Also on Backpacker.com

EDITORS' CHOICE AWARDS 2011: THE BEST NEW GEAR

OVER 3,000 GPS-ENABLED TRIPS!

DAILY DIRT BLOG: THE LATEST OUTDOOR NEWS

GEAR PRO: YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED

MEDICINE MAN: ESSENTIAL SKILLS REVEALED

BACKPACKING 101: GET STARTED NOW!

VIDEOS: FEND OFF A BEAR, PACK RIGHT, AND MORE.

PHOTOS: FEAST YOUR EYES WITH THESE SHOTS

Share your tales of travel & adventure with our step-by-step guide. Upload trail descriptions, photos, video, and more.

Backpacker Magazine – August 2009

Which Water Treatment is for You?

Fast, hassle-free, ultralight,–we explore five different water treatment scenarios and the right system to use.

by: Buck Tilton

(Photo by Keith Fialcowitz)

You already know that pristine-looking backcountry lakes and streams can be contaminated with tiny, gut- twisting bacteria, protozoa, and viruses. But do you know which of the many water treatment methods on the market is the best for you? Here's how to decide.

You want One quick method for use domestically and abroad
Choose An ultraviolet light purifier like the SteriPEN ($80-$100, steripen.com) bombards water with UV rays, neutralizing bacteria, protozoa, and viruses (which are a particular problem in developing countries). It works in less than a minute and doesn't leave a chemical aftertaste. Caution: This handheld device works best in relatively clear water (strain with a bandana first if it's not) and requires batteries (pack spares).

You want The lightest possible treatment
Choose Chlorine dioxide tablets such as Aquamira ($8, aquamira .com) weigh almost nothing (less than an ounce for 30) and take care of all three major types of bugs with a highly active form of oxygen. They're also easy to use—just pop one tablet into your bottle—but they take 30 minutes to kill Giardia and up to four hours for cryptosporidium. (Iodine tablets are also lightweight and cheap, but they won't kill crypto and leave an unpleasant taste.)

You want The best method for silty water
Choose Good old-fashioned boiling works everywhere, but it's perfect for ultracloudy rivers and sediment-choked puddles. Collect water in a pot, then fire up the stove: Not only will the high temperature kill bacteria, protozoa, and viruses, but the boiling will help the sediment settle out, leaving clear water on top. Simply bringing water to a rolling boil is sufficient. Cons: Boiling is fuel-intensive and requires waiting for water to cool.

You want An easy, speedy method
Choose Pump filters use microscopic pores (.2 microns or less) to snag bacteria and protozoa while allowing water to flow through the filter at one to three liters per minute. They shine where viruses aren't an issue, but can be pricy and require field maintenance. Where viruses are a problem (developing countries, near human habitation or agricultural runoff), choose a filter with iodine resin, upgrade to a purifier (First Need's XL model neutralizes the big three pathogens), or back up with a chemical treatment.

You want A hassle-free method for big groups
Choose Gravity filters are quick and trap everything a pump model does, but handle larger volumes of water. (The Platypus CleanStream filters four liters in less than three minutes; $90, platy.com). The lightweight bags pack small and are a snap to use (just hang from a tree, let water drip, and drink).

Subscribe to Backpacker magazine
Sign up for our free weekly e-newsletter

PRINT THIS PAGE RSS FEED

Your rating:

Reader Rating: -

Digg Delicious Yahoo Facebook Reddit StumbleUpon Google Newsvine MySpace Twitter

READERS COMMENTS

Joe, will you share how to make your "homemade
contraption" with the rest of us. Sounds very good and hopefully inexpensive for those of us on a budget. Thanxs.
Posted: Mar 11, 2012 Bud

I like the SteriPen, except it does not take care of chemical contatmination. What I have started doing is running the water through a standard Pur filter first (using a homemade contraption from a powdered creamer bottle) and then I use the steripen. Gets the chemicals out and makes for clearer water and then the SteriPen kills any critters that remain. It has worked well so far.
Posted: Feb 27, 2012 Joe Hampton

Thank you for these different <a href="http://www.backpackwaterfilters.com">portable water filter</a>s, it really helps when someone lays them all out like this and compares them, side by side. I was looking to get one for a hiking trip, so I think I'll go with a pump. Thanks again!
Posted: Sep 01, 2011 Tom Foolry

I use the first need XL and it`s awesome! I`ve used it in lakes and streams and the water comes out clean and tastes excellent.
Posted: Jul 17, 2010 Snowdawg

Silty water? I�ve got the answer, and I�m shocked that more people don�t know about it, especially Backpacker Magazine. It�s PUR water purification powder. This is the real thing � it�s used all over the world by governments and humanitarian groups to purify water in 3rd world countries � it makes safe drinking water out of water that�s no better than sewage.

If you ever backpack where the water supply is silty (e.g. the Colorado River, the Paria River, etc.) this is absolutely the quickest (30 mins), lightest (a 0.14-oz. packet cleans 10 liters of water), most reliable (no filter to clog!!), and easiest way to get CLEAR, CLEAN, PURE & SAFE drinking water.

I'm not kidding. In March I used it on a 5-day backpack in Grand Canyon National Park where our only source of drinking water was the totally silt-clogged Colorado River. This stuff gave us gallons of delicious, clear, totally safe water. One day we had way more purified water than we needed, and actually gave our extra to some passing hikers whose pumps had completely clogged up and who were consequently in serious trouble.

By the way, it works for all water conditions, not just silt. I would absolutely use it for any situation, it just so happens that this stuff takes the silt right out of any water, along with bacteria, parasites and viruses. It contains ferrous sulfate, which removes suspended particles from water, and calcium hypochlorite, which acts as a disinfectant.

I sound like I�m selling this stuff, but I�m not � I just use it and am convinced it�s the best water treatment ever for backpacking. �PUR Purifier of Water� is sold online by Amazon, by Reliance Co., and sometimes at Campmor & other camping suppliers. It�s about $15 for 6 packets, each packet processes 10 liters of water. Amazing. Try it.
Posted: Jul 16, 2010 Ann G.

Don't forget the new inline and endline filters, like Aquamira's Frontier Pro and Sawyer. We switched from a hand-pumped filter to the Frontier Pro for the John Muir Trail and could fill our Platypus with water from waterfalls and streams and filter it as we sucked on the tube, or let it drip into the pan for eating/cooking. Other hikers and even rangers stopped us to inquire. Saved us LOTS of time and weight. We have now added a Sawyer inline filter which is even easier to drink from, using our old normal mouthpieces.
Posted: Jul 16, 2010 Ksorbello

I just bought a Sawyer gravity fed water purifier. It was quite expensive($200), but wow, it was great! We used it for my family of five in Colorado for two weeks. We had no problems. It sure beats having to pump gallon after gallon. We drank a lot more water because it was so convenient.
Posted: Jul 16, 2010 Andy B

The ultraviolet light purifier like the SteriPEN are wonderful but... glass tip on a backpack - I am too ruff on my pack
Posted: Oct 30, 2009 Jeff Dillavou

Surprised no comment on Pristine as a chemical purifier. Easy, light, no taste unless you overdose.
Posted: Oct 20, 2009 Preacher

The MIOX system works great ((MSR - approx $139.00)) . Miox (variants) were originally developed for and proven by the U.S. Army and U.S.M.C. for use in Afghanistan. Uses two (2) CR123 Li batteries and salt (table, rock, any kind of NaCl). I used on Hikes of AT with no problems. Need to practice BEFORE you use in the field. Kills all bad things, but there is a wait time as with purification tabs. Hooah!
Posted: Sep 05, 2009 J.P.

Lacks depth, completeness.
Posted: Aug 24, 2009 Herman Finster