Water Purifyer

bjr

bjr

Joined
Sep 23, 2006
Messages
181
Updating my gear a little before heading out on the last 100 miles of the App. Trail. What water purifyer do you guys use? I'm not relying on iodine tabs, and wont be able to boil water everynight. I hear the pump style purifyers are really pretty good now, just wondering if you guys had a favorite model. Thanks!
 
There are other options than "iodine tabs," even without going to filters. Here's a comparison of some of them: http://outside.away.com/outside/2004/buyers_guide/hydration/die_bugs_die.html

I use Katadyn Micropur MP-1 tablets. Lightweight, quick, simple, and treat all the typical problems, unless you're expecting something like heavy metals, but if boiling water is an option, it doesn't sound like that's the case. I fill a quart canteen, drop a tablet in, and go on. Half an hour later, the water's safe to drink. I don't notice any unusual flavor, though I've found it'll sometimes increase the pickup of plastic flavor if you're using a plastic canteen, but I use stainless steel.

In warm weather with clear water, the treatment time is half an hour. Four hours is only for cold unclear water. Some web sites where it's sold have the full chart showing different treatment times for different conditions.

I can't compare with a filter because I've not used one, mostly because I've been so satisfied with the tablets.
 
The last hundred northbound or southbound?

I have a General Ecology First Need that I think is spectacular.
First need review

In North America you don't need to go quite that expensive for a filter. There are not a lot of viruses that are in NA. Having said that, I still use my First Need. :D Price is going to depend mostly on pore size and what the filters says it doesn't allow through. Almost all of them can filter Protozoa like Giardia and Cryptosporidium which are the most common in NA. Bacteria are going to cost more and Viruses are even more expensive.

There are also UV penlights that I have seen getting good reviews but I have not tried them. You can also check on MSR, Katydan and doing a general search on water filters should turn up many others.

KR
 
I personally use the MSR MiniWorks EX from the Longevity series for durability/reliability. It has been very reliable and easy to use. It is a little heavier than the Katydan but more dependable IMO. Hope this helps.
 
Thanks guys, this helps a lot. I'm doing the top 100 in Maine, sorry should have been more specific. Second week in August if anyone wants to come, we should have 6 or 7 guys. Shoot me an email if you're interested.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top