I've recently being seeing ads for solar energy. As much as I think the panels on ones roof are not the prettiest I believe it's going to be the way of the future. Storage or "banking" for rainy days (thru Winter) and even keeping the e-car supplied.
I also like the mason jar idea. At the moment my son has 8 jugs on a rack in the furnace room. We don't care for the city water and bring in bottled anyway. The caps are dated and we rotate them fairly often (usually when we're too lazy to go to the water depot).
My house faces North, so I could cover the backside of my roof with solar panels. I actually picked my lot 23 years ago anticipating solar in my future. I just haven't found that all important "round tuit" yet.
As for storing emergency water in glass Mason jars, they just need to be clean, not sterilized. If they have been used before, just run them through the dishwasher, and use new lids.
Plastic jugs will add a plastic taste to water, over time. I know this because my dad learned it the hard way after Hurricane Ike.
CD