[Airsickness]

New to the site and I am really grateful for all the info here. Here's my question.
Are all water purifying tablets created equal? I'm putting together my emergency pack together and I thought I would ask?
Kenny

 

[Prof. Cecil Feio]

They are more or less. Throw these in the corner of your pack for emergencies:

and then get a good water filter.

 

[Perkolady]

I prefer Katadyn Micropur Tablets. They are small, very light, and keep a long time. I've tried various brands and I find these to leave the least yukky taste too!!

I had seen a website a while back that compared methods, and these were considered one of the best (I can't find the site any more though!)

I've been using these for several years now, and I'm very happy with them all around.

 

[Ka-bar]

i too invest in the katadyn micropur water tablets.

although i havent tried them out yet... looks like i have something to try out this weekend, gotta perform the taste test. i'll report back after i try it.

i bought these cuz 1. i herd they work very well 2. didnt want to carry around a water filter & 3. didnt want to purchase a pricey water filter.

these are nice and small and light to carry around in my pack.

 

[birdman]

I have a small bottle of 2% tincture of iodine (I used a bottle from a diabetic glucose "control" liquid that had expired) in my EDC Altoids tin. 1 drop per cup. Let stand 30 minutes...

Allan

 

[matthiasj]

i have some water purification tablets haven't tried them out yet but i need to.

 

[vegasrandall]

anybody try the UV light water purifiers? looks like the way to go if they work good.

 

[cjsls]

I prefer Katadyn Micropur Tablets. They are small, very light, and keep a long time. I've tried various brands and I find these to leave the least yukky taste too!!

I had seen a website a while back that compared methods, and these were considered one of the best (I can't find the site any more though!)

I've been using these for several years now, and I'm very happy with them all around.

This is what i have purchased recently as well..... haven't had a chance to test them yet though.

 

[CornFedReb]

anybody try the UV light water purifiers? looks like the way to go if they work good.

I haven't tried one yet but after reading up a lot on the Steri Pen and watching some videos on it I'm thinking that's going to be my next big purchase. They say that liter for liter the Steri Pen is cheaper than purification tablets and filters. And it kills everything within 45 seconds.

Potable Aqua takes, what? An hour to work? Micro Pur tablets take 4 hours.

Potable Aqua does not kill Cryptosporidium.

Also, your water purification tablets have a relatively short shelf life. Potable Aqua is 4 years from date of purchase (unopened) and not sure about Micropur but all I've seen lately have a 4 year out date printed on the package. That's something to consider when you're updating your pack contents.

I've taken to keeping my Micropur tablets in an altoids tin or an empty Nalgene bottle to keep them from getting crushed in the foil wrapper.

 

[Herd Sniper]

We used to have iodine ration and chlorine ration water purification tablets in the military. Both worked to kill germs in the water BUT you had to wait to let them work. Normally it took about 30 minutes to an hour before the water was ready for you to drink and that was in a one quart canteen too. The best and quickest system is to carry a small bottle that has an eyedropper in it and use a very, very small amount of bleach to purify your water. After you put in a couple of drops of bleach, shake the canteen for a couple of minutes, wait a couple of minutes more and then you can drink your water. No matter what, if you use tablets or bleach your water will have a funny taste to it. The thing to remember is that, when possible, you should BOIL your water. If you get your water to a good rolling boil for at least a minute you will kill most of the germs in it. This also lets you save your tablets or bleach for those times when you can't afford the luxury of a fire or smoke to give away your location. Boil first, tablets or bleach in tight tactical situations.

 

[Ka-bar]

I haven't tried one yet but after reading up a lot on the Steri Pen and watching some videos on it I'm thinking that's going to be my next big purchase. They say that liter for liter the Steri Pen is cheaper than purification tablets and filters. And it kills everything within 45 seconds.

Potable Aqua takes, what? An hour to work? Micro Pur tablets take 4 hours.

Potable Aqua does not kill Cryptosporidium.

Also, your water purification tablets have a relatively short shelf life. Potable Aqua is 4 years from date of purchase (unopened) and not sure about Micropur but all I've seen lately have a 4 year out date printed on the package. That's something to consider when you're updating your pack contents.

I've taken to keeping my Micropur tablets in an altoids tin or an empty Nalgene bottle to keep them from getting crushed in the foil wrapper.

after reading your response i decided i would look into a steripen for myself cuz it does sound like a good thing to have cuz it works fast, but after reading reviews. my mind is changed and will no be purchasing the steripen.

the majority of reviews i read were all negative.
the reasons are as follows...
the UV light goes off mid treatment and is required to turn back on and repeat process.

can not be used with murky water, only clear water as the sediment doesnt allow the light to purify all the water.

can not be used on various water bottles w/ small mouth openings.

indicator lights and UV light are difficult to see in the day light. this can result in not purifying the water completely and in one reviewers case resulted in him getting sick.

if your camping with a few people it will take longer to purify water for everyone than a water pump or tablets

can only purify 32fl oz at a time

and in one instance (that ive read so far) it didnt even work at all, and batteries werent the problem.

so my conclusion is that this is only good for instances where you alone needs to only purify a water bottle at a time and can see the idicator lights and UV light to ensure purified water. i on the other hand always carry a hydration pack thats more than 32fl oz and dont want to take chances in faulty equipment, especially when its something thats supossed to make the biggest neccessity WATER drinkable.

 

[Perkolady]

Here's a little more info concerning the Micropur tablets...

It's effective against viruses, bacteria, Giardia and Cryptosporidium, which no other disinfectants can claim.

As far as the "time" involved, it destroys viruses and bacteria in 15 minutes, Giardia in 30-minutes and Cryptosporidia in 4-hours. I've never waited longer than 30 mins to drink my water, and never gotten sick. As with ANY means of purification, I would choose the water sources carefully though...

In a worst case scenerio, waiting four hours may be inconvenient, but, alternative disinfectants do not claim to destroy Cryptosporidium.

Shelf life is 10 years.

Also, I never have to worry about mechanical failure.

 

[Ka-bar]

and if 4 hours is too long just fill up your canteens at night fall, drop the tablets in and when you wake up BAM you got Cryptosporidia free water. :

 

[Grinnan Barrett]

Katadyn first and then the others. Remember taste is secondary to survival. Get what you can afford for now. I have some of both in my kits.

 

[troswe]

Xinix KlearWater 30ml, Xinix AquaCare 9ml, active substance: Chlorine dioxide (ClO2) Very good product...

 

[CornFedReb]

after reading your response i decided i would look into a steripen for myself cuz it does sound like a good thing to have cuz it works fast, but after reading reviews. my mind is changed and will no be purchasing the steripen.

...so my conclusion is that this is only good for instances where you alone needs to only purify a water bottle at a time and can see the idicator lights and UV light to ensure purified water. i on the other hand always carry a hydration pack thats more than 32fl oz and dont want to take chances in faulty equipment, especially when its something thats supossed to make the biggest neccessity WATER drinkable.

Thanks for that summary of the reviews. Those are definately worthwhile considerations. I will be rethinking UV light as a technique and, for now, stick with my MicroPur tablets, MSR filter and Katadyne bottle purifier.

Thanks again.

 

[ken]

Katadyn Micropur

Get the Katadyn MicroPur, read the label. Do read the safety directions the tablets are pretty hazardous if not used correctly. Don't get any particles in your eyes, way powerful.

The iodine based tables do not kill all the bugs, if that maters to you, read their label to know what they miss.

 

[tired-medic]

anybody use the MIOX system. I have read good and bad about them.

 

[Ka-bar]

*word of caution to the katadyn micropur tablets*

if you put them into a closed container i.e. water bottle with lid, water bladder... you need to allow for air to get in so the gasses can escape. i made this mistake last night when i was trying them out for the first time to see if there was any noticeable chemical taste (there was non). in fact i tasted the tap water first so i could do a taste test and i found that the treated water tasted better than the tap.

so for the story. i filled my water bladder up with tap water @ 7pm and dropped one tablet in and screwed the opening closed and let sit for 45mins with an acassional shake ever 10mins or so.
after 45mins past i decided to give it a taste. first i blew in through the hose to make sure there was no undisolved particles in there and then proceeded to take a few sips. everything tasted fine.
then i waited till 12pm to drink again. thats 5 hours since i dropped the tablets in. so i figured everything should be fine and dandy. i take a few big gulps of it and then just within a few mins my stomach begins to feel funny. so i take my water bladder to the sink and unscrew the cap, i hear a lil hiss as the cap becomes unscrewed. not good. then as i poor the water out i can smell a distinct chemical smell. this cant be good.
with a few more mins gone by my stomach feels a bit worse and gassy. i begin to burp a lot and i start gettin cold sweats and my mouths dry and whatever saliva does accumulate was very sticky. this lasts till about 4am. at this point i begin to feel better and go to sleep. the end :

so i guess you need to let your water container breath to allow for gasses to get out. maybe i shoulda read the original box it came in. stupid mistake by me.

 

[Humungus]

why not carry a small vial of bleach?