View Full Version : I need help please, Gear !
Roee Dotan
03-14-2004, 14:24
Hello there.
I have a question for all you thru hikers.
1. Which water filter is better between those 2 :
Khatadym Mini or Khatadyn Hiker ?
I spoke with a sales man in REI and he told me that it can be a kind of a problem to find a replacement filter for the Khatadyn Mini along the trail. What do you think ?
2. What kind of sleeping do you think that I need for the trail ?
+30 ? +15 ?
Thank you very much for the help.
Roee.
What kind of sleeping do you think that I need for the trail ?
+30 ? +15 ?
We need just a bit more info. When are you planning on hiking?
Roee Dotan
03-14-2004, 16:41
I'm starting on the 11 of april.
And yes, I need a warm sleeping bag in the night, otherwise I wont sleep :-)
What da ya thing guys ?
And also about the filter.. ?
Heya Zammy, heh, it will be wierd to meet you on the trail :-)
You think we will meet ?
I'm starting on the 11 of april.
And yes, I need a warm sleeping bag in the night, otherwise I wont sleep :-)
What da ya thing guys ?
And also about the filter.. ?
Heya Zammy, heh, it will be wierd to meet you on the trail :-)
You think we will meet ?
If you choices are 15 degree and 30 degree, go with the 15 degree bag. It can get very cold in the mountains right through the middle of May.
I own the Kayadyn Hiker filter. Replacement filters should be readily available. Some folks use a pre-filter to minimize the wear on your filter. A bandana works well. I have seen folks use coffee filters too.
For those who use filters, the Katadyn Hiker is the preferred model. The reason is that it pumps much faster than others. Katadyn guarenteer their cartridges for a year. In reality, they last about 2 months before the alge growth plugs the pores. Most outfitters along the trail carry replacement cartridges and will swap them for free for thru-hikers.
Sleeping bags: depends on where you are when. Most people need a 20 degree bag in the early spring in the south (Springer to Pearisburg), then a warmer bag for the summer (Pearisburg to Glencliff), and then the 20 degree bag again (Glencliff to Katadin).
smokymtnsteve
03-14-2004, 21:05
being that you are leaving the middle of april you could go with the 30 degree bag ...just bring a extra underlayer of clothes ...you weight would be the near the same but you would have more flexiblity in your options ..
mid april on through the fall I just use a little fleece bag but I also carry good longjohns and some fleece pants ..and extra pair of dry socks ...if you get a real cold night you can just get up and move ...you may spend one or two cold nights but you would live thru it.
I do pretty good down into the 20's like this. and have survived some teens on standing indian with this set up in early march 2002..
The Old Fhart
03-14-2004, 23:32
Roee Dotan,
I used a Katadyn Mini only once. To filter a liter of water took about 215 pumps and it takes some pressure to push the water through the ceramic element. I felt it really wasn't worth the time and effort. The element life would be great because if the outside of the element gets clogged you just use the special brush to clean the outside, removing a little of the element each time.
Since then I've used the Pur Scout which is about like the Hiker and weighs more than the Mini but only takes about 30 pumps with a new filter to give you a liter of water. The pressure you have to apply to pump is a lot less and the price is lower as well so I'd choose the Hiker.
I would recommend using coffee filters held over the intake with elastic bands to greatly extend the life of the element. They are cheap, add almost no weight, and give a big payback.
Save weight...you don't need a filter. Use Clorox. Chlorine is what the city puts in your tapwater anyway. 2-4 drops per liter and no, you won't taste it. I drank beaver pond water in Maine using Clorox and never got sick. A small dropper type bottle that breath freshener comes in will last a week.
The Old Fhart
03-15-2004, 08:04
I know this may get some ultra-light hikers upset but before deciding to not use a filter, check this article by thru-hiker Vernon G. Vernier, M.D., a.k.a. "Del Doc" at:
http://gorp.away.com/gorp/activity/hiking/medical/water.htm. Part of what it says is:
The best of the soluble iodine preparations—Potable Aqua, Coghlan's Emergency Germicidal Drinking Water Tablets, and Polar Pure—were not as good for short treatment periods as either heat or filtration. Complete protection required eight hours contact in not-too-cold water (50F), although fairly good protection occurred in 30 minutes. Other iodine preparations, which included 2 percent tincture of iodine, were slightly less effective, but they were all effective after eight hours.
Halazone (no longer available) was the best of three chlorine preparations, which included commercial bleach. But all of these were much less effective than iodine; none gave complete protection even after eight hours. They are not recommended.
What you will find is there are people who have hiked the entire trail and never treated water and had no apparent problems. One hiker I know got Giardia twice on her trip and still didn’t treat water while there are others who are carriers and show no symptoms. There are those who used treatment methods and still got sick because of sloppy hygiene. Whatever method you use make sure you understand it well otherwise you could be getting no protection because you are not doing some important step in the process. I know people who filter who keep the output hose (pure water side) with the input hose (untreated water side) thus contaminating the “clean” hose. People who use Iodine or Chlorine frequently don’t follow the practice of inverting and squeezing the water bottle with the cap loose to let the treated water trickle out over the threads and treat that part of the bottle as well. One other important consideration with a filter is that you don't have to wait for 30 minutes or more to drink the water, it is ready to drink immediately. This can be important if water sources are few and you want to "camel up" when you refill your water bottles.
Because a thru hike is generally so important I don’t feel that I want to take a chance of being knocked off the trail for two weeks by some microbe that could have easily been wiped out. I also prefer to trust in science rather than old wife’s tales. That is why you will see me using a filter.
If you want to discuss various methods of water treatment, then look at other threads. This topic has been discussed before.
1. Which water filter is better between those 2 :
Khatadym Mini or Khatadyn Hiker ?.......
2. What kind of sleeping do you think that I need for the trail ?
+30 ? +15 ?Roee.
Roee:
i'd go with the (obvious) one...the filter u can get parts for...
i've only used a PUR filter in the past......but now, i use water treatment tabs (aqua mira=iodine tabs).
as for sleeping bag...need more info. of when you're hiking but...i'd go with a 15+degree bag.....
good luck with your hike! :D