CHAPTER 20
In the days of square-rigged sail, drinking
water was served from a wooden barrel, or
butt, lashed on deck near a midships hatch
(a scuttle). A seaman would grab a ladle with
a hook on the end, flip up the lid, dip, and
drink deep. Naturally, this nautical “water
fountain” became the center of casual con-
versation, gossip... you know... scuttlebutt.
These scuttlebutts were filled from buckets
with water from the ship’s main wooden wa-
ter casks. Indeed, buttwas originally the term
for wooden barrels specifically of 126-gallon
(468 L) capacity. After several weeks at sea,
the water casks would contain enough algae
and minute beasties to take on the appear-
ance of weak broth. To say the flavor was
ripe would be putting it gently. More than one
captain proved his mettle to the crew by mak-
ing a display of drinking the rancid ship’s
water rather than sticking to his personal
stock of fine wine and steward-prepared tea.As for showers, even the officers seldom
took them, and the showers were generally of
cold seawater or nothing. Combined with
greasy cooking, hot tar, oakum, and gunpow-
der, the fragrance ’tween decks must have
been, ah... interesting.
Things have changed just a bit over
the last two hundred years. Today’s boaters
take clean, fresh water (hot and cold) for
granted—instant and at the turn of a tap, if
you please. Hot showers at your whim, and
on larger boats even Jacuzzis and washer-
dryers, are common. Fresh water onboard,
though, shouldn’t be taken lightly. It’s sup-
plied by the vessel’s freshwater system.
Water is so important to health and safety
(as well as to comfort) that careful consider-
ation must be given to ensuring the water sys-
tem works reliably all the time. We’ll take a
look now at what makes a good freshwater
system.Figure 20-1.
Water casks
(Reprinted from
The Ways of the
Sea,by Charles
G. Davis)