View Full Version : Potable water
kittyrock13
03-17-2006, 14:55
I am pretty sure I will not be purchasing a water filter. It has been recommended to me to use "tablets". If the water tastes funky, I can live with it. However this cryptospordi stuff sounds less than desirable. (Also, one tablet per quart, I drink a ton of water, could get pricey). If iodine doesn't kill it, then what about bleach? Anyone out there bleach their water? How long should you let it stand? Anyone get cryptospordium (whatever it is...)?
All suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
TN_Hiker
03-17-2006, 14:59
I always heard 3 drops of bleach per gallon of water. Make sure it's not the lemon scented bleach! I don't know about the stand time, but the colder the water the longer the stand time and / or the lower the "dosage" the longer the stand time.
:D smokin:cool: neo
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=10085&catid=member&imageuser=3462
Hey, we are talking about the AT here, not some third world country. Along the AT it really doesn't take too much to treat the water. Some use bleach, some filter, some use tablets or chemicals. There isn't a clear consensous on which is best. Some don't treat at all.
I am pretty sure I will not be purchasing a water filter. It has been recommended to me to use "tablets". If the water tastes funky, I can live with it. However this cryptospordi stuff sounds less than desirable. (Also, one tablet per quart, I drink a ton of water, could get pricey). If iodine doesn't kill it, then what about bleach? Anyone out there bleach their water? How long should you let it stand? Anyone get cryptospordium (whatever it is...)?
All suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
if you use Aqua Mira drops, you don't get any funky taste... just good water. the only drawback is time... you have to mix two chemicals (7 drops of each, per quart you want to purify), let them sit for 5 minutes (they turn a bright mountain dew-colored yellow) to activate, pour it into the water, and then let it sit for another 15-20 minutes. it kills everything, but can take HOURS to kill cryptosporidia. fortunately, crypto's not common, and i think that you only get it once... once you've had it, you're immune... probably a real @!$%@ in the meantime though... severe cramps, bloating, gas, and diarhea for several days...
you can add vitamin c to iodine-purified water and it removes a lot of the bad taste. i think Pure-Aqua Plus is the product that comes with the little vitamin c tablets...
Polar-Pure is a little bottle with iodine crystals in it... you add water to it, and it becomes a really concentrated solution of iodine. you then add these drops to the drinking water and refill the little bottle. you can add your own vitamin c to that if you don't like the taste.
bleach works. however... it is sensitive to breakdown by light (hence the bottle), resulting in needing more to get the same effect, and how do you judge that? it is also sensitive to the water's temp, like the other drops and tablets... colder water makes it work slower. FEMA recommends it only as a last-ditch emergency measure. that said, i've seen a few folks on this site who swear by it and have never gotten sick... either it works, they're really really lucky, or there aren't as many bad things in the water as we're led to believe.
and there are some who don't purify anything at all, just drinking what looks good...
i use Aqua Mira. Gave up an MSR mini-works filter.
fiddlehead
03-17-2006, 23:01
i only use bleach sparingly as most of the water on the AT I drink, although i pick my water carefully and prefer it coming out of the ground.
when i do use bleach, i put one or 2 drops per litre depending on the cleanliness of the water. I rarely need 2.
If the water is warm (room temp.) i wait 15 minutes. If it is cold, i wait longer, up to 30 minutes.
The bleach supposedly loses it's ability to work with time so you may want to resupply your dropper bottle (i use empty Visine bottle) whenever you see some bleach in a laundromat or hostel or wherever. I heard this fact here on whiteblaze but have kept my bleach for up to a whole thru-hike and never got sick. (yet)
Have fun and remember: whether you treat or not, many people do not so please keep the water sources clean for us. thanks
DawnTreader
03-17-2006, 23:20
I use polar pure.. works great.. havn't got sick yet..
easy, lighter than a filter, relliable and I don't mind the taste ...
I use polar pure.. works great.. havn't got sick yet..
easy, lighter than a filter, relliable and I don't mind the taste ...
The other down side of polar pure, and all other chemicals is that they need time to work, usually 30 minutes. This may be a problem for some people, or not. Decisions each one of us needs to make.
I use Micropur MP 1 tablets and have never been sick from the water. Also, IMO there is NO aftertaste. These are a bit pricy at REI, but reasonable at Academy. If you go to the REI web site there is a good write up on bugs that are in the water and how to kill them.
For a filter I use a big coffe filter--office size, about 8 in. diameter--folded into a cone shape. This will get rid of the big stuff.
vipahman
03-19-2006, 12:01
if you use Aqua Mira drops, you don't get any funky taste... just good water.
I have used both the filter and Aqua Mira and without a doubt the Aqua Mira does have a slightly odd taste. I still use it though.
I have used both the filter and Aqua Mira and without a doubt the Aqua Mira does have a slightly odd taste. I still use it though.
that's odd... i don't taste anything... but my brother tried some of my water and said the same thing (i just thought he was being funny...)
guess you'll have to try someone else's first, and see if you like how it tastes.
longshank
03-19-2006, 16:34
MSR MIOX pen is a godsend. If you have the means, I highly recommend it. It's money wisely spent.
saimyoji
03-19-2006, 17:26
I grew up in third world countries (Thailand, Malaysia, Philipines, Singapore..etc) and drank the water, ate from roadside food vendors all the time. I was sick as a dog a few times as a child. Now, nothing affects me, even Monties Revenge when I lived in Mexico. Granted, I don't know if the 'nasties' in the water over there are the same as over here...but I'm willing to stick out a week of diahrrea/nausea to build up a natural resistance. If it don't kill me, it'll make me stronger.
Have fun filtering/treating. I think a bandana to filter out the chunks is enough. Strangely enough, its easier to filter water for cholera than it is for crypto. Thank you Jimi Carter.
I can't stand the taste of chemicals in the water and it can't be good for your system to drink it longterm(thru-hike).
I used a Pres2Pure filter.It weighs 4 oz. and that includes the 26 fluid oz. canteen attached to it.It lasted about 700 miles for me before I had to replace the filter.It also has some kind of charcoal in the filter to take out chemicals if present ,not just viruses.