View Full Version : Polar pure
Vthiker77
04-26-2015, 18:28
Just noticed it was back on the market and ordered two bottles off amazon. Anyone know when it went back on the market? There doesn't seem to be any website
Vthiker77
04-26-2015, 18:32
Ah, I found it. Polarpurewater.com
There seems to be mixed messages out there on Polar Pure being back on the market.
"I would like to thank everybody for all there support, it was an unfortunately long process due to the "meth heads" that were using iodine, the same chemical used in polar pure, to make crystal meth. This caused the dea to create much strictness regarding the sale and purchase of iodine.
Polar pure has been in negotiations with the dea for approximitly 4 years and we are now happy to say we are back in business with limited restrictions.
1 of the restrictions regarding consumers is that polar pure must be sold directly to consumers which is why we began selling them direct to consumer on amazon.com with an authorized distributor by the dea.
The second restriction imposed on consumers is the quantity per purchase. A customer may purchase as many bottles of polar as they see fit however we are only allowed to ship 1 bottle per customer per day. So if a customer purchases 5 bottles of polar pure we would ship 1 each day and the customer would receive 1 each day as well. We apologize for this inconvienance however it is a strict rule enforced by the DEA.
https://www.survivalmonkey.com/threads/polar-pure-now-back-on-the-market.49519/
Then this:
"Folks: Recently, across several outdoor/survival forums, someone has posted that Polar Pure (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?toolid=10029&campid=CAMPAIGNID&customid=CUSTOMID&catId=11450&type=2&ext=391102969322&item=391102969322) Iodine Crystal Water Purification is again available for public sale (http://www.alibris.com/search/books/isbn/9781286652312). Sadly, it's not.
I decided to contact the Polar Pure company (through their website) for ground truth. This is the corporate response:
Subject: Re: Polar Pure availability rumor?
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 20:20:06 -0700
To: XXXXXXXXXX
Dear XXXXXXX,
Polar Equipment, Inc. is not selling Polar Pure (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?toolid=10029&campid=CAMPAIGNID&customid=CUSTOMID&catId=11450&type=2&ext=391102969322&item=391102969322) Water Disinfectant at this time. We did not write the blog posting that you included in your email but I appreciate your bringing it to my attention. You can call Bob Wallace to ask him about the listing on Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/) and ask Bob if the seller has DEA registration required in order sell Polar Pure. You can reach Bob any day between 9am and 8pm pacific time at (408)867-4576.
Thank you,
Ted Wallace, Polar Equipment, Inc."
http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=360826
Offshore
04-27-2015, 09:33
Its on Amazon now from two different sellers - search for ASIN: B00N5AGT1Q and you'll find it. Personally, I'm not too excited - iodine is not the panacea of water purification people seem to make it out to be. I'd also not be using it on and extended hike - too much uptake of iodine. I'll stick with my Sawyer Mini (with an Aquamira polish if the water is from a suspect source).
Walkintom
04-27-2015, 09:45
Its on Amazon now from two different sellers - search for ASIN: B00N5AGT1Q and you'll find it. Personally, I'm not too excited - iodine is not the panacea of water purification people seem to make it out to be. I'd also not be using it on and extended hike - too much uptake of iodine. I'll stick with my Sawyer Mini (with an Aquamira polish if the water is from a suspect source).
OK, so I'm not the only one who was puzzled why this was big news. I've always thought that AquaMira was a much better product but I'm aware that sometimes I miss blimp-sized objects so I was watching this to see if I'd learn what I've been missing about why I should be thrilled.
I guess everyone has their things that they choose to love, though. HYOH.
peakbagger
04-27-2015, 10:17
The short reason not to use Polar Pure is that it does not work well against giardia or at all against cryto sporidium. It also give a lot of folks , like myself some uncomfortable GI issues using it for an extended period. It is better than nothing and cheap so in a survival situation it may have some use but sadly its not the state of the art these days.
Its on Amazon now from two different sellers - search for ASIN: B00N5AGT1Q and you'll find it. Personally, I'm not too excited - iodine is not the panacea of water purification people seem to make it out to be. I'd also not be using it on and extended hike - too much uptake of iodine. I'll stick with my Sawyer Mini (with an Aquamira polish if the water is from a suspect source).
Interesting that the blog post says they can only sell it direct form the company but Amazon has 2 sites selling it.
I'd be concerned that it's a rip off.
Polar Pure was the treatment of choice at Philmont Scout Ranch.
Offshore
04-27-2015, 13:25
The short reason not to use Polar Pure is that it does not work well against giardia or at all against cryto sporidium. It also give a lot of folks , like myself some uncomfortable GI issues using it for an extended period. It is better than nothing and cheap so in a survival situation it may have some use but sadly its not the state of the art these days.
Exactly - it may have been used for 35 years as their web site says, but its not as if time and technology haven't marched forward. Some folks sound positively nostalgic for Polarpure. What's next - mercurochrome in our first aid kits?
Why use iodine with its very limited effectiveness and potential health effects when there are better alternatives available? I'm most concerned with giardia and cryptosporidia, so I handle that with a Sawyer mini. If I've got concerns with viruses, I'll followup with chlorine dioxide (Aquarmira or tablets). Iodine is least effective against the most prevalent water contaminants that a backpacker in the US is likely to come across and most effective against contaminants that are far less prevalent. Given that and potential health effects of an acute high dose of iodine (due to improper use) or chronic exposure (due to a long period of use), its probably worse than nothing.
Same opinion here. I moved from Iodine to Aquamira years ago. AM is more effective and almost tasteless - what's not to like?
peakbagger
04-27-2015, 14:03
If you want TMI, I can go into the GI issues ;).
The local medical center in Gorham reportedly used to get a several cases a year of southbounders with thyroid issues related to iodine. Apparently some portion of the population just cant handle it very well.
We used to use it with our scouts on weekend trips and many scouts would rather get dehydrated then drink enough. We ended up with a MSR pump.
Of course folks who live near nuclear power plants and preppers want a bottle around so they can use it after a release of radioactive iodine.
Dholmblad
04-27-2015, 14:25
Ah I used to love polar pure. Even the taste, I dont know what it is... But must like others I have migrated to using aqua mira and havnt looked back. I was saddened to hear that pola pure was taken off the market though.
I am not knocking Aqua Mira, but do the labels still say it's only for improving the taste and smell of potable water? And that it is illegal to use it in any way that is inconsistent with the product label? I know ....
30642
hikeandbike5
04-28-2015, 00:24
Glad to hear it's back.
I really like polar pure, my favorite water treatment method. I really like the taste of iodine water!
Thankfully i've got a second backup bottle in storage, might be enough for a lifetime supply.
Well for those of you who like polarpure sorry about the hassle, but it was well worth it to solve that meth situation right? Gettin' our money's worth on that billion a year drug war.
Offshore
04-28-2015, 07:39
Fact sheet for drinking water treatment for backcountry and travel use from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/pdf/drinking/Backcountry_Water_Treatment.pdf
(not going to get into a discussion on any science denial and anti-government topics, just putting it out there for consideration)
I must be living in a bubble, because I cannot remember ever seeing Polar Pure.
What I do remember is Potable Aqua, which is similar but different. Some years ago the began selling it in a two bottle set, with the optional second bottle serving to minimize the iodine taste.
I google this sheet up, which I found very interesting-- even though I have no idea as to the background of the people/group who put this together. At a minimum, this sheet brings up some interesting questions about the difference between Polar Pur and Potable Aqua.
http://www.pharmacalway.com/FAQ.html
Fact sheet for drinking water treatment for backcountry and travel use from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/pdf/drinking/Backcountry_Water_Treatment.pdf
(not going to get into a discussion on any science denial and anti-government topics, just putting it out there for consideration)
I haven't seen that chart before. It's a good one, nice and simple and science based.
Chlorine Dioxide aka Aqua Mira beats the pants off iodine in my opinion because of it's increased effectiveness against protozoa. It's protozoa that I'm primarily concerned with and that's what has sent me to the doctor three times. The biggest drawback for AM is crypto, low to moderate effectiveness, but there's where "acceptable risk" comes into play for me.
ChrisJackson
04-28-2015, 10:58
I've used Polar Pure for a while now but it's almost all gone. Because of this discussion, I ordered some Aqua Mira last night because it seems more effective and honestly...I'm just tired of the iodine stains...
(To be fair to Polar Pure...it's perfectly possible to use the product without creating iodine stains. I'm probably not careful or patient enough however.)
ExNihilo
04-28-2015, 11:55
Fact sheet for drinking water treatment for backcountry and travel use from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/pdf/drinking/Backcountry_Water_Treatment.pdf
(not going to get into a discussion on any science denial and anti-government topics, just putting it out there for consideration)
Interesting to see the effectiveness of those treatments. I would really like to see something as thorough on UV treatment as I am very interested in a Steripen and have a strong dislike of Chemicals.
Sarcasm the elf
04-28-2015, 13:09
Fact sheet for drinking water treatment for backcountry and travel use from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/pdf/drinking/Backcountry_Water_Treatment.pdf
(not going to get into a discussion on any science denial and anti-government topics, just putting it out there for consideration)
Interesting resource, when looking at it two things jumped out at me:
1) I was surprised at the effectiveness rating they gave the chemical treatments for giardia and cryptosporidium, as I had been led to believe they were less effective against these organisms.
2) I feel like the filter information is a bit outdated as some of the newer filters claim to have a much finer filter matrix that can catch even smaller organisms.