large party water purification?

[tboehm]

Just wondering what solutions folks might be using for a party of 4 or 5 water purification. If you make suggestions please expound on the pros, cons of what you have used. Maybe the length of time other items that may have not worked to your expectations.

 

[ChugiakTinkerer]

We used the Katadyn Base Camp Pro on our float hunts and rafting trips and it worked great. Fill the 10L bag and hang it. Gravity does the work while you go about setting up camp. It's handy to have a 5 gallon bucket for drawing water and filling the bag.

The only con I have encountered with it isn't unique to that model or brand. There's something in the water in the lake where we have our cabin that clogs every filter I have used. Still working on a solution that doesn't invlove boiling water.

 

[KantishnaCabin]

We used the Katadyn Base Camp Pro on our float hunts and rafting trips and it worked great. Fill the 10L bag and hang it. Gravity does the work while you go about setting up camp. It's handy to have a 5 gallon bucket for drawing water and filling the bag.

The only con I have encountered with it isn't unique to that model or brand. There's something in the water in the lake where we have our cabin that clogs every filter I have used. Still working on a solution that doesn't invlove boiling water.

+1 on the Base Camp. Works great! I've used mine for years now on several Boy Scout canoe trips to Swan Lake and of course the annual moose hunt. I also recommend using the bucket to refill the bag. Especially in silt laden waterways, I let the silt settle before I fill the bag and it cuts down on the filter changes.

 

[KantishnaCabin]

There's something in the water in the lake where we have our cabin that clogs every filter I have used. Still working on a solution that doesn't invlove boiling water.

Try covering your filter with a section of nylon pantyhose, the screen that covers the filter is supposed to catch the big stuff and the holes may be a little too big. Probably what you have going on is a bit of algae bloom in your lake. It slimes up the filters pretty fast. You could put the hoes over the bucket and pour through them as you fill the bag, that would reduce the algae slime going into your bag.

 

[Gr is for Greg]

Agree with the above on the Katadyn bag style filter. Coleman makes a 5 gallon jug that is super light and collapsible, so you can smush it flat and attach it to the outside of your pack. It definitely helps to have a large container and let the thing drain out, because even with relatively clear water, the filter will gather particles and slow after several uses. If you prop a Nalgene under the spout, you are guaranteed to forget about it and water the ground with filtered water.

A tip about settling out silt: Add a touch of salt to the water. Not a ton, obviously. You can't hydrate on saltwater, but a dash won't affect taste or hydrating ability of the water, you'll probably benefit from the electrolytes if you're sweating, and the salt will dramatically increase the effectiveness of settling out. Essentially, it allows individual particles with charged surfaces to get closer together, causing them to stick together (flocculate) and settle out. -Gr

 

[Steve Springer]

We used the Katadyn Base Camp Pro on our float hunts and rafting trips and it worked great. Fill the 10L bag and hang it. Gravity does the work while you go about setting up camp. It's handy to have a 5 gallon bucket for drawing water and filling the bag.

The only con I have encountered with it isn't unique to that model or brand. There's something in the water in the lake where we have our cabin that clogs every filter I have used. Still working on a solution that doesn't invlove boiling water.

Whate Chugiak said, super easy and large volume!

 

[Steve Springer]

Prefilter with a mesh type filter with something like that first.

 

[tboehm]

I appreciate the input so far but in looking at amazon for that filter there seems to be quite a bit of bad reviews on that thing and it only has 3 stars. 60 positive and 43 negative! (32% 1star)

 

[tboehm]

A tip about settling out silt: Add a touch of salt to the water. Not a ton, obviously. You can't hydrate on saltwater, but a dash won't affect taste or hydrating ability of the water, you'll probably benefit from the electrolytes if you're sweating, and the salt will dramatically increase the effectiveness of settling out. Essentially, it allows individual particles with charged surfaces to get closer together, causing them to stick together (flocculate) and settle out. -Gr

Can you be a little more specific about this. When you say a pinch... how much to say a 3/4 filled 5 gal bucket and how long are you letting it settle before pouring in?

 

[ChugiakTinkerer]

I appreciate the input so far but in looking at amazon for that filter there seems to be quite a bit of bad reviews on that thing and it only has 3 stars. 60 positive and 43 negative! (32% 1star)

Reading those negative reviews most of them sound like my experience with the filter at my property. But evey filter I have tried gets clogged in short order. Nothing so far has performed any better than the Katadyn.

My experience with the Base Camp Pro, which I purchased in 2014, is that it worked flawlessly for two seasons without changing the filter cartridge. In that time I took it on two moose hunts, two backpacking trips, and one float through the kenai canyon. It filtered everything I threw at it, whether clear running or glacial silted.

I wouldn't hesitate to use it on a river trip. But I would have a second filter as backup, plus bring enough fuel to boil water. If using it at a lake site I would be prepared for any mechanical filter to get clogged due to algae, suspended clay, or whatever.

 

[tboehm]

IT also doesn't filter out viruses >

 

[Bfish]

We used the Katadyn Base Camp Pro on our float hunts and rafting trips and it worked great. Fill the 10L bag and hang it. Gravity does the work while you go about setting up camp. It's handy to have a 5 gallon bucket for drawing water and filling the bag.

The only con I have encountered with it isn't unique to that model or brand. There's something in the water in the lake where we have our cabin that clogs every filter I have used. Still working on a solution that doesn't invlove boiling water.

We had a same problem with this filter filtering some thick looking lake water. Worked fine at first but not after a couple days no matter what I tried to clean it. Also had chronic failure on a river float when the filter froze up and it never really worked the same. Mighta never got it unfroze entirely - that was a cold trip. Last river float with a clean river and warmer temps it worked just fine..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Gr is for Greg]

Can you be a little more specific about this. When you say a pinch... how much to say a 3/4 filled 5 gal bucket and how long are you letting it settle before pouring in?

I eyeball it, but I would say about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon per gallon. That gets it to about the same saltiness of a sports drink. It doesn't take much. Let it sit for maybe an hour. I've done it a few times, and it works pretty well. Hope that helps.

 

[Doc]

Another Katadyn Base Camp user here...for many years. My experiences with it are consistent what others have reported. I always have a spare filter cartridge or two depending upon the length of the trip and water situation. Clear running rivers tend to be no problem. Lakes/ponds are usually another story...the water flow can be very slow with eventual filter clogging over time...sometimes way faster than other times. I always just figure it's doing its job. The most important part is that I never have had giardia or any other water-born illnesses when using that filter, which sells it for me.

I also have a steri-pen as back-up.

 

[Cheeser]

When we need a larger supply of fresh water out in the boonies we use water purification tables. No filters, no gizmos, little cost. Just fill a jug (filter thru a cloth if there's sediment) and drop in a tablet. An hour later you're set to go.

 

[ChugiakTinkerer]

IT also doesn't filter out viruses >

Your comment got me thinking, and I realize that I've been operating on some assumptions and we all know where that leads...

A little reading on the web yields this distinction:

Generally speaking, a water filter is designed to remove waterborne protozoa and bacteria, but not viruses. A water purifier is designed to combat all three classes of microbes, including viruses.

According to other sources, a water filter is all that is needed for most places in North America. If you're traveling in other countries or perhaps you're faced with regional flooding, then you may be very interested in destroying viruses.

I've only dealt with water filters. The Steri-Pen looks like a handy way to address viruses. One or two of those paired with a gravity-feed filter system should be able keep a group of 4 hydrated.

Here's a thing I came across in looking for solutions to my lake water clogging my filters. Proctor & Gamble's water purification sachet: https://www.cdc.gov/safewater/flocculant-filtration.html

I like it for the flocculent aspect, but it may also be useful for removing viruses.

 

[4merguide]

….No filters, no gizmos, little cost....

….and tastes like you're drinking a chemical. Yuck! No thanks.

 

[tboehm]

One of the major obstacles is that a large majority of are waters are turbid and that is where the majority of problems come from. I have seen some recommendations like the MSR Guardian but that sucker if $350. That may ultimately be the way to go but that price isn't what I was looking for as Im sure that most here are as well. On one review site the Platypus Gravity Works get best reviews and highest marks.

 

[Cheeser]

….and tastes like you're drinking a chemical. Yuck! No thanks.

The water sources usually have their own "flavor" so we've never had an issue with it. Plus we take powdered drink mixes with us if the flavor needs to be masked.

I guess we're just not that picky and prefer the convenience.

 

[Daveintheburbs]

Bleach. See red cross directions.