Water filter cartridges with iodine cores expiring?

[Dirtygaiters]

I have a PUR water filter, which I bought some 10+ years ago along with a replacement filter cartridge. I've used the filter a couple times, haven't used the extra filter cartridge at all..though I mainly use Aqua Mira these days so these are items of neglect in my gear storage. My question is, does iodine expire?

I believe both the filter cartridges have iodine cores. I am planning to use this filter when I hike the AZ Trail this fall and want to be prepared to gather murky water. So I don't want to have bad effects from using expired iodine. Anybody know some facts about this?

[big_muddy]

I'm pretty sure it has a carbon core and not an iodine core. Filters work by passing the water through holes so small that the bacteria cannot get through. Iodine is a disinfectant and must sit in the water for around 30 min/L. Iodine does become less effective if it is exposed to air over a period of time, say you have the iodine tablets . . .

[Alligator]

Is it a Pur Scout filter? My friend has one of those, the iodine I believe was in the secondary section, the part at the end of the hose? They don't make those anymore due to EPA regs.

If it was a Scout, the regular filter does fit.

[Alligator]

Is it a Pur Scout filter? My friend has one of those, the iodine I believe was in the secondary section, the part at the end of the hose? They don't make those anymore due to EPA regs.

If it was a Scout, the regular filter does fit.This is just wrong, I should have checked with my friend:( .

Charcoal was in the endpiece, the filter cartridge was impregnated. They do make a replacement, it is different than the more common Hiker model, and the company was bought/merged so now look for Katadyn Guide (http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=8091559&memberId=12500226&storeId=226&catalogId=40000000226&langId=-1).

The iodine in my Polar Pur needs to be kept in solution otherwise it degrades (I think it sublimates actually).

[Dirtygaiters]

I'll check when I get home, but I'm pretty sure the filter cartridge has an iodine core. From what people are saying, it looks like I should get a replacment before using it, though. I think the model is "Voyageur." I've seen filters that look like it so I'm sure I'l be able to find a replacement.

Alligator, you're right that the endpiece is full of carbon. It was my understanding that this was a design feature to remove the after taste the iodine in the filter cartridge core imparts to the water...

[RedneckRye]

PUR, which was bought out by Procter & Gamble sometime around 2000 or 2001, stopped making the Scout and Voyageur Purifiers right after P&G bought them. At the time P&G claimed that the purifiers passed all EPA and FDA tests for water purification, but didn't pass their in-house criteria. They pulled the purifiers from the market and said they would reconfigure them and they would be back on the market in a year or so.

During that year, P&G decided that they were not really interested in the outdoor or marine market. They wanted to sell filters to all of the sheeple they could convince that tap water is bad. They focused on filters that hook to your kitchen faucet, pitchers for your fridge, and cartridges for your ice makers and fridge water dispensers. P&G sold the outdoor filters to Katadyn and the marine (salt water to drinking water) to another company. Thus the PUR Hiker became the Katadyn Hiker.

The Scout Purifier worked by pumping the water thru a .3 micron glassfiber filter, then thru an iodine resin core, then out the tube and finally thru a bottle adapter that was filled with activated carbon chips (aka charcoal). The filter removed everything but viruses, the iodine core killed the viruses, and the charcoal removed the iodine taste. P&G figured out that the time the viruses were exposed to the iodine as the water traveled thru the out flow tube on its way to the charcoal wasn't enough time to kill all of the viri (is that the plural of virus?).

So, back to DirtyGaiters initial question...

The iodine core in your Voyageur Replacement Cartridge has probably oxidized or broken down to the point that it is no longer a purifier. I base this on the fact that on the back of the Potable Aqua Tablet (iodine pills) package it states that they are only effective for 6 months after the seal of the botttle has been opened and they are exposed to oxygen. The cartridge will still work fine as a filter (.3 microns taking out everything but viruses). If you are concerned about viruses in the water, filter it then Aqua Mira it. If the iodine in the core of the filter is expired, I wouldn't think that there would be any ill affects other than the iodine taste, which will probably still be there if you don't use the charcoal bottle adapter, but it probably isn't doing anything to improve the safety of the water.

Katadyn's customer service number is 1-800-755-6701. They can more than likely give you the solid answer, they are in Minnesota in the central time zone.

Wow, this may be my longest post, ever. I've worked at an outfitter since 98 and during the PUR - P&G - Katadyn transition, I probably gave that explanation at least once a day for 2 solid years.

Hope this helped.
RYE

[modiyooch]

when in doubt buy the new cartridge for $35. I have a Pur, and the company that bought out pur (?) sells the replacement cartridge.

[RedneckRye]

The Katadyn cartridges that are on the market today for the Hiker and Guide filters will indeed fit into the old PUR models. However, they are micro filters, not purifiers. They no longer contain any iodine. They work by pushing water thru the .3 micron glassfiber filter to remove bacteria, cysts, etc. They also contain charcoal to help remove odd tastes. Viruses, which are much smaller than .3 microns, can pass thru the micro filter cartridge. Chemical treatment is the way to kill viruses if you are concerned about then being in your water.

[Dirtygaiters]

PUR, which was bought out by Procter & Gamble sometime around 2000 or 2001, stopped making the Scout and Voyageur Purifiers right after P&G bought them. At the time P&G claimed that the purifiers passed all EPA and FDA tests for water purification, but didn't pass their in-house criteria. They pulled the purifiers from the market and said they would reconfigure them and they would be back on the market in a year or so.

During that year, P&G decided that they were not really interested in the outdoor or marine market. They wanted to sell filters to all of the sheeple they could convince that tap water is bad. They focused on filters that hook to your kitchen faucet, pitchers for your fridge, and cartridges for your ice makers and fridge water dispensers. P&G sold the outdoor filters to Katadyn and the marine (salt water to drinking water) to another company. Thus the PUR Hiker became the Katadyn Hiker.

The Scout Purifier worked by pumping the water thru a .3 micron glassfiber filter, then thru an iodine resin core, then out the tube and finally thru a bottle adapter that was filled with activated carbon chips (aka charcoal). The filter removed everything but viruses, the iodine core killed the viruses, and the charcoal removed the iodine taste. P&G figured out that the time the viruses were exposed to the iodine as the water traveled thru the out flow tube on its way to the charcoal wasn't enough time to kill all of the viri (is that the plural of virus?).

So, back to DirtyGaiters initial question...

The iodine core in your Voyageur Replacement Cartridge has probably oxidized or broken down to the point that it is no longer a purifier. I base this on the fact that on the back of the Potable Aqua Tablet (iodine pills) package it states that they are only effective for 6 months after the seal of the botttle has been opened and they are exposed to oxygen. The cartridge will still work fine as a filter (.3 microns taking out everything but viruses). If you are concerned about viruses in the water, filter it then Aqua Mira it. If the iodine in the core of the filter is expired, I wouldn't think that there would be any ill affects other than the iodine taste, which will probably still be there if you don't use the charcoal bottle adapter, but it probably isn't doing anything to improve the safety of the water.

Katadyn's customer service number is 1-800-755-6701. They can more than likely give you the solid answer, they are in Minnesota in the central time zone.

Wow, this may be my longest post, ever. I've worked at an outfitter since 98 and during the PUR - P&G - Katadyn transition, I probably gave that explanation at least once a day for 2 solid years.

Hope this helped.
RYE


Thank you very much for taking the time to share you're knowledge about this, RYE. I completely understrand now. Mainly, I'm glad I won't have to shell out the $35 for a new cartridge.:D Too bad P&G abandoned the concept of a purifier for a microfilter... even if the purifier didn't completely work. It seems like a really good idea if they had only tweaked it to work better instead of abandoning the idea.

[icemanat95]

The old cartridges are likely junk unless the spare is still sealed airtight. Then it might be OK.

The iodine resin is supposed to deactivate viruses on contact and the resin matrix is supposed to be tight enough that all the water and other molecules in it, will come into contact with the iodine before the water is discharged. The older PUR Explorer and Scout Filters could be fitted with a screw on carbon post-filter that stripped the iodine from the water on it's way out of the filter. You could also screw a bottle adaptor onto this so you could screw the whole assembly onto nalgene bottles or MSR Dromedary bags. The whole mess made the filters too large for me. So I went without the carbon filters and dealt with the flavor. Turns out this was the better option, since it allowed the iodine to do its work longer, which was the reputed problem with the system...the carbon post filters that most people used stripped out the iodine right away.

[Dirtygaiters]

Actually the spare filter cartridge I have is still sealed up in plastic, fortunately. Good idea about ditching the bulky carbon post filter.