In Reply to: I thought sterilisation took only 5 posted by Vicki M on Thursday, 9. June 2005 at 07:59 Bali Time:
Hi Vicki I just did a bit of research on the net and found this info after typing in "How long to boil water to kill germs". Some sites said only to boil for 1 minute, lots said a minimum of 5 but most said 10. I copied this text.
How can water be treated and made relatively safe?
Boiling. This is the only completely reliable way to purify water. Boiling it for 10 minutes will kill most germs. It is best to bring the water to a brisk boil — boil for 10 minutes and then cover it while cooling.
Boiling time refers to the total time the water is held at a
rolling boil and should not be confused with the first sign of
bubbles from dissolved gases in the water. Since water boils at lower
temperatures at higher altitudes (approximately 90°C at 3 km),
boiling times must also compensate for decreased atmospheric pressure
conditions.
Hope this helps