Re: [Philmont]: Water Filters/Purifiers

Crash course on chemicals and filters:

It takes MP1 tablets awhile to kill protozoan cysts
like giardia (30 minutes) and crypto (4 hours).
Viruses and bacteria are killed in <15 minutes.

A good filter is effective at removing giardia,
crypto, and bacteria but viruses are too small and are
not removed.

Purifiers combine a filter with chemical or electrical
treatment. They remove the cysts and bacteria and
kill the viruses.

If you treat filtered water with MP1, it's safe to
drink in 15 minutes because the hard-to-kill cysts are
removed.

Boiling the water for 3 minutes at Philmont's
elevation kills everything.

Removing or killing viruses (like hepatitis A) from
water matters, especially in a place with lots of
humans using the bathroom outside. It is generally
believed that cysts are much more prevalent than
viruses in North American wilderness water sources,
but are possible wherever there's a chance that water
has been contaminated with human feces.

Also, none of the above are truly effective at
removing chemicals (heavy metals, pesticides, etc).
Carbon filters (often part of a purifier) help some,
but not enough to allow you to drink water you know to
be chemically contaminated.

Brandon Bezzant
St. Louis, MO

--- Daniel Preston <prestonar@bellsouth.net> wrote:

> It's my understanding that the ceramic filters
> remove 99.9% of all
> bacteria. From what I have read, the only advantage
> to a purifier is
> that it will also remove viruses. If anyone knows
> of dangerous viruses
> in U.S. water, I would like to hear from them. The
> new treatment
> tablets sound like a good idea and we will try them
> this Spring and
> perhaps leave the filters at home. We took the
> Katadyn treatment
> tablets on a week-long canoe trip last summer but
> didn't use them
> because the water sources were all cold springs and
> the treatment time
> was too long. I would like to hear what others have
> experienced.
>
> Dan Preston
> Louisville, KY
> On Mar 20, 2006, at 5:31 PM, Pfeifer Randy-QA4427
> wrote:
>
> > Wow. I'm surprised that your ranger would
> recommend or approve of
> > using
> > a filter-alone instead of the Philmont recommended
> water treatment
> > scheme (then Polar Pure). A filter will remove
> all the big stuff but
> > won't remove the small stuff. Polar Pure will kill
> the little stuff but
> > won't kill all the big stuff (e.g., Crypto). A
> purifier or a
> > combination of filter and iodine (or other) will
> kill/remove it all.
> > You either got lucky or know what's in the water
> at Philmont (and it's
> > nature). I've never felt knowledgeable enough to
> bet my life on one or
> > the other. We've always used both a filter and
> Polar Pure to be sure.
> >
> >
> > Randy Pfeifer
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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As you gather around this virtual campfire with fellow
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loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient,
cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.
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Received on Thu Mar 23 14:58:00 2006