So if the case ever arrises and I'm forced to drink creek/river water, what are some decent filtration systems out there to stock up on now??
Thanks!
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So if the case ever arrises and I'm forced to drink creek/river water, what are some decent filtration systems out there to stock up on now??
Thanks!
Panty hose for a start. :cool:
It's been a while since I researched this subject, but I ended up buying a Katadyn pocket filter. It was pretty expensive compared to other offerings, but much like a firearm, I figure if I ever need it, I don't want "good enough". Only knock on the pocket filter is that you'll need to install an inline charcoal filter, but they're pretty cheap. The pocket filter only purifies water with respect to organisms, but not chemicals.
There are plenty of economical filters out there, but many are made out of plastic and are susceptible to breakage. This could be a minor inconvenience while hiking, but if it's for SHTF situations, you'll want a more solid model.
FYI - REI's price is very high, look around the net and you can find one in the neighborhood of $250-$270.
http://www.rei.com/product/653573/ka...t-water-filter
Look at the katadyn combi it is around $150 but it does 15000 gallons. They also have a syphon filter for around $50 that does 5000 gallons. Add a prescreen and it will increase the life span, panty hose works well for this.
Through decades of hiking the best water filter I have found for filtering lake, creek, river water is the Katadyn Hiker Pro filter (usded to be the pUR filter, then bought out by Katadyn). I have never gotten sick, and water always taste great. I've had to suck water out of some pretty shallow murky holes in the summer.
The Katadyn has nice long hoses for getting to hard to reach areas, can be used loose or connected to hydration bladder or water bottle.
I've stocked up a few spares for emergencies as well.
From the REI website description (http://www.rei.com/product/720265/ka...o-water-filter)
Quote:
- Includes field maintenance kit with cleanable filter protector to extend cartridge life in challenging conditions
- To clean filter protector, simply swish it in the water
Quick-connect fittings permit easy installation and removal of input and output hoses
- Lightweight and easy-to-use design makes this filter a great choice for all-around use
- Filter physically removes particles, protozoa and bacteria down to 0.3 microns in size, including Giardia, salmonella, cryptosporidium and others
- Glass-fiber element is pleated for increased surface area to handle silt and muddy water
- Activated-carbon core adsorbs chemicals and pesticides to improve taste of water
- Pre-filter at hose inlet filters to 150 microns, removing larger contaminants before they reach the main filter to increase its life span
- Quick-connect fittings allow direct attachment to drinking tube (1/4'') of your hydration pack
Best is always to filter from clear water. Suspend clay and other debris might clog your filter quite fast. Pantyhose is a good, inexpensive prefilter.
IF you are in a real SHTF, filter the coarse debris, let it sit for a few hours, or filter*, take the clear water and apply chlorine.
* here you can use the sand filter followed by a coal filter if a proper carbon filter is unavailable.
Both chlorine and carbon are most effective in the absence of colloids and suspended clay.
For a portable filter, use a Katadyn Pocket.
These are hands down, probably the best portable water filter that you can buy and are well worth the price.
http://www.katadyn.com/usen/katadyn-...yn-pocket-usa/
I really like the Big Berkey water filters for a home or hunting camp (or in the case of serious unrest, a base camp.)
The Stainless Steel units are preferable to the plastic units.
http://www.berkeywaterfiltersystems....llons-4p16.htm
http://www.berkeywaterfiltersystems....allon-4p18.htm
If things really go bad (over the long term, if you wear a filter out or if you don't have a filter) you will probably just have to resort to boiling water. I would boil water before I would add chlorine bleach (the stuff is a pretty nasty chemical, and there is no way that I'll ingest the stuff if I have any choice in the matter.)
I can't recommend these filters enough. They are top notch in quality, and will provide you with many years of reliable service.
Tag for later
I notice some restriction to chlorine, mainly in the US.
I don't know what is the problem with chlorine, since that is the main chemical used in water treatment here. Also aluminum hydroxide, calcium oxide.
For emergrncy water treatment, I heard iodine is also good.
Aluminum Hydroxide is a flocculant used to rpercipitate out particulate matter. The Calcium Oxide is lime used for pH adjustment to protect the plumbing.
Chlorine, usually as a gas but sometimes as a hypochloride drip, is used to sanatize almost all US public drinking water.
Well, for starters the stuff is carcinogenic....
"Cancer risk among people drinking chlorinated water is 93% higher than among those whose water does not contain chlorine."
U.S. Council of Environmental Quality
http://www.cleanwateramerica.com/inf...utchlorine.cfm
I won't use carcinogenic chemicals, where simple techniques that have been used for thousands of years will safely take care of the original problem of waterborne disease.
There in no PROOF it is a carcinogen. None, zippo, zero. And I promise you it has been heavily tested. Chlorine itself is found in your bloodstream. It is a necessary element for life. You would die without it.
That link you provided is to a place that wants to sell you alternative water treatments.
There is the possibility that Chlorine in combination with certain organic and inorganic contaminents can produce potentially carcinogenic compounds.
However, these compounds are strictly and tightly regulated under the 1974 Clean Drinking Water act to very, very, very, very low concentrations in respect to limits that are very conservative. These chemicals are also rountinely sampled and monitored for BY LAW.
Public drinking water is one of the most tested and re-tested consumer commodities you can use.
http://water.epa.gov/drink/contamina...byproducts.cfm
Read ALL of that page, not just the first part.
So, you believe everything the .GOV says, and don't do any independent research?
If you looked into this at all, you would find that there are many doctors and other professionals that disagree with you...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...00463-0185.pdf
http://www.greensense.com/Features/A...cer_on_tap.htm
http://www.friendsofwater.com/No_Chlorine.html
http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/conten...2/148.abstract
http://www.drmercola.com/health-tips...-contaminants/
These are just some of the links I can dig up with a few minutes notice, but if I so desired, I could produce a stack of information on the subject.
I know that Dr. Robert J. Rowan has discussed this at length, as well as Dr. Joseph Mercola.
I believe that the EPA is stupid-strict on limits it establishes for Chronic and Acute exposure to most anything. If you are accusing the EPA of having lax standards for Public Drinking Water, you are pretty much on the opposite side of the fence from most professionals. Their standards for most limits are so strict, we are to the point in some cases of getting stuff down to parts per billion and that costs beaucoup bucks. As soon as complance is achieved in one permitting cycle, they will come along next cycle and clamp down again on already-strict limits. This is one reason your water and sewer bills go up like they do. The facilities are required to improve treatment BY LAW and that garners a rate hike to buy new equipment.Quote:
So, you believe everything the .GOV says, and don't do any independent research?
Let me ask you this: Do you understand the difference between the by-products and the Chlorine itself? Nobody is saying the Chlorine is a Carcinogen, at least anyone with a partial clue.
Chlorine is easy to get rid of. SO2 will knock it right out. Not that it matters at this point. The by-products have to be filtered out. Inasmuch as the formation of these compounds is controlled by removal by floculation and filtration of thier pre-cursors prior to exposure to the Chlorine.
I assume you have never inspected a Public Drinking Water Plant nor are you familiar with the theory and practice of their operation. I however, have inspected Drinking Water Treatment plants and do understand the whole process as well as concerns people such as yourself have and I still do not hesitate to drink it.
If you are worried about the potential for nasty, free radical forming compounds, the best thing to do is take a couple of Vitamin C tablets a day and stop worrying. It will work on alot more things than what comes in your water.
The link I gave you explains EXACTLY what the potential carcenigens are and how they are limited, that is if you bothered to read it. If you are really curious, contact your local health department and request a copy of the latest lab analysis of your town's drinking water and compare it to the limits EPA has set. See for yourself exactly what the concentrations of these chemicals are in your drinking water.
I also have a Big Berkey which I landed up after looking at a few different water filtration systems:
http://www.bigberkeywaterfilters.com...g-berkey-p-182
Definitely not cheap, though.
Thank you VERY MUCH everyone!! This definitely pointed me in the right direction. Much appreciated.
Yep, I remember that since we visited a water treatment plant in the 5th or 6th grade.
The discussion the topic of chlorine ensued is amazing, and I have yet to wade through it and digest all the info.
I recall seeing iodine as an alternative chemical for water disinfection, although some people can't stand the taste.
There is also a popular chemical sold here in Brazil for veggie cleaning that is a mix of iodine and sodium hipochloride. The brand name is Hidrosteril
I used a Sweetwater Guardian filter for 18 months of living & travel through Southeast Asia as my only water source and didn't contract any waterborne illnesses in spite of some fairly sketchy water sources. -sadly, malaria occurred anyhow, but that had nothing to do with my water :(
I use a MSR miniworks HP filter. It's all user serviceable, and has a reasonably priced ceramic filter($40). I believe its a .2 Micron, with a .3 Micron max. The filter can also be cleaned with the included abrasive pad to help with flow problems. It screws directly onto a nalgene bottle or bottles with similar threads. I have had it five or so years and it has probably seen about 800-1000 gallons over 100+ backpacking trips. It's a little slow and requires a bit of effort, but its proven itself to me. It's also very durable, but the ceramic filter inside, like all, is not hard to damage, but when rolled up in my sleeping bag in my backpack, it did survive a fifty foot drop onto rocks below.
Important note: you MUST NOT let any ceramic filter element freeze, especially when wet, this will create tiny cracks and render your filter useless.
Edit: this is more of a fast and light travel set up.
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Check these out.. 13K and 5K gallons.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Katadyn-...item519b047def
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Katadyn-Siph...item2eb717b9b5
Has anyone had any experiance with the Steripen Journey Water Purifier System ( http://www.rei.com/product/784448/st...urifier-system )? I picked up a couple of these new for pretty cheap on ebay and they fit with my trying to stay light weight, mobile and using the cr123 batteries that I've tried to standardize on (eotech, flashlights, ect.).
This is my first post, the Disaster Preparation & Planning has really been an eye opener and has caused me to really take a look at things.
Thanks.
tag for later
Boiling depends on altitude. Higher the altitude the longer you need to boil.
Agreed. I'm enjoying my Berkey. I originally ordered the plastic one, but it arrived with a hole in the bottom. Looked like a manufacturing defect so I had them upgrade me to the stainless model. The water tastes great and filters pretty quickly with 4 filters in it.
The biosandfilter is not very portable, but it can be made with relative ease, is cheap, and is a well proven drinking water purification technology.
http://www.biosandfilter.org/biosand...x.php/item/229
Just to be on the safe side, I'd like to know where you got that information. My family (they lived in a part of the world where they had to boil ALL their water) has always gone by the ten minute rule for boiling water.
I never heard before that just bringing the water to a boil will kill all the little critters. If I don't have to boil the water for ten minutes, that would be very good to know though...
http://www.survivalgrounds.com/boiling_water.php
Plenty of other sources of that info.
How long do you have to stick your hand in boiling water before skin cells start dying?
I have been backpacking for most of my life and i have had to carry out several other hikers who didn't boil water long enough. I have also spent quality time in several third world countries that do not practice water treatment of any kind including youth full trips to Mexico. Montazumas revenge is not fun.
Boiling:
In an emergency, boiling is the best way to disinfect water that is unsafe because of the presence of protozoan parasites or bacteria.
If the water is cloudy, it should be filtered before boiling. Filters designed for use when camping, coffee filters, towels (paper or cotton), cheesecloth, or a cotton plug in a funnel are effective ways to filter cloudy water.
Place the water in a clean container and bring it to a full boil and continue boiling for at least 3 minutes (covering the container will help reduce evaporation). If you are more than 5,000 feet above sea level, you must increase the boiling time to at least 5 minutes (plus about a minute for every additional 1,000 feet). Boiled water should be kept covered while cooling. From Drinking Water for Emergency Use (pdf file). You can also look at recommendations of the EPA.
http://www.cyber-nook.com/water/Solutions.html#boiling
Not all diseases are killed by boiling we were warned about Hep c in the P.I. it can even withstand freezing.
Hepatitis C virus is difficult to kill, it appears to be heat resistant and cannot be killed by boiling. It can exist for up to 30 days outside the body and does not appear to be killed by chemicals like bleach or isopropyl alcohol.
For this reason bleaching or boiling used needles and syringes will not kill this virus. The only way to avoid infection is to use a new fit every time you inject and not to share fits between users.
http://www.needle.co.nz/fastpage/fpe.../templateid/34
You may take a look at the MSR miox. It uses salt to create a mix of antioxidants to purify water. It's a neat little deal. I believe it was actually created for military purposes because it is capable of purifying large amounts of water very easily. It will kill more things than iodine according to MSR's website. It is not a particulate nor chemical filter, but it definately serves a purpose. There is a waiting time of a few hours after you treat it, but its a good unit for groups or families.
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I have one but I haven't tried it yet. Usually just use the Miniworx if I have need of a filter but picked one of the Steripen's from REI a while back with my member dividend. Figured it couldn't hurt to have one more method. Like you I also picked up the cr123 version since I have batteries stored for my flashlights.
Would also like to hear from people who have experience using it though.
Katadyn Pocket is the gold-standard for an individual water filter. I've filtered turbid swamp water using one and experienced no ill effects.
I've used a Berkey Crown gravity filter as a base-camp filter in the past and it works quite well. With all the elements installed it has a huge filtration rate (something on the order of 25-30 gallons per hour). Used in a primitive site and experienced no ill effects.
Disposable coffee filters work as a good pre-filter to remove sediment as well. Will definitely help your filters last a lot longer.
Before widespread use of chemical treatment illness and death from waterborne critters was common and it's still common in the 3rd world so I have to question the efficacy of the "simple techniques that have been used for thousands of years."
Getting dysentery from sand-filtered water is no fun at all. You don't want to find that out.