View Full Version : Water @ Springs ?
Do I need to treat the water that comes out of springs along the AT and is flowing (especially in PA, MD, VA) ? Since no farm chemicals or animal waste can cataminate it, is it safe for kids as is - or can gardia, cryto, viruses, etc live in flowing springs too (or the PVC pipe that many of the AT springs use to transport the water to a sump use) ?
Thanks.
drastic_quench
04-04-2009, 10:57
Yes, treat it. Flowing ground water is less likely to be contaminated, but you never know unless you pack along a microscope and spectrometer.
That said plenty of people never treat their water, and claim to have never suffered consequences. They'll be along shortly.
Do I need to treat the water that comes out of springs along the AT and is flowing (especially in PA, MD, VA) ? Since no farm chemicals or animal waste can cataminate it, is it safe for kids as is - or can gardia, cryto, viruses, etc live in flowing springs too (or the PVC pipe that many of the AT springs use to transport the water to a sump use) ?
Thanks.
If the alternative is to pass that water through a plastic tube that has been cooking in you pack or on a garage shelf for weeks, months or years, then further passing that water though a filter that has concentrated potential contaminates in a small cylinder where its held them for days, weeks or longer, the answer seems rather clear to me.
By the way, did you know that New York City does not treat or filter the water that comes out of their taps? And yet it is considered to be some of the best in the world.
NYC might not treat what comes out of the taps, but they use a variety of treatments it before it gets there:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/wsstate07.pdf
fiddlehead
04-04-2009, 17:40
Totally "UP TO YOU"
There is no requirement that says yes or no.
I remember when the ATC put these signs on many water sources saying you should treat all water. I hated those signs because i believe it would cause some to think that everybody follows this rule and so, it would be ok to wash your dishes, clothes, or otherwise contaminate the water source.
Many of us do not treat water/
summitnh
04-04-2009, 18:23
I didn't filter much through GA and NC and I am still standing
nyc Might Not Treat What Comes Out Of The Taps, But They Use A Variety Of Treatments It Before It Gets There:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/wsstate07.pdf
Ok.
Many Walks
04-04-2009, 22:41
We didn't treat water that we were sure came out of springs. If it's surface running water and we weren't sure of the source we treated it. I would always treat water for a kid. We can take risks for ourselves, but I'd take every precaution I could to ensure the kids under my care are safe.
We all like to think that spring water is pure. I used to live in a rental cabin here in GA. Our water was from a spring. One day, I pulled the cover off the spring. You wouldn't believe the frogs, tadpoles, salamanders and who knows what else living in the spring. We never got sick.
I guess it just puts the thought in my mind that I prefer not know what is in my water.....what my steak looked like when it could moo.....where eggs come from.....or what's in the kitchen of my favorite restaurant.
I don't treat spring water.
vamelungeon
04-05-2009, 08:50
I used to stay at a cabin that had a spring house, and there were salamanders in the spring. I never gave it a second thought, and the owner said he figured it was pretty clean water or the salamanders wouldn't live in it.
saimyoji
04-05-2009, 09:24
chemical treatment methods are small and light. take one; use it if you are unsure of a water source. I use potable aqua.
garlic08
04-05-2009, 10:03
Pay attention to personal hygiene, keep other hikers' hands out of your food, and you'll probably stay healthy. That spring water is, in my opinion, the best you'll find on Earth--enjoy it, whether you treat or not. I never do, but that's my preference. Pumps never last long for me, and I don't like drinking chemicals.
As long as there wasn't boar or bear or moose droppings in the spring, I've never treated spring water in over 7000 miles of walking.
No problems.
If it makes you feel better, treat away.
TrippinBTM
04-05-2009, 11:29
it is said most people get giardia and such from unclean hands, not unclean water. This may or may not be true, but seems likely. I almost never treated water on my thruhike. But with kids involved, well, I might think twice. Also, PA and MD are pretty "low" states, and heavily used by the East Coasters, among others, both of which in my mind make me a bit more careful.
But not paranoid. Like I said, I maybe treated a about 15 times on the whole AT. You're going to be better off with water from as high an elevation as you can get, so that you can know there's no farm, pasture, or town upstream/uphill from your spring. A map can help a lot with this. Keep in mind springs are basically underground streams. Still, I consider them cleaner. I figure the whole mountain is filtering it, so it's gotta be safe. This at least helps me sleep better. I have yet to get sick though.
I never thought about the "concentrated cylinder of contaminants" and the dirty hose and all that. Makes me want to rethink the filter I have, and in retrospect makes me even happier that I left it at home for the AT.
By the way, I remember being happy to see salamanders swimming around in a spring down in GA. Amphibians absorb water, oxygen, and everything else through their skin. If they can live there, it's pretty damn clean water. Well, I'll put it this way: it's a good sign, though not absolute proof, of clean water. You'll never be sure.
I treated my water once with Polar Pure, my first day on the trail. The taste was so disgusting that I made a choice to risk sickness over the taste of that crap. I never treated my water again, and never got sick. As garlic08 said, that spring water is delicious.
Lone Wolf
04-06-2009, 12:51
Do I need to treat the water that comes out of springs along the AT and is flowing (especially in PA, MD, VA) ? Since no farm chemicals or animal waste can cataminate it, is it safe for kids as is - or can gardia, cryto, viruses, etc live in flowing springs too (or the PVC pipe that many of the AT springs use to transport the water to a sump use) ?
Thanks.
i've never filtered or treated water in 16,000 miles of AT hiking. just be very selective. works for me
Do I need to treat the water that comes out of springs along the AT and is flowing (especially in PA, MD, VA) ? ETCETCETCETC.............................Thanks.
ALWAYS a personal preference...
I've seen hikers with ELABORATE filter set-ups....all the way down to the AquaMira tabs...to the guys that dont filter @ ALL(like me).
See ya'll out there MAY 1-14 NOBO HARPERS FERRY to SWATARA GAP,PA w/ my bud, "MODEL-T":D