View Full Version : SteriPen Water Purifier...
88BlueGT
01-23-2008, 00:13
Whats your guys opinions on this? Pro's? Con's?
http://www.ems.com/catalog/product_detail_square.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=8455 24442595663&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=282574489160625&bmUID=1201061103192
Lone Wolf
01-23-2008, 00:14
too good to be true
Almost There
01-23-2008, 00:29
It is all dependent on how well you can filter particles and sediment out of the water. Anything that will hamper the light from penetrating the water will hamper the UV lights effectiveness. It should work based on the fact that the prefilter recommended will filter out some harmful things before it even gets in your bottle, and then the steripen will take care of the rest..
I just bought one for sketchy water sources, but to be honest I don't usually filter...unless I am hiking with the wife, I can get sick...but if she gets sick....UH OH!!!
BitBucket
01-23-2008, 00:35
Whats your guys opinions on this? Pro's? Con's?
http://www.ems.com/catalog/product_detail_square.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=8455 24442595663&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=282574489160625&bmUID=1201061103192
I've got one...a bit heavy just to provide light..but works as advertised....I filter with a Katadyn Vario, then zap it with the UV of the Steripen...end result is better, cleaner, fresher tasting water than I get here in Huntsville, AL
ChinMusic
01-23-2008, 00:38
I have the original Steripen and love it. I do carry some Micropur tablets for emer, in case of unit failure or turbid water.
River Runner
01-23-2008, 00:41
Check out in depth reviews here:
http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/Water%20Treatment/Ultraviolet/SteriPen%20Adventurer/
88BlueGT
01-23-2008, 00:41
too good to be true
That's is pretty much what I thought but just thought that I would ask. I don't like buying gear thats not "regularly" used by lots of people. For some reason I just don't feel comfortable. So I don't really plan on buying it but I just wanted to know for my own knowledge :)
envirodiver
01-23-2008, 00:43
As noted UV light is an excellent disinfectant. But, the water needs to be clear without particulate matter. Need to get the chunks out. However, UV does not kill the bad guys, just alters their DNA so they can't reproduce. If they can't reproduce they can't infect you (1 can't make you sick).
I like my Steri Pen. I don't filter. I have seldom had to rely on water that is full of particulate. I do carry the old iodine pills just in case of malfunction. While it does not kill the bad guys, they cannot reproduce; thus allowing your own antibodies to fight and kill them. If your immune system is in such a weakened state that it cannot fight them off, then you are just as likely to get sick rubbing your eyes or picking your nose.
It will not change the taste of your water. It is too acidic or has too iron or in one case too much horse s**t, just add Crystal Light.
It is too acidic or has too iron or in one case too much horse s**t, just add Crystal Light.
or a Beef bullion cube
88BlueGT
01-23-2008, 08:35
beef in water?
beef in water?
sure why not, I do beef jerky in oatmeal and ketsup on french toast. :banana
too good to be true
hey Wolf, i got one of these things over here at the house. want to test it?
Lone Wolf
01-23-2008, 09:18
hell no
beef in water?A lot of people call that soup. :D
A lot of people call that soup. :D
soupy water :-?
hammock engineer
01-23-2008, 10:32
I bought one in Hanover and used it until Springer. I like it. Batteries lasted about 3 to 4 weeks using Litium. Alkoline lasts about 3 days. I did have it stop working on me. The company overnighted one at no cost to me to a PO. Really great customer service. I never got sick. I carry a backup eye dropper of bleach if needed.
Only once in PA did I have a lot of sediment when I got water out of a puddle. if you let the water settle for a couple minutes the sediment goes to the bottom. If not it is just more nurishment.
In the cold make sure you dry it off or the cap will freeze on. Not too hard to get off. Nothing beats drinking treated water while everyone else is thirsty and waiting for their chemicals to work.
Lone Wolf
01-23-2008, 10:37
Nothing beats drinking treated water while everyone else is thirsty and waiting for their chemicals to work.
nothing beats drinking untreated/unfiltered water with complete faith while the paranoids wait for chemicals to screw up perfectly pure water :)
turtle fast
01-23-2008, 10:53
If the steripen uses uv light to dammage DNA in the bad cooties in the water so they can't reproduce....what does it do to your hand when you stir the pen in the nalgene bottle?
I have a steripen and I love it. I bought the little prefilter to take out sediment. I use a zip loc bag and scoop from the water source and pour into the nalgene with the prefilter, then zap it with the steripen. Works great without much volume taken up in the pack. It is supposed to kill everything -- protozoa, bacteria, and virus which, from what I understand, that filters do not usually get viruses. I take some treatment tablets in case of failure, but have not needed them. Anyway, I don't find this too good to be true, works well.
hammock engineer
01-23-2008, 11:24
nothing beats drinking untreated/unfiltered water with complete faith while the paranoids wait for chemicals to screw up perfectly pure water :)
Yeah I will say I dip and sip a lot more than before. Give me some time. Right now I only do that on water that is flowing out of a pipe or from the top of ridgelines dipping down.
I wonder how many people contaminate water sources by putting their nasty filter hoses in the springs.:-?
Cannibal
01-23-2008, 11:36
I've been using the SteriPen to treat Florida water for about a year with zero problems. I've got the older model that treats 32oz at a time instead of 16oz, but I pay a 2.6oz weight penalty for the convenience. I threw the prefilter out and just use a coffee filter; probably going to switch to using a nylon stocking instead of the coffee filter.
I've pulled water out of drainage canals and standing swamp water; never got sick.
I used the SteriPen Adventurer and had to return it to REI. It was just simply too unreliable and failed to work about 25% of the time. The three other people I met on the trail with the same model had the same problem.
The one person that had the original model had no problems to speak of.
(Also, the solar recharger is useless on the AT)
If the steripen uses uv light to dammage DNA in the bad cooties in the water so they can't reproduce....what does it do to your hand when you stir the pen in the nalgene bottle?
I guess my hand is sterile & it won't reproduce anymore.
envirodiver
01-23-2008, 17:51
If the steripen uses uv light to dammage DNA in the bad cooties in the water so they can't reproduce....what does it do to your hand when you stir the pen in the nalgene bottle?
I don't think it damages skin over a short duration, but that's just an assumption.
nothing beats drinking untreated/unfiltered water with complete faith while the paranoids wait for chemicals to screw up perfectly pure water :)
L. Wolf, I've read you state this many times, and I have a question for you: Are you taking water from the same sources as the rest of these folks? Or do you wait for a pure spring? Or a tap? And what do you do when the only water is far from perfectly pure?
Lone Wolf
01-23-2008, 18:03
yes, same source
if less pure, i add flavored drink mix
Well, I've had to take water from lots of sources that I wouldn't drink from without treatment. Too many bug larvae and risk of nasties. We called it swamp water. On the other hand, I recall whole lakes of crystal pure water that you could see bottom in twenty or thirty feet down. Probably too pure for fish to live in, but also probably no bugs either. In the farmland, I treat everything, and wish I could remove some of the agricultural chemicals in it too. We've had a few cases of E. coli and cryptosporidium around in municipal water supplies in Ontario. Those are usually bad practice in the municipal water purification, but we know the bugs are out there. I prefer not to take the chance if it is easy to avoid. I don't like chemical treatments in dirty water, so I filter. Works ok, except in really rich water, like in a spring flood river on the prairies. Then you have to scrape the crud off every so often, like after every litre. I'm interested in these uv contraptions, and I ordered one, but it never came. Guess I'll have to try again.
PS: A guy who lived in Fitzgerald before they kicked him out for not being a native told me that the muddy river water was easy: just boil it, and the mud will coagulate and drop to the bottom. Then pour off the clear water, and do whatever you want. This was after my trip, of course, so I've never been able to try it out. Anyone else try this?
If the steripen uses uv light to dammage DNA in the bad cooties in the water so they can't reproduce....what does it do to your hand when you stir the pen in the nalgene bottle?
water is incredible at absorbing radiation, as long as you're holding the steripen where you're suppose to you'll get very little exposure.
If the steripen uses uv light to dammage DNA in the bad cooties in the water so they can't reproduce....what does it do to your hand when you stir the pen in the nalgene bottle?
UV-c cannot pass through the plastic in the nalgene (and just about any other container you use) and the air-water interface also reflects the uv-c. There is no danger of exposure since the pen will not operate unless the bulb is completely submerged.
88BlueGT
01-23-2008, 22:04
I used the SteriPen Adventurer and had to return it to REI. It was just simply too unreliable and failed to work about 25% of the time. The three other people I met on the trail with the same model had the same problem.
The one person that had the original model had no problems to speak of.
(Also, the solar recharger is useless on the AT)
explain...........?
ChinMusic
01-23-2008, 22:42
UV-c cannot pass through the plastic in the nalgene (and just about any other container you use) and the air-water interface also reflects the uv-c. There is no danger of exposure since the pen will not operate unless the bulb is completely submerged.
I'm glad I read your post before I posted. I was gonna state the same thing.
There is no radiation risk from the Steripen.
Skidsteer
01-23-2008, 22:43
..............................................
Skidsteer
01-23-2008, 22:44
explain...........?
Not enough sunlight.
ChinMusic
01-23-2008, 22:47
I have not used the solar recharger but I looks like a waste to me, and I like gadgets. Just carry an extra set of lithium batteries and replace them as needed.
Not enough sunlight.
exactly. the thing would be great for open air extended travel but there's just not enough light under the trees. even when exposed to direct sunlight, it supposedly takes a couple days for the batteries to recharge.
hammock engineer
01-24-2008, 04:21
I don't think it mattered, but I tried not to stare at it when it was on. Figured my eyes didn't need a tan.
hell no
why not, we might come up with a cheap way to make mountain dew? all we got to do is add a little sugar and corn to the water, then do the steri pen thingy and presto!:-?