Hauling Water

[bongasaurus]

So we all know hauling water to a guerilla grow is a pain in the ass but sometimes a must. I havent found anything great to comfortbly carry a bunch of water into the bush. I have been using old 5L juice jugs. 2 in each hand if im feeling strong. But recently working in a kitchen, I came across used vetetable oil jugs. Seems to me like they'll work like a charm. Im not sure how long theyll last as when they are full they come in a cardboard box. The plastic isnt super thick but it should hold fine i figure. Theyll hold a bunch of H2O, 15L im guessing? and have a handle and everything.

Just thought id share. Unless of course they burst when im carrying them which is possible.We'll see next season.

Any other cheap water hauling ideas out there?

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

I use a frame backpack like hikers use(or used to use), and load it with gallon size jugs, I tend to avoid milk jug type jugs in the pack cuz they are more prone to crushing. Juice jugs seem more durable.

My old fashioned Army ALICE pack carries 4 gallons in the sack, with the option to carry 2 more jugs in my hands. My larger packs can hold an entire 6 gallon plastic jeep can, but I've found that except for short easy treks, 5 gallons total is my "comfort" zone, especialy since many of my grows are up hill.

 

[jeffd7766]

thought i might throw in an idea. try finding large bags that have the plastic screw on top ( the type of bag the syrup comes in for soda machines works well) or any other thicker type bag that you can seal and get yourself a large hiking/overnight camping pack. You can load gallons inside the pack and most also have a few straps for sleeping bags which if rigged right can also hold 5-8 gallons of water. Hope this may help....stay safe man

 

[Purkle]

Time for the invention of light weight water. My back gets messed up every year due to hauling water. I feel for all that haul there own water in the dry areas.

 

[marto]

contractor garbage bags work great for short trips between creek and spot. I like em because easy to pack in and out and hold as much water as you can possibbly carry. Very short life span though but definitly worth the money.

 

[scaramanga]

I like the syrup bag idea. I'm assuming that your talking about the "bag in a box" like coca cola and sprite come in. Those are very strong and certainly capable of holding water in a backpack of some sort. They also come in 2.5 and 5 gal sizes, allowing for flexibility.

 

[FirstTracks]

Get a bunch of the largest camelback reservoirs you can find and stuff them in the alice pack.

I think BC's way of using multiple smaller ones would be easier with watering than one big soft chell container, though if you have a few moments to spare, the reserrvoirs come with a drinking tube attached I believe.

 

[wisco61]

I used 2 cheapo backpacks. Load one with 3-1 gallon jugs and put that on my back. Load the other with 2-1 gallon jugs and wear that on my chest. Those 5 gallons don't feel like much because it is so well balanced. If I didn't have anything else to carry, and was feeling strong, I'd carry an additional gallon jug in each hand.

 

[Guest]

...just plain sucks Bongasauras! Weve suffered 2 yrs of drought and thats been my first encounter with watering and like Purkle, I finsihed that first season worn out and unable to stand up straight. My new plan:

I spent the winter packing in water in gallon milk jugs and storing them in a low spot covered with a plastic insulated sheet and a little dirt so they don't freeze and bust. I try to have 24 gallons at each of 7 sites by summer. A buddy that works for a drinking water company has several of those cooler jugs at each of his sites and he fills them over the winter. Its easier to do when there is more time. I found that planning a watering regimen once the dry weather hits is an assholes and elbows chinese fire drill that leaves one in the shape of me and purkle and a less than stellar harvest. You are so on target for considering this issue now.

I also discovered that pouring water on the ground around the roots is grossly ineffective as 3/4 of the moisure either evaporates or is drawn off by the surrounding parched earth. Hole modification with a short, fat round orange juice container with holes in it, buried 6" from the plant with the top sticking up, allows one to remove the top from the buried container, pour in the water, put the top back on and walk away. It takes as much a 12 hours for the water to leach out of the container underground where the roots are and where the moisture is needed. Hole modification can reduce the amount of water needed for each plant by 25%.

 

[Fast_Pine]

I get 15 gallons into the forrest using a frame backpack and three large 5gal water cooler jugs with handles. One in the pack, one in each hand. Always nice to be able to mix and PH the nute mix at home.

Anyone hauling water should think about a gas or battery powered water pump. Theres a thread in the sticky section about it.(shameless promotion)

Or you can let machines do the water hauling for you.

 

[medicine farmer]

a few quick questions/ideas/thoughts....i just ripped a massive bongtoke so dont hate me if i ramble but here goes......

In many areas creeks and streams dry up by mid july (when you need h20 most for lack of rain and heat) or reduce to a trickle too small to draw bucketfuls from....it seems to me that installing a res. of some kind that you fill early in the season would be smart. it seems to me hauling water from home is riskier (and harder) than getting it nearby, and id rather do most of my hauling earlier in spring when its not too hot...i mean hell, water is like 8 lbs per gal.

nearby res seems like the best way to go. if a stream or creek isnt nearby then a tarp and pole system must be used. On a spring evening you know it will rain, make a water-catcher with a tarp and 4 poles with the lowest corner spilling/pouring into the res. this can be done in the middle of the night as it starts to rain and removed at dawn if security is a big concern(i know it is for many of us).

these are both just ideas i came up with off the top of my head...does this seem like it would work? could that help any of you folks?

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

I get 15 gallons into the forrest using a frame backpack and three large 5gal water cooler jugs with handles. One in the pack, one in each hand.

15 gallons x 8lbs per gallon= 120lbs!!! You must be a huge guy! 120lbs of water would kill me!

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

I also discovered that pouring water on the ground around the roots is grossly ineffective as 3/4 of the moisure either evaporates or is drawn off by the surrounding parched earth.

That orange juice bottle thing is a great idea, I just tend to make a dirt bowl(or dam) around the plant at planting time, so all the water concentrates and soaks into the earth at the right spots, mulching on top of that prevents premature evaporation.

 

[NPK]

I did my first not-in-my-backyard outdoor plants for the first time this year, and I have to say, watering was brutal. My sites were both near creeks--a necessity because we're entering the third year of drought in my area, and conditions were bone dry. I kept a three-gallon kitty litter bucket with a lid at each site and and carried two gallons in my pack. My plants were all uphill. Thirty pounds of water was about all I could manage--especially lugging it in the hot sun. I did use water polymers when I planted. That helped, but I should have used more. Lesson learned.

I'm saving the sorta rectangular-shaped gallon containers my hydro nutes come in. They'd be easier to carry efficiently in a pack.

The pump/battery idea would work well at one of my sites. Very appealing idea. Also thinking I'm gonna dig my holes over the winter, when the ground is still wet. I should have dug 'em deeper and wider last season. When it comes to holes, it's too easy to tell yourself "good enough" when it really isn't. I did the "dirt bowl" thing at the base of each plant, too. The survivors probably wouldn't have made it if I hadn't.

 

[Mo Racca]

My plot for this season is next to a creek, yet I'm hesistant to use the water becasue I'm fairly sure the surrounding farmland drains into it and jeebus knows what kind of chemicals they use. Also I have yet to test the ph of the water. Is there a way to test the water for chemicals or should I not worry if I correct the ph before I water the plants?

If the creek can't be used I will be forced to use the dual backpack method.

Also I'm looking into using a friends old water filled heavy bag to haul water, holds 120 lbs of water when completely full. Won't need it for this season though. I'm not sure if it can be compacted down to fit into a backpack, as I haven't seen it in person yet.

 

[Lambsbreath]

I have a small 2.5kw generator, would like to buy an electric waterpump, or solar waterpump but don't know what to choose.
The swamp area where i could pump water is 200 meters far from my spot .
the swamp is maybe 3 meters lower in altitude .

I have a discal hernie and had to carry 2 times 40 liters on 200 meters every 4 day which was a real torture !
The 80 liters were not even enough to water them all well.

I really need a waterpump or a donkey !

 

[LazLo]

Storing water onsite could attract critters so make sure those containers are durable. Coons have moved full gallon milk jugs in addition to biting holes. And dug up every one of the buried 16 oz drink bottles near the plants that I was using as wicks like the orange drink containers that silverback uses.

I keep a black 5 gallon plastic container onsite with the handle up and bent nail in tree trunk to hold it in place. About 40% buried for stability. Big Mama black pantyhose stretched and secured for strainer.

Shallow gully nearby with loads of grasses to filter the chunks. Goes dry by July. Tried to enhance a "natural" reservior but a muskrat decided otherwise.

I carry 2 gallons in backpack per trip. That 16 lbs exceeds 10% of my body weight. It is the only exercise I get. Great cardio benefits. Not to mention the various muscle group benefits. In the brutal summer heat and humidity, I also carry a small bottle of icy water for drinking. All the sweating cleans the pores and releases toxins from the kidneys. I make sure that bottle is empty by the time I get back to the car. (Think backaches.)

I create a berm 3" high in an 18" diameter around each plant with half composted yard leaf mulch. Retains moisture and gets worked in next years holes. To discourage slugs, I sprinkle fresh water beach sand in 6" circle around stems.

No matter what we go through, it is worth it! Fresh air! Exercise! Extend Life! Just what the doctor ordered!

Good luck to everyone.

 

[Fast_Pine]

15 gallons x 8lbs per gallon= 120lbs!!! You must be a huge guy! 120lbs of water would kill me!

I do that for testing and small outdoor breeding plots where the hike into the forrest is only minutes.

 

[Guest]

Only love can lead one to endure being soaked with rain,sweat or dew, scratched, almost caught, mould storms ticks and aching backs with no more than an even chance of being successul. If they fail, undeterred they're back next year with a renewed determination and a committment to work even harder this year.. Outdoor growers are some of the most optmistic, determined and tenacious people you'll ever meet. They just don't quit. Dragging, pulling, packing, and digging - adversity is completely ignored and replaced with hope.

Don't worry about that creek water, its fine as long as you don't drink it or pour it on food crops.

Lazlo, you're probably right about the health benefits but they are hard as hell to notice through the pain! I try to tell myself that its good for me, but buy august my enthusiasm wains and my thoughts are, " good for you my ass, if Richard Simmons had to chuck all of this shit up to the grow site, he'd quit all of that whining about sitting around ".

 

[facelift]

A few years ago when I was growing in the forest, I had a 5 gallon bucket. The river was only about 1/4 mile. It was still a pretty slow process making 2 trips every week because I was out of shape. It's best to grow near a river, but around here it flood every fall so you have to watch out for that.

If you go to the camping supplies, you can get a portable shower. It's a sturdy black plastic bag that hold 5-10 gallons. Comes with a hook so you can hang it on a tree. All you have to do is turn the nozzle and you have an instant shower. With a little modification I'm sure you could remove the shower head and put in a regular tap. Connect a hose, add a timer/switch that is battery operated and set it to water every day.

I live in urban area and can't really get too extravagant, but here's a few ideas to add to the list.

I think the better idea is to build a cistern to catch snow fall and rain water.

How about one of those inflatable pools, they'll hold 100 gallons and are low profile at only 6-8 inches high.

If you really have some privacy, ya right, you could hang a tarp between 4 small trees at a slight angle to move a nice amount of rain water and have it dump into your container. They come in all sizes and colors.