Water Filter / Purifier ?

What exactly do they want if for?
Its something I know a little about, enough to know that different filters have different applictions and that most people think that any filter will work for any application. That one seems to say it does everything, but some just filter out debris, chemicals etc and then need something else to deal with the bacteria.
If you can give some more details it would help the experts on here advise what is best.
 
i'll give you some practical thoughts. i have fought battles with these things for years.
you'd think it would be simple, right?

actually, it's pretty straightforward if your client is going to a place where health standards are not horribly bad. in that case the water filters like Katadyn work well, and even the less expensive like Sawyer or MSR (both US brands) work just fine. In places where there are serious problems with the water (e.g. Africa) I have used the Katadyn filters and never had any problems with sickness.

Here's the rub. Your problem is dirt. The Katadyn filters work by pumping the water through a very fine ceramic filter. You have to pump it by hand - and it takes work. it's not fast. but if there's any dirt in the water, then the filter gets clogged very quickly. and suddenly there's no clean water coming out of the bottom of the Katadyn. and that's the start of a major fight with the filter - because you need to take it apart, wash it with clean water, and try again. and then very soon it clogs again. so the solution is to get all the dirt out of the original water source BEFORE you start pumping in thru the water filter. try taking the dirty water and pouring it through several layers of fabric.

i have tried using iodine in water (some people use bromine instead). this is just the old-fashioned iodine pills. that also works fine. for guys like you and me - it's a solution. But for normal people (clients) ... it's not a solution. Instead they stop drinking because they don't like the "taste" in the water. and pretty soon your client is sick or dehydrated from not drinking enough water.

what i finally learned to do ... was to just get some cases of bottled water and stop fighting all thse battles. really. it's worth taking the extra weight, if you are carrying it in a vehicle. your clients will thank you profusely.

cheers,
KL
 
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Its worth noting that iodine tablets are quite hard to come by in Europe, because they cause problems for people with thyroid disorders who need to take iodine based medicines, the EU decided you needed a licence to sell them. The licence was too much for any of the camping shops, so they now sell chlorine based tablets instead. You can get tablets that take away the taste, not sure how effective they are, some people have said they taste as bad as the purifiers. Surely, you can just take a little bottle of peppermint essence and add a drop of that, good for the digestion too.
 
Mate - get yourself a lifesaver purifying bottle (they come in all sizes) Excellent bit of kit and will turn real manky water into something drinkable without giving you the trots.

Used these when fighting through the GZ when water was at a premium and resupply was impossible, drank out of wells and irrigation ditches (chocolate brown in colour) none of us ever had a drama.

Excellent piece of kit. Tried and tested.
 
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James9 ... do you have a link for that - the lifesaver bottle?

littleWoman - i didn't know that iodine tabs were hard to come by in Europe. interesting. i fought a battle trying to get people to drink water that had been purified by them - and lost. i tried changing the taste by adding stuff like powdered orange juice flavors (in the US we call it Tang). the result was a disgusting mixture of crummy orange juice and iodine. it tasted awful.

in the end i learned a simple lesson. we are really spoiled in the West by having ample supplies of clean, drinkable water. many people in third world countries will never have that privilege. unfortuantely, it's not easy to get normal people (or clients) to drink water that tastes bad - even though there are no health risks (i.e. it's already been sterilizied in some way). the only sterilization that works and keeps people happy - is boiling. but that takes time and fuel. otherwise most normal people just do not have the personal discipline to drink enough "bad" water to keep their body going. that was my experience :)

KL
 
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KingLeonidas said:
James9 ... do you have a link for that - the lifesaver bottle?

littleWoman - i didn't know that iodine tabs were hard to come by in Europe. interesting. i fought a battle trying to get people to drink water that had been purified by them - and lost. i tried changing the taste by adding stuff like powdered orange juice flavors (in the US we call it Tang). the result was a disgusting mixture of crummy orange juice and iodine. it tasted awful.

in the end i learned a simple lesson. we are really spoiled in the West by having ample supplies of clean, drinkable water. many people in third world countries will never have that privilege. unfortuantely, it's not easy to get normal people (or clients) to drink water that tastes bad - even though there are no health risks (i.e. it's already been sterilizied in some way). the only sterilization that works and keeps people happy - is boiling. but that takes time and fuel. otherwise most normal people just do not have the personal discipline to drink enough "bad" water to keep their body going. that was my experience :)

KL
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King - apologies mate, not too sure how to do the link thingy on here. Punch in "lifesaver bottle' into google and it will pop up.

Excellent bit of kit, saved my bacon numerous times in the heat of the day when you are hanging out with dehydration and all that is around you is irrigation ditches containing god knows what. It works off carbon filters that have a long legivity (10 000 litres if I remember).
 
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KingLeonidas said:
James9 ... do you have a link for that - the lifesaver bottle?

littleWoman - i didn't know that iodine tabs were hard to come by in Europe. interesting. i fought a battle trying to get people to drink water that had been purified by them - and lost. i tried changing the taste by adding stuff like powdered orange juice flavors (in the US we call it Tang). the result was a disgusting mixture of crummy orange juice and iodine. it tasted awful.

in the end i learned a simple lesson. we are really spoiled in the West by having ample supplies of clean, drinkable water. many people in third world countries will never have that privilege. unfortuantely, it's not easy to get normal people (or clients) to drink water that tastes bad - even though there are no health risks (i.e. it's already been sterilizied in some way). the only sterilization that works and keeps people happy - is boiling. but that takes time and fuel. otherwise most normal people just do not have the personal discipline to drink enough "bad" water to keep their body going. that was my experience :)

KL
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Most people I know won't drink water from water fountains provided, taps in accommodation, or from the temporary supplies at festivals. If its not coming out of a tap at home then they will drink bottled instead. Very much spoilt! I think all school kids should have a couple of weeks living in the wilderness, preferably in their early teens, it would teach them to appreciate what they have.
 
I may be a bit late but if you need any filters that don't need to be portable, how about a british berkefeld filter?
 
Thats a pity, I know a company brought out an adapter to use a berky element on the move but obviously isn't as good as a one designed for purpose.
May I suggest checking out a couple channels on YouTube by delta69alpha, survivalistboards and nutnfancy. If you can get through the foil hat and bible stuff they do some good reviews of products and I remember at least one of them doing vids on water filters.
 
Look into the Go Berkey "on the go kit" for travel or Big Berkey for Base or battalion areas. I use the Katadyn hiker pro and also an MSR Sweetwater filter for my go bags.
 
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