Which water filtration bottle??

flyfishrman

flyfishrman

Joined
Jul 23, 2006
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I'm looking for a good water bottle filtration system for short hikes. Any recommendations? Do any of you use these alone or do you still add tablets or boil? I'm thinking of this system for convenience, but would a good nalgene bottle with tablets still be better? Any help would be appreciated.
 
realstagman said:
I'm looking for a good water bottle filtration system for short hikes. Any recommendations? Do any of you use these alone or do you still add tablets or boil? I'm thinking of this system for convenience, but would a good nalgene bottle with tablets still be better? Any help would be appreciated.
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They aren't very easy to drink from and the good ones aren't cheap. The Katadyn models have the best specs that I've found. They are safe to drink from without further treatment in North America.

Chlorine dioxide is the best purifying chemical overall, but you do need to wait a while for it to be completely effective. Having two bottles is kind of handy with chemical treatments as you can switch them as you purify a new batch, drinking from the one previously treated. Platypus bladders are much lighter and cost less than Nalgene bottles and they take up next to zero space when empty.

You can buy a decent filter for a little more than the better filter bottles and you get good volume and can still drink right away. Use the filter with a flexible bladder and you break even on space and close on weight. I'd really like to get one of the UV purifiers-- super quick, small, light, and no chemicals. I would carry tablets as a Murphy's Law backup when using a battery operated gizmo for a critcal piece of gear like that.

I personally use Platypus bladders and Aqua Mira on the trail with Micropur tablets as my PSK backup. I carry a 2 or 3 liter bladder with a hose and bite valve in my pack with an empty 1 liter backup in my PSK. I carry a pot whether day hiking or multi-day, so boiling is always an option. I recommend a hydration pack with extra storage for PSK/essentials for day hikes. Being able to drink without stopping and getting out a water bottle really keeps me well hydrated.
 
I picked up a Berkie, Its $30 and they claim it removes everything but the water, probubly lying, who knows.
 
See http://www.berkeywater.com/SportBerkey/BerkeySport.html

They recommend adding bleach for some bugs. This style of filter is found in a lot of sports-style bottles. I have a Bota Outback that I'll bet has the same internal filter. From what I was able to find out, it is more like a 2 micron filter. The Katadyn is 0.3 micron and the better pump filters get down to 0.2 microns-- 1/10 the diameter of the Bota. There's no free lunch!
 
UV filters are almost completely ineffective in turbid water conditions. I would not consider them a reliable way to purify water. Stick with chlorine dioxide tablets or forward osmosis or micro filtration for back country purification devices. Boiling of course or solar disinfection can also be used. This site should answer many of your questions.

http://usachppm.apgea.army.mil/WPD/CompareDevices.aspx
 
I understand it's limitations, just wondering how well it works if those conditions can be met. Free flowing clear water isn't too hard to find in the areas I frequent.
 
apsilon said:
Has anyone ever seen or used this {{{ ling to Auqastar UVB purifiers}}}
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Field reports on the Aquastar have been good. Cloudy water is a limitation, but that's not usually a problem for the areas I hike, so I want one! The are fragile, so you want some backup chemicals in case you drop it or have malfunctions. That can happen with a pump too.

As to cloudy water, pre-filtering through a bandana or coffee filter will take care of silt and other crud in the water. I always use a pre-filter on my pump-style filters to extend the life of the cartidge.
 
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