp on washing and cleaning for that first week, over longer periods proper hygiene becomes an important factor for overall health. Also when it comes children the younger the child the more water they need. Mostly for drinking and cleaning body, clothes, and linens.

Home Water Storage Formula
One person - 1g per day - 7g per week - 28g per 28 days (minimum 28 day supply per person)
Number of family members x number of days = Number of gallons of water you should be storing.
2 Family Members x 28 Days = 56 Gallons   /   4 Family Members x 28 Days = 112

Considering how cheap and easy water is to store, and how extremely important it is. Having way more than you think you need is a good thing. When it comes to water you really can’t have too much, so if you have the space consider storing as much as you can.

Water Storage
Always store water in a cool, dark place, away from any fuels or pesticides that could permeate the plastic. Cover it with something dark, like a black garbage bag, to avoid any contact with sunlight. Inspect every 6 months for leaks or changes in color.

You’ll want to rotate your water, as its shelf life will be about 6 to months. Find a practical place to store your water so it's relativity easy to inspect and rotate or empty and refill.

The easiest option for water storage is bottled water. It’s safe and reliable, already packaged, easy to move, and has the shelf life printed on the side of the bottle. It can be relatively expensive, though, considering there’s a virtually free healthier source of water coming from your home tap.

The Harsh Truth About Bottled Water - Must See

Evian (water) spelled backwards is Naive...

If you don’t want to overspend on bottled water, and have some extra time, you can create your own emergency water supply with large discarded plastic bottles. Remember to avoid anything that’s had chemicals in it most of all, also milk & juice. Fats and sugars can be difficult to fully remove, and can be a breeding ground for bacteria.

Bottled water is crap, use the tap.

Larger Containers Starting At 42 Pounds
Five gallon hard plastic buckets can become expensive, but they are built very sturdy and easy to move around. Each one filled will only weigh 42 pounds. Use buckets that are designed to stack so you use up less floor space. Can store up to 20 gallon in 1 1/5 square feet of floor space.

There are 5, 25, and 50 gallon boxed water that is easy to move and stacks well. Collapsible water bladders is also another option. They come with pouring spouts and in all colors, shapes, and sizes. 

Next would be 35 gallon garbage cans or 55 gallon large plastic drums. Something like this would be stored in a garage or basement. They hold a lot of water and are relatively small foot print for the amount of water they hold, but are very expansive, super heavy, and hard to stack, so don’t plan on moving them once they’re filled.  I store my water in 32 gallon Rubbermaid garbage cans from
home depot. $16.00 each.

35 gallons of water weighs 293 pounds and 55 gallons of water weighs 459 pounds.    
Water Weight Converter

Water Container Examples:  
www.myfoodstorage.com   
 www.thereadystore.com
www.survivalsolutions.com

Very Dirty Water
If your water is very dirty and has particles you can see. Before purifying there a few things you need to do. First let the water sit for a bit of time for the large particles to prop to the bottom of your container. Than slowly pour water though a t-shirt, bandana, towel, or coffee filter and into another clean container. Move very slow not to disturb material that has settled on the bottom of the container.

This will filter most larger material and prepare water for purification. Keep repeating till you are comfortable with the look of the water. When satisfied start purification process using one of the following methods.

Using Heat To Purify Water

One way to make water safe to drink is to pasteurize it. Pasteurization is accomplished by heating the water to 65°C (149°F) for a short period of time. The water is then free from microbes, including E. coli, Rotaviruses, Giardia and the Hepatitis A virus.  Pasteurization is not sterilization, so although this water is safe to drink, don’t use it for medical procedures. Pasteurization also does not remove sediment from your water, which could be greatly reduced by pre-filtering the water through a cloth prior to pasteurization or allowing it to settle and skimming the clear water off the top.

Although you’ve probably heard you need to boil your water to make it safe to drink, the water actually only has to reach 65°C (149°F) which is NOT boiling temperature to be safe to drink.  Boiling is used as a visual indicator that the water has reached a temperature high enough to be pasteurized.

Using Chlorine Tablets To Purify Water
Chlorine dioxide is different from chlorine bleach and works through oxidation rather than chlorination.  These tablets leave a better tasting water than iodine tablets. Chlorine dioxide tablets’ average shelf life is 5 years and they are sized to use one tablet per quart or liter (always read the instructions on any water purification tablets you purchase).  Their small size, relatively long shelf life, and better taste make these a great option for a bug out bag or emergency home kit.

Water tablets are excellent for home use and bug out bags. Very inexpensive, last a long time,
and work very well in minutes.

Examples:
www.beprepared.com
www.Amazon.com

Using Bleach To Purify Water
Chlorine (bleach) is another chemical water purification option.  The simplest way to
treat your water with chlorine is to use regular bleach (sodium hypochlorite). 

The directions Red Cross are: First add 16 drops of liquid chlorine bleach per 1 gallon of water, or 8 drops per 2-liter bottle of water. Sodium hypochlorite should be the only active ingredient in the bleach. There should not be any added soap or fragrances. Shake container and let treated water sit for at least 30 minutes. If it smells of chlorine. You can use it. If it does not smell of chlorine, add 16 more drops of chlorine bleach per gallon of water (or 8 drops per 2-liter bottle of water), let stand 30 minutes, and smell it again. If it smells of chlorine, you can use it. If it does not smell of chlorine, discard it and find another source of water.

Bleach will lose its potency over time, so it is best to use bleach that is less than 8 months old. Another way to treat water with chlorine is to use a product like Pool Shock which is made of granular calcium hypochlorite and has the advantage of a much longer shelf life than liquid bleach.

Bleach Storage
A prepper must, always have minumin 2 gallons of beach

Bleach has a limited shelf life. If you’ve been storing bleach long-term for water purification purposes, there’s a very good chance that it has lost most of its effectiveness. Here’s a tip to get the most out of your stored bleach.

First, write the purchase date on the bleach bottle, using a black Sharpie. This will be a reminder each time you see that bottle that you need to start using it, and replacing it with a new bottle, about 6 or 7 months following the purchase date.

Next, with that Sharpie, write, “8 drops per gallon water, 16 drops cloudy water, Wait 30 minutes” on the bottle. With this information right in front of you, you won’t be rummaging around looking for these amounts in an emergency.

Finally, duct tape an eye dropper to the side of the bleach bottle. These are very inexpensive online and are found in drug stores and usually in the over-the-counter medicine aisle in the grocery store. A handy eye dropper will make sure that you’re using the correct amount of bleach and you won’t have to resort to using an eye dropper from another medication.

Household Bleach Survival Uses
Common household bleach is capable of killing microorganisms and many viruses on contact.  When used effectively, regular bleach can be a vital addition to your urban survive arsenal. 

Based on the size of your family keep a adequate supply of bleach on hand at all times. During a long-term disaster, adequate sanitation will rapidly become a critical health issue. Listed below are some uses for preserving cleanliness with bleach.

1. Create drinkable water. Any questionable water can be purged of microbial life by first filtering it through cheesecloth or even clean t-shirt material to remove larger debris. Purified, it becomes safe drinking water for human consumption.

2. Kill airborne viruses. In the bathroom, kitchen or sick room, you can use a misting bottle filed with bleach solution to eliminate germs and viruses. Mix bleach half by half with water, or for even better results, half with Listerine.  Liberally spray the solution into the air with your squeeze bottle to destroy microscopic pests.

3. Sanitize baby’s eating utensils. Prepare a solution of one tablespoon of bleach to one gallon of water.  After cleaning with soap and water, submerge baby bottles, nipples and sipping cups for two to three minutes in the bleach water.  Drain and air dry for germ-free cleanliness.

4. Germproof questionable vegetables and fruit. Wash off vegetables and then soak them for two minutes in a solution of one tablespoon of bleach to a gallon of water.  Allow fruit and vegetables to air dry and enjoy them without germs.

5. Ultra clean cutting boards safely. After normal soap and water cleaning, soak or saturate cutting boards in the bleach solution for five minutes.  Drain and air dry.

6. Remove mold and mildew from surfaces. You can dissolve mold from tile grout, brick, stucco, siding and other surfaces by flooding with ¾ cup of bleach per gallon of water.  Sponge or spray on the solution and let it sit for 10 minutes.  Scrub lightly and rinse off.

7. Disinfect garbage pails. Use ¾ cup of bleach per gallon to flush your trash cans.  Spray them inside and out and allow them to air dry.  Use this process to kill germs each time you empty your garbage.

8. Deodorize thermos bottles and ice coolers. Use 1 tablespoon of bleach to a gallon.  After washing with soap and water as usual, soak the containers in the bleach water for two minutes.  Drain and air dry.

9. Eliminate germs and nasty stains from toilet bowls. Slowly add water to the bowl to fill it above the stain.  Pour in one cup of bleach and let stand for 15 minutes.  Brush and flush.  If needed, repeat the process.

American Red Cross
fema.gov
Federal Emergency Management Agency
nws.noaa.gov
NOAA's National Weather Service

Bleach Water Purification
16 drops of liquid bleach per 1 gallon of water,
or 8 drops per 2-liter bottle of water.
Let sit for 30 minutes.