Transporting water?

[jodigabay]

Hi! I am a brand new Burner- me and my best friend will be travelling from Australia for the experience I have dreamt about for over 10 years. We are trying to get sorted as we have a long way to travel.
We will be unable to drive as we haven't had a licence long enough to allow us to rent a car in America. So were most likely going to be looking at a ride share or the new shuttle buses. Our current most significant concern is the transport of WATER- we know we have to bring it all ourselves, but we are both very tiny humans and can't carry all that much. How have people gone about transporting large amounts of water? Also, are there any tips on whether a ride share or bus is better?

Eternal thanks!!!

[lucky420]

Ok bus or ride share I have no experience but this is what I'd do about the water; I would buy one of the orange Coleman beverage coolers (10 gallon), fill it with ice and water in Reno or wherever you get your supplies. You can buy ice at BM so during the event just be sure to add a bag or 2 of ice every other day and you should have enough ice melt water to last.


I would do it this way because then you are only hauling 1 container of water...


Others will probably chime in here with different methods too.

[Canoe]

Pre-Bottled Water
You can buy pre-bottled water, so you're not buying water containers then water too. The Arrow Head seems to have the best taste. Just about every grocery store has it. Often available at Costco. Savemart on West Plumb (near Virgina) usually has it cheaper than Savemart Keystone... and more sizes available as Keystone sells out. It's available in 1g, 2.5g and 5g.
2.5g is still easy to manage. The walmarts that see a lot of Burners tend to get extra pallets of the Arrow Head and others, which they'll roll another pallet out of the back once the one out front gets low. So if you don't see it, ask. viewtopic.php?f=276&t=65909#p967019

Get a case of the individual serving size half-litre bottles so you can grab a bottle or two to take with you when you go out of camp to go explore BRC. When exploring, experienced Burners tend to drink the water they're offered (unless they don't trust the source) and keep the water they're carrying with them in reserve so they can stay out longer exploring (before needing to return to their camp to replenish).

Rideshare
When you arrange a rideshare, let them know you need to stop at a grocery store, Walmart, etc., for any last minutes supplies, to make sure they're agreeable with this. Or you can taxi/bus to do your shopping, then grab a rideshare. Most rideshares from the airport expect to stop somewhere for their passenger. If you're at the Keystone rideshare, you've already gone inside the Savemart for your water, so unless Savemart is out...

Buses
The Burner Express Buses: some have arranged stops for supplies, some don't. Make sure you choose the correct type when you book. May or may not be the same way this year...

Shuttle from the Playa for supplies
If you run out of water during the week, you can pay ~$20 for the Gerlach/Empire Shuttlebus where you can buy basic supplies. You'll need to have your ticket and id and a re-entry pass. On the playa, check at Info at Center Camp for details. What the details are expected to be should also be published in Jack Rabbit Speaks once we're closer to the event.

Ice Melt Water
As the ice sold on the playa is from potable water, ice melt works. But you need a clean container for it to melt in; playa dust contains bacteria and other items:

... the dust blowing on the playa, be it the fine clay or other soil components (SiO2, Al2O3, quartz, micas, calcite, feldspar, vermiculite, illite, and kaolinite), aquatic micro-fauna eggs or dead body parts, bacteria normally on the playa, bacteria deposited by migratory birds, bacteria blown in off of surrounding land or the bacteria in the water that the water trucks spray on the dusty BRC roads.

p.s.
this type of basic thing has been covered a number times
the search in eplaya doesn't seem to work very well - try google search of eplaya.burningman.org
ALWAYS check back closer to the event on the burningman site and/or with the Jack Rabbit Speaks issues and the latest Survival Guide for updated details.

[Canoe]

...I'm wondering what's the best way to travel to BRC when you're going alone, coming from another country, and can't drive?!...

viewtopic.php?f=286&t=68465

[theCryptofishist]

Get a case of the individual serving size half-litre bottles so you can grab a bottle or two to take with you when you go out of camp to go explore BRC. When exploring, experienced Burners tend to drink the water they're offered (unless they don't trust the source) and keep the water they're carrying with them in reserve so they can stay out longer exploring (before needing to return to their camp to replenish).

No, please don't. High MOOP potential, hideously wasteful and poisonous. I don't like camelbacks, but you can fill one with ice, pour water on top and you're good for a day or so. (Depending...) Or bring your own bottles, steel or plastic. Or a canteen. or whatever. I just believe that treating your container and your water as separate things brings a better result. I used the suitcases, and yes, that's plastic, but you're less likely to lose track fo a suitcase and it's less plastic to begin with (the old surface area thing...)

[danibel]

I bring a combo of water in different size containers. I like the 2.5 gallon "suitcases" for kitchen and shower water use. Plus they make it really easy to refill my reusable steel water container. I also buy a few (5?!) one gallon water bottles with good handles. I keep at least one in the van for night time water needs (drinking). And on long playa treks I tuck one in my bicycle basket to ensure I have enough while out and about. The one gallons are heavy, but I would rather deal with the weight than not have water when I am miles away from camp.

I prefer spring water in general. It tastes better to me

And again as someone mentioned, be sure to book the express bus that stops at a grocery store.

What is the water per person calculation? 2.5 per person per day? If you want to shower? I forget. I just buy too much and then donate it to DPW or bring it home for my earthquake supply pile. But I don't have a space issue. Lucky me

[BBadger]

That 2.5 gallon figure assumes that you're going to be showering all the time, washing your dishes every day, and not buying any ice during the week. That's 17.5 gallons for a whole week -- ~130 gallons of water. I'm certainly not hauling that much in. I find 5-gallons of water for the whole week sufficient if I supplement with some canned drinks, an ice run, and don't bother with the whole showering thing (it's just a week; deal with it). Drag two of those suitcases of water in, or a 5-gallon bottle, and buy some ice during the week, and you're good.

[Canoe]

Get a case of the individual serving size half-litre bottles so you can grab a bottle or two to take with you when you go out of camp to go explore BRC. ...

No, please don't. High MOOP potential, hideously wasteful and poisonous. I don't like camelbacks, but you can fill one with ice, pour water on top and you're good for a day or so. (Depending...) Or bring your own bottles, steel or plastic. Or a canteen. or whatever. I just believe that treating your container and your water as separate things brings a better result. I used the suitcases, and yes, that's plastic, but you're less likely to lose track fo a suitcase and it's less plastic to begin with (the old surface area thing...)

If you start into wasteful and poisonous things, no one would be going to Burning Man. Certainly not a green event.

But bringing one case of individual bottles as an addition to your water supply (you did read the post?) can be extremely handy, easy to manage any MOOP potential, and no risk of contaminating that drinking water. Balance that with newbie's getting contaminated dust into their camelbacks, etc.. Flying in and putting a camp together, particularly for the first time, I don't see any issue with getting a case of individual bottles.

I go mobile and gift water with electrolyte mixed in larger containers for filling cups, mugs, thermos, etc., but I also keep a supply of those individual bottles to hand out to those who didn't pick up on the part about "bring and carry your own cup/mug around with you". More important to keep them hydrated and away from having to attend Medical.
I also carry a 'laundry bag' for securing empties.

And if they're flying in and getting supplies, why buy a water-suitcase and then buy water to put in it when they can buy water already in water-safe jugs of a size they can manage... and at one location, and it's a location a Burner Express or rideshare is planing or expecting to stop.

It's not like they're flying in and bringing 42 cases of 35 bottles to the playa, dumping the water and then seeing how far the bottles can roll in the wind...
(and no, that's not what that camp did with the bottles)

[danibel]

That 2.5 gallon figure assumes that you're going to be showering all the time, washing your dishes every day, and not buying any ice during the week. That's 17.5 gallons for a whole week -- ~130 gallons of water. I'm certainly not hauling that much in. I find 5-gallons of water for the whole week sufficient if I supplement with some canned drinks, an ice run, and don't bother with the whole showering thing (it's just a week; deal with it). Drag two of those suitcases of water in, or a 5-gallon bottle, and buy some ice during the week, and you're good.

Oh yeah. We always end up with a lot extra, but we do shower almost every day. This year I am going all paper for dishes so that I can forgo washing as much as possible. I am over the kitchen grey water mess. Most of the shower water evaps, thank goddess.

[trilobyte]

@jodigabay - you and your friend will need to do exactly what everyone else has to do... figure it out and get it there yourself. If you're planning on getting a ride, that means you'll need to plan to catch a ride with someone who will have space to carry your gear, including water. If you're doing the Burner Express bus, you'll need to do the 'shopping bus' option, which has a stop at a Reno-area market where you can buy such supplies, and bring them with you on the bus. Plan accordingly.

[unjonharley]

Re: Transporting Water..

Make sure you brick your camel...

[BoyScoutGirl]

Make sure you brick your camel...

Camel-bricking instructions for the uninitiated:

[Ugly Dougly]

There's a reason why we drive cars.

[VultureChow]

I'm all about the icemelt, though it might be a way for me to excuse my very poor cooler management system. I just can't conserve ice well.

I probably go through two bags of ice a day and all of it gets deposited in clean two gallon baggies immediately. There is nothing so satisfying as an ice cold cup or camelbak of ice melt.

[TT120]

I'm bringing these. Much lighter to pack in and out......

[GreyCoyote]

TT: They also have the bulk size available which is both organic and gluten free. http://www.mredepot.com/servlet/the-109 ... ted/Detail
Standard disclaimers about no financial interest apply.