Originally Posted by
MuddyWaters
Water treatment is complicated, because nothing is perfect. There is no perfect way to filter everything, or kill everything. Reduction is what we accomplish, of certain things.
But fortunately, we dont need perfect. Much of the time we dont need anything at all. Most cases of people getting sick are probably not from water at all, even though thats what it is attributed to.
The long 4 hr time is for Crypto, which is rare, in EPA type II water, cold , cloudy, and highly loaded.
This is what tablets were EPA certified for, so that is what the directions HAVE to say.
Drops have not been certified due to difficulty in getting exact ClO2 ppm by the mixing method, some escapes.
The advantage to drops is you dont have to add any more than you want to, seeing as how most water we drink hiking is pretty pure anyway.
A set with 2-10ml dropper bottles, and a 3ml dropper bottle , with enough AM for a week (at full dosage) weighs 1.25 oz.
By adding less, it can last a lot longer. I usually add maybe half-2/3, and wait 15 min.
I mix my AM in the morning in a 3ml dropper, and it holds enough for at least one days water 4-5L at the dosage I add it to good water.
When fill up, just drop 10 drops in (instead of 20), and shake, and on your way. If Im not taking a break, Ill be 10 min down the trail before many have their filter out of their pack.
filters are notorious for clogging, and then not backfllushing . they all work great in clean water. When you HAVE to filter dingy water, they will clog up.
A few wks ago some other hikers were filtering water at Tricorner Knob in GSMNP. As soon as started filtering the water with very slight orange tint, the filter clogged. This was iron oxide in the water from the dirt/rocks the water was running thru. It would not backflush either. Another hiker left them some AM so the they could have water next 15 miles out of the park.