View Full Version : steripen
sweetchristine
08-21-2011, 18:55
Has anybody used the steripen water purifier for a thru hike? Its one of those things that looks to good to be true.
I HAVE USED THE sTERIPEN FOR THREE YEARS AND 1,000 MI ON THE at...iT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE OF EQUIPMENT I HAVE AS I DEHYDRATE VERY EASILY. DEFINITELY WORTH THE MONEY...
ChinMusic
08-21-2011, 19:48
If you decide to get one get the newer Opti version and not the older Classic version.
I like it for on-trail treat-quick-and-drink use. I use Aqua Mira drops when I can wait at least 30-60 minutes. Weighs just 3 oz and means I carry less water. Less water = lighter pack = sweet.
sweetchristine
08-21-2011, 21:38
I was actually looking at the steripen Adventurer version....Its smaller than the other one and comes in a solar recharging carry case! I thought it looked like an amazing product!
I have the steripen adventurer and have had good success so far. No thru hike yet. Passed on the solar charger because it takes a long time to charge batteries and you aren't going to have enough direct sunlight. CR123 batteries can be found cheap at CR123. com. I have sterilized 21 liters with my first set and they are still working. I take them out of the steripen when not using it. Hope this helps.
4eyedbuzzard
08-21-2011, 21:58
I have the older adventurer model (yellow case). Works great. My daughter recently used it on a 10 day LT hike. She used it for herself and a friend for drinking water only (no need to purify cooking water obviously) and the two CR123 batteries lasted the entire hike - so Steripen's claim of approximately 50 liters on a set of batteries is probably pretty accurate.
Shavuotis
08-21-2011, 23:09
The Steri Pen is a good product. It is light and adds an extra measure of safety to your water and prevents Montezuma's Revenge. Just make sure your water is not cloudy or the UV light will not be as effective. I use it in conjunction with my MSR Miniworks and have had no problems. Not a super lightweight combo but it is effective.
Linesman
08-21-2011, 23:28
The steripen cant sterilize the threads of water bottle after you dip it in the water. Its probably the fastest purification method but not the most thorough.
ChinMusic
08-21-2011, 23:34
The steripen cant sterilize the threads of water bottle after you dip it in the water. Its probably the fastest purification method but not the most thorough.
And Aquamira does? Nope.
Just wipe off the threads. No biggie.
I have a steripen and use it for day hikes and short trips. I like the convenience. However, I had heard about reliability issues over a 2000+ mile trip so I used aqua mira on my thru hike (and had a Katadhin filter as well from northern Va, thru NY when water was scarce and not flowing well.)
I did know one guy who was on his 3rd unit somewhere in Va. He got good product support from the company but was frustrated with their product. This is just one data point keep in mind. You will not see many thru hikers carry them (if that means anything).
4eyedbuzzard
08-22-2011, 07:03
I have a steripen and use it for day hikes and short trips. I like the convenience. However, I had heard about reliability issues over a 2000+ mile trip so I used aqua mira on my thru hike (and had a Katadhin filter as well from northern Va, thru NY when water was scarce and not flowing well.)
I did know one guy who was on his 3rd unit somewhere in Va. He got good product support from the company but was frustrated with their product. This is just one data point keep in mind. You will not see many thru hikers carry them (if that means anything).
I have noticed that as well - that most thru-hikers don't. But most section hikers don't either, so it's a bit debatable as to whether this is a product reliability issue (real or perceived) or just market penetration. As a section hiker it's no big deal to carry a few aqua mira tabs as a backup. A thru-hiker likely wouldn't want to carry a redundant method though, so it's a valid point. The thread issue (and the many other possibilities of cross-contamination) is common to all methods, even with shaking the bottle etc.. As with municipal water supplies, you can never achieve 100% purity in the real world, there are always a few pathogens that manage to get by virtually all potable water purification systems. It's simply a matter of getting the bad critters down to a level where they can't cause illness.
I have had trouble getting mine to turn on. Rather than just having an off/on switch, they have you mashing down on a button 1 or 2 times to get a flashing green light that then turns the UV light on after you stick it in the water. If you don't get it just right it will flash red and won't work. I had serious trouble getting it to work when I needed it and wanted to throw it down the bank. Be sure to practice alot and bring the directions with you.
every single person I know who has used one on a long distance hike gave them negative reviews.
Perhaps steripens have improved in the last several years.
ChinMusic
08-22-2011, 10:46
every single person I know who has used one on a long distance hike gave them negative reviews.
Perhaps steripens have improved in the last several years.
There are many thrus that have successfully used the Steripen on their hikes. The negative reviews (mostly from not keeping the pins on the Classic model dry) have all been from the Classic model.
So yes, Steripen has improved things. The Opti version eliminated the need to worry about the pins.
That's good to know.
I thought I had giardia again so I was poking around at treatment options. Still haven't found anything I'll use over the 'just drink' method.
turns out the symptoms weren't giardia, but rather were caused by pushing myself too hard trying to get (back) into shape and living off of gas station sweet tea on century bike rides
Maybe by the next time I actually get giardia the steripens will be perfect :)
singing wind
08-23-2011, 01:01
sweetchristine - welcome to WB.
I used a Steripen on 2 long hikes and eventually gave up on it - I found the battery life to be short, even with lithium batteries and it didn't always come on and work properly when I needed it. I always carried iodine tabs for backup and had to use them on more than one occasion when the Steripen failed.
Switched to Aqua Mira - much lighter, easier to use, and no worries about breaking a bulb. And no extra batteries to carry or chase down either. To each their own.
atmilkman
08-23-2011, 13:49
Ran into a thru up on springer the day jenn came in and he had the new opti version and swore by it. Was quick to point out the flashlight ability and how he could use it while he walked. Not that 90 seconds is a tremendous time saving deal but it was noted. He sold me. I bought one but haven't used it yet. I'm in Florida right now and it's in the P.O. back in Alabama. I'm gonna give it a try on my Pinhoti thru in Oct. If it pans out I'll be using it on my AT thru attempt in 2013. From what I have read I think I made a good buy. By the way I'm a diehard Pro-Hiker user and will still use it at certain times but like everyone else I'm always looking for other options.
On my thru hike this season I hiked with two guys who were using a Steri between themselves. They absolutely loved it. It ran into some issues in NY but the company gave them a replacement one quickly. I was pretty jealous sometimes when their water was treated in seconds and they were enjoying it while i was staring at my bottle waiting for the AquaMira..
On my thru hike this season I hiked with two guys who were using a Steri between themselves. They absolutely loved it. It ran into some issues in NY but the company gave them a replacement one quickly. I was pretty jealous sometimes when their water was treated in seconds and they were enjoying it while i was staring at my bottle waiting for the AquaMira..
as I said, I have a streripen. If/when they resolve the issue of reliability (or the perception of same) they will rule the market (luctrative??!!!...probably not) of the long distance hikers. Nothing is worth more than a drink in 60 seconds when it's 90 degrees (other than a shower, or a pizza, or a cold beer, or a hitch into town, or perhaps trail magic when it's unexpected or pancakes or a great sunrise or....)
seabrookhiker
09-04-2011, 08:51
I used the older one with the pins for five months last year. LCD screen died early, and the pins were a pain to get dry, but it still worked. This year I've used the Opti for about two months. MUCH BETTER. It's a little lighter than my Platypus system, which I take if we have two or more people. The Platypus ends up being a little faster for me, actually, as I don't have to be as careful with prefiltering the water.
For one person I get about three weeks out of a set of batteries. Haven't used the Opti in really cold weather yet, but the older model was really finicky about cold batteries. I'd have to take them out and warm them in my hands before using them below about 40 degrees.
If you are sensitive to the chemical additives (Aqua Mira gives me the runs, and I dislike iodine's flavor so much that I don't drink enough, even after adding C to dispel the flavor) the SteriPen is a great option. I keep mine shoved down in an outside pocket of my pack, along with a small piece of microfiber towel to prefilter my water, a separate piece of towel to wipe the threads and the pen dry, a gatorade bottle in which to treat the water, and a plastic cup with which to scoop water / filter into the bottle / drink.
strawbale
09-04-2011, 14:09
Plus the flashlight isn't too bad. I'm going to try that as my only alt light source on my next 4 day hike.
Strawbale
sweetchristine
09-18-2011, 18:01
Thanks for everyones posts, very helpful! I think I'm going to give it a try!
ClassicMagger
09-23-2011, 12:46
Hey:
I used the steripen adventurer on my 2010 thru. The ONLY complaint I have with the adventurer that I carried was that I HAD to use a wide-mouth bottle. Which got old because I was using platypus bottles and a nalgene... just the weight of the nalgene got old. Besides that I absolutely loved it. It worked great when you could reliably fill up a bottle, with puddles you needed two bottles, one to scoop and one to pour into.
-Kevin
ChinMusic
09-23-2011, 12:50
Hey:
I used the steripen adventurer on my 2010 thru. The ONLY complaint I have with the adventurer that I carried was that I HAD to use a wide-mouth bottle. Which got old because I was using platypus bottles and a nalgene... just the weight of the nalgene got old. Besides that I absolutely loved it. It worked great when you could reliably fill up a bottle, with puddles you needed two bottles, one to scoop and one to pour into.
-Kevin
Should have used a 32-oz Gatorade bottle, or some equiv.
I love my oldddddd pur hikr ! I dunno tht thing is bomb proof I think abt changn it up but I can't pry my hands off it haha
I HAD to use a wide-mouth bottle ... the weight of the nalgene got old ... with puddles you needed two bottles, one to scoop and one to pour into.A 32 oz. Cains mayo bottle works fine and is lots lighter. I use one of those small, stiffer ziplocks with the pleated bottom for shallow scooping. The kind of bag Inertia Foods uses for their dry meals; also sometimes used for commercial GORP mixes.
The Flatulator
09-24-2011, 14:56
Don't buy one! They're junk! I used one on my 2010 thru-hike and after two failures and two replacements I switched to Aqua Mira. Aqua Mira is fool-prrof and you dan't have to worry about "equipment failure" when you need it most. I treated some pretty disgusting water last year when many of the springs and streams had dried up during the summer drought. I am not sure I would have trusted the Steripen to successfully treat some of the skank water I ended up drinking.