"DannyD." wrote in message
...
Do you have experience or ideas for trucking potable water to a residence?

We haven't had rain in a year or so, and some of my neighbor's wells are
running
dry. They asked me to figure out an efficient way to get water to them
because
the bulk water delivery companies are really lousy on service & costs.

The San Jose Water Company sells water out of the fire hydrants at $2.70
per
CCF (i.e., $2.71 per 748 gallons) after we rent a "portable meter", either
a
1-inch portable meter (output is a male 3/4-inch garden hose thread) at
$29.48/month, or a 3-inch portable meter (output is a male 2-1/2 inch
firehose
thread) at $176.98 a month.

The returnable deposit for the portable meter is $400 for the 1-inch
meter,
and $1,550 for the 3-inch meter, which includes the hydrant wrench & hoses
(although they suggest hoses from Royal Brass at http://rbisj.com).

It turns out that most, if not all, of the bulk water delivery companies
use this method to obtain their water, so, what you're paying for is the
trucking.

Hertz Equipment Rental in San Jose rents a flatbed, which requires only a
normal class C drivers license, for $245/day, which will hold about 8,000
pounds (about 1,000 gallons of water in a plastic tank). The first 50
miles
are free, and then it's 25 cents a mile thereafter.

They don't recommend the 2,000 gallon 'water truck' which requires a Class
A
(commercial) drivers license, and costs $459/day, plus 30 cents a mile,
because
there is no telling what water was in there prior, so you can't drink from
it.

A quick estimate for the costs & logistics for a day's rental might be
something like:
a) $5 for each 1,000 gallons of water from SJWC
b) $50 for 1 day rental of the 2-1/2 inch output 3" portable meter
c) $250 for 1 day flatbed truck rental from Hertz
d) $500 for 1 brand new 1,000 gallon water tank from Tractor Supply
Company (or equivalent)
e) $100 sales tax on the new water tank & other incidentals

Any other helpful suggestions for me to provide to the neighbors for
trucking
in potable water during the drought?

did you say how much the commercial water delivery companies charge? That
would be interesting to know.

How far apart are these 50 neighbors? How far from the nearest fire
hydrant?

Is the meter rental $50 per day, every day? Or is it less by the week or by
the season?

what equipment is already available to these residents? Pickup trucks?
Trailers?