Steripens

[Front Royal Mike]

Correct ! Almost ! Boiling does kill all biological pathogens.But not everything harmful in water is biological,there are just as many harmful properties in drinking water that are mineral derivatives. Ever heard of Arsenic ? Lead ? .BTW boiling can actually concentrate mineral pathogens as water turn to steam everything left in the pot is concentrated .I am by no means a health nut or "Water Weenie"I do however "know better"
They don;t call it Beaver Fever cause its down stream of a privy !I was fortunate enough to attend a seminar 15 years ago and the speaker was (and still is) one of the most respected authorities on water conditioning in the world,he said quite simply that "water is the universal solvent,it will dissolve to some extent anything it comes in contact with. The Grand Canyon is an excellent example. Still passionate about the subject !Still sorry to be so long winded .

[Spokes]

....... Ever heard of Arsenic ? Lead ? .......

Heck, the sodium levels in 1 Mountain House meal is probably worse for you than any arsenic or lead you'll ever come in contact with on the AT.........heheheheheheee.

[maybe clem]

Why carry the extra weight of other gadgets?

And if the AM cracks, leaks, spills? You cannot hike without water. Always have a backup system.

[ChinMusic]

And if the AM cracks, leaks, spills? You cannot hike without water. Always have a backup system.

I carry Micropur tablets as a backup for my Steripen.

[Llama Legs]

Use bleach, fill your dropper bottle at hostels.

amen..........

[Trailbender]

And if the AM cracks, leaks, spills? You cannot hike without water. Always have a backup system.

Boiling the water is a backup. Also, I was speaking of biological things when I meant boiling, I know heavy metals, ect won't boil out.

[mcskinney]

I carry Micropur tablets as a backup for my Steripen.

+1, that combo has worked for me for a few years now

[K-Man]

I carried a steripen the whole way in 2007 and still use it. Plan on taking in on my next thru in 2012 as well. I really only use it for questionable sources...usually drink untreated if it's coming out of the side of a mountain. =)

[ChinMusic]

I carried a steripen the whole way in 2007 and still use it. Plan on taking in on my next thru in 2012 as well. I really only use it for questionable sources...usually drink untreated if it's coming out of the side of a mountain. =)

I just treat it all, but I do agree that such sources are prob 99.9% safe. The Steripen is so easy that I just zap it anyway just to remove all doubt.

[K-Man]

I'm that lazy that even the steri pen is too much work sometimes...hehe. I understand the risk's I'm taking though.

[Snowleopard]

I have a steripen and never use it . It sucks in the cold.

What problem did you have with it in the cold? Were you using lithium batteries? (cold alkaline batteries aren't good).

Boiling water works well in the cold but uses a lot of fuel. Chemical treatments take much longer to work in the cold. Filters freeze and break in the cold. So, I was hoping that a steripen would be good down to the point where you have to melt snow for water (at that point might as well boil it).

--Walter
PS Bleach is unreliable for outdoor use. What it is good for is combining with a filter, the filter takes out bacteria and giardia and crypto and the bleach will deactivate viruses.

[QiWiz]

I'm actually taking both for 2 reasons.

1) steri-pen does not work if there are a lot of particulates in the water, so I'd use the aqua-mira in that situation.

2) Although I like the functionality of the steri-pen as well as the speed it works, there is always the chance breakage/malfunction.

Happy hiking.

Agree that both are better than either alone. I like to use Aqua Mira in camp to treat water for that night, next morning, and for water to start hiking with. I use the SteriPen while hiking if I come to a water source. Treat a bottle and immediately drink it down (camel up) and treat another bottle with either AM or SP for continued hydration. The AM also serves as a backup to the SP if out of batteries or breakage.