In ,
DannyD. typed:

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

I haven't read all of the replies so far, and I have no experience in doing
something like this. But these are some quick thoughts or ideas that come to
my mind.

Would the water company require a meter if they were pumping the water into
a fixed size tank or container -- such as a 55-gallon drum? Meter or no
meter, if they are pumping the water into a 55 gallon drum, it seems like
they could just charge you for the 55 gallons and call it a day. So, if
they will do that, you could skip all of the meter cost issues. Hopefully
the water company will go for that.

How much do clean empty 55 gallon drums cost? I don't know. But water
weighs 8.3 pounds per gallon, so a 55 gallon drum would weigh about 457
pounds. Two of them in a 1/2 ton pickup truck should be no problem. To
transport 1,000 gallons would take about twenty 55-gallon drums. That's 10
five-mile trips via pickup truck with two drums per trip.

Any chance that you could hook up a deal with a local (possibly volunteer)
fire department? I don't know how many gallons a typical fire department
pumper truck holds, but I know that most can pump 500 to 1000 gallons a
minute if needed, so I assume that they can hold more than 1000 gallons.
Maybe have them do a training exercise for newer firefighters on the
operation and use of the pumper trucks and give them a significant donation
for doing that.

Those are just my quick thoughts.