View Full Version : Steripen pre-filter options
fredmugs
01-30-2012, 09:06
I just bought a Steipen and I know I could also get a pre-filter that fits a Nalgene bottle. I'm sure there is a lot of hiker ingenuity out there for cheaper, lighter, better options.
If you use something other than a normal pump how do you pre-filter your water before you treat it?
FInd a piece of nylon stocking, neck of a small Gatoraid bottle and a rubber band. Cut the bottle's neck to make a ring about 3" in diameter 1" high. Tie a knot in the end of the stocking and slip it over the ring. There's a groove in the neck that will hold the rubber band after you stretch the stocking tightly over the ring.
I used this pre-filter for my entire thru last year.
The best suggestion is to use a dip cup and not to act like an elephant at the water source.
Kerosene
01-30-2012, 11:14
Single-cup coffee filters are convenient, at least for a short section hike.
Kerosene
01-30-2012, 11:19
Single-cup coffee filters are convenient, at least for a short section hike.
Trail Ponderer
01-30-2012, 12:21
Another option I have never tried but read in a UL Backpacking book is use your insect headnet if you carry one. Just double it over your water bottle.
Ironbelly
01-30-2012, 13:14
Coleman fuel filter, metal mesh coffee filter, paper coffee filter, or bandana all make good options
flemdawg1
01-30-2012, 13:52
I carry a Nalgene Cantene anyway, so I just fill it up then let the junk settle.
Berserker
01-30-2012, 15:30
I made a variation of one of these (the platy cap with the mesh glued into it): http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=13654. The variation was to use a pull-top platy cap instead of just a normal cap with a hole cut in it. I use it on a large platy container so that I can pour the "dirty" water into my treatment container (my cook pot), and it filters most of the stuff out of the water. For really fine junk like silt I'll also use a coffee filter although letting the water settle a bit usually takes care of most debris.
fredmugs
01-31-2012, 08:26
Thanks for all the great responses so far. I thought about coffee filters and was wondering if a nylon or stocking would hold up over a 10 day or so hike. A non-hiker at work suggested a piece of cheese cloth. Anyone ever try that?
The pre-filter I made with a stocking and a piece of Gatoraid bottle lasted an entire thru-hike plus several section hikes and is still in use.
Tom Murphy
01-31-2012, 11:00
Bandana...
+1
I found coffee filters to be too tight and therefore too slow.
You are trying to keep out the big stuff, a bandana does that.
ChinMusic
01-31-2012, 11:40
The best suggestion is to use a dip cup and not to act like an elephant at the water source.
This.
I use a Steripen. For the parts of the AT I have hiked (Springer to Damascus) I have not needed a prefilter. Using care at the water sources works 99% of the time for me. Only once, and that was in the fall in a dry year, did I have to let the water settle first before treating it.