Water Filtration

[mot13ley]

I know that they're are many different types of water purification tablets. I'm weary about which ones are more safe than the others. What are some preferences for which type of tablets one should use?

[johnnyblisters]

http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/1541/ratpoison.jpg
This has been working well for me lately...


;)

[Bags4266]

lol, funny.... Does it have to be tablets. Everyone usually uses the Aqua Mira drops. I do believe they make tabs also

[Panzer1]

I carry Potable Aqua Plus as a backup to my water filter.

Panzer

[takethisbread]

there is no perfect solution yet.

i have em all, and i hate em all.

[Blissful]

For the AT aqua mira is all you need. And a good map to show you the good water sources that aren't beaver pond outlets, cattlefields etc

[couscous]

I know that they're are many different types of water purification tablets. I'm weary about which ones are more safe than the others. What are some preferences for which type of tablets one should use?

Tablets often suggest waiting several hours before treatment is complete. I sometimes carry a couple as a backup to chemical treatment, but they really only work well between meals .. like supper to breakfast.

[jang]

It helps to know a bit about Giardia [aka beaver fever]. I've mostly hiked in the Adirondacks in upstate NY, and unfortunately they say that most water sources there are now contaminated with Giardia. They say that years ago this was not the case. With respect to Giardia (and probably not other things) it is safer to draw water from the surface of a still pond or lake, because the giardia cysts sink to the bottom.

People can ingest some Giardia and not be affected. But if too much is ingested over time, one passes a threshold, more or less depending on the individual, and then one will become ill.

begin quote:
"Giardiasis is infection with the single-celled protozoan parasite Giardia lamblia. This extremely infectious microorganism lives in an inactive, cyst state in contaminated water or feces-contaminated food. One to three weeks after it is swallowed, the parasite attaches itself to the mucous membrane of the intestine. In one to three weeks it causes abdominal pain, bloating, flatulence, putrid diarrhea, and sulfurous burping......
Acute giardiasis usually subsides within a week, but the disease can persist for months or even years...."
end quote
From "Prescription for Herbal Healing" by Phyllis Balch.

This is a reason why one is told to dig catholes a distance away from water. If ones excrement contains the cysts then the cysts can make it into the water table and contaminate the nearby stream/pond/lake.

[SouthMark]

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=69658

[SunnyWalker]

Well, your thread title says "Water Filtration" so I will comment. But I think you're really interested in chemical purification. I use a Sweetwater filter and have enjoyed it for a number of years. I recommend it.

[Ladytrekker]

I don't use tablets. But I did just buy a bota bottle light and easy. I have drank many of the rivers in North Florida and I am still walking.

[Papa D]

a water filter is nice to have for trips under a week long, but I think they are too heavy for a long trip - they also freeze and are more or less worthless under about 25 deg. - Aqua Mira has pretty much become the standard, but a tiny bit of bleach will purify water just fine and won't hurt you and costs about 1% if the price of A/M. You can kill the taste with a sprinkle of drink mix powder.

[wishful1015]

Will boiling the water kill Giardia?

[WILLIAM HAYES]

aqua mira as a backup

[swantekkie]

I use the sweet water as well, and just because it won't get you sick doesn't mean it's good water. I'd rather not have dirt in my water.

[crazystick]

Will boiling the water kill Giardia?
Boiling water will kill giardia, cryptosporidum and anything else in the water. but only carbon filters will neutralize any chemicals that may be in the water, but people usually are less concerned about that, and it really isnt usually something you should worry too much about just stay away from three mile island.


Tablets often suggest waiting several hours before treatment is complete. I sometimes carry a couple as a backup to chemical treatment, but they really only work well between meals .. like supper to breakfast.
Thats true, same for drops, but this is because thats the time it takes to kill cryptosporidium, which is like giardia on PCP, giardia and many other bacteria and protozoa are killed within 15 minutes for the most part, so alot of people dont wait the full amount of time listed on the bottle.

[BradMT]

I'd carry Aqua Mira and use that only if I had a question about the source.

Aside from very occasionally treating water (never in Montana), I haven't filtered water in 36 years of backpacking.

This Nanny Nation thing is getting to be a bit much...

[Penguin]

The lightest most cost effective, and most effective against viruses and bacteria (according to a biochemist friend) is the MSR sweetwater drops, the filter is not nesecary these drops kill everything, and a 10 dollar bottle will last over a 1000 trail miles. I put this in water that had cow **** in it and never got sick.

[dragoro]

I prefer polar pure, myself.

[BradMT]

The lightest most cost effective, and most effective against viruses and bacteria (according to a biochemist friend) is the MSR sweetwater drops, the filter is not nesecary these drops kill everything, and a 10 dollar bottle will last over a 1000 trail miles. I put this in water that had cow **** in it and never got sick.

Penguin, good to know...

[The Old Boot]

The lightest most cost effective, and most effective against viruses and bacteria (according to a biochemist friend) is the MSR sweetwater drops, the filter is not nesecary these drops kill everything, and a 10 dollar bottle will last over a 1000 trail miles. I put this in water that had cow **** in it and never got sick.

According to every web site info I've read, the sweetwater drops are to be used in conjunction with the sweetwater filter NOT as a standalone product.

I've had lots of time this winter to read everything I can get my hands on in regards to safe drinking water products....I'm choosing the Steripen and carrying a few Micropur tablets for emergency use.

[Penguin]

i used to be a polar pure fan, until my hiking partner dropped our bottle of it, and it broke. We also had aqua mira which works good but the two part system isn't nesecary and it runs out kind of quick. No probes with the Aqua Mira though. The sweetwater drops still I believe are the best out there.

[dragoro]

Mine was banging away in my bag all through Georgia last year and never broke.

[Penguin]

The sweetwater filter and the drops are a redundancy. It is nice not to get water with a bunch of floaties in it, and with some effort a lot of sources can produce better water then you would think upon first glance. The filter just makes it more pleasant to drink. The drops kill absolutey everything, so there are no worries, again I posed this question to my friend who a Biochemist and she said the filter was unnecessary. Who knows though, I imagine the water sources on the AT are clearer then the ganky sources on the PCT and the awful stock tanks on the AZT.

[crazystick]

The lightest most cost effective, and most effective against viruses and bacteria (according to a biochemist friend) is the MSR sweetwater drops, the filter is not nesecary these drops kill everything, and a 10 dollar bottle will last over a 1000 trail miles. I put this in water that had cow **** in it and never got sick.

That is what I use!, not aquamira. you just have to understand that the instructions on the bottle assume you put the water through the sweetwater filter FIRST so it says let sit for a few minutes (this is becuase the filter already filtered out the bacteria and protozoa, and only viruses are left, which are killed faster)
So if you use the MSR sweetwater drops, the time it takes to kill is the same as aquamira, you just get a larger bottle of the formula for less $$ per ounce.

[crazystick]

to add something to this discussion, the ingredients in the sweetwater drops are the same as in aquamira essentially. They both use Chlorine Dioxide to do the job.

Filters do not treat viruses, they are too small
Drops do not treat chemicals, only carbon is able to trap chem.

So MSR Sweetwater filter w/ drops basically gets the chemicals, the viruses and everything in between, so its not TOTALLY redundent.

I still opt to just use sweetwater drops, been using it for a couple years now without problem. if you feel safe using aquamira, sweetwater drops are basically the same, im sure the difference is small.

[goody5534]

Will the Katadyn Vario be a viable and productive unit for all treatment on the AT

[Bare Bear]

Bleach, two drops per 32 oz. wait 20 minutes (shake, like hanging off a pack) cheap, effective and available everywhere,

[crazystick]

Will the Katadyn Vario be a viable and productive unit for all treatment on the AT

Yea that unit will do just fine for all water treatment needs

[MooseHead]

I like polar pure

[Freedom Walker]

Will the Katadyn Vario be a viable and productive unit for all treatment on the AT

I have this fifter. It has always worked well, but at 19 oz it is a little heavy. The good thing is it is paid for.