Water Filter

[lonelyvisitor]

So a few weeks ago I was sitting around talking gear with my uncles who does a lot of hunting/hiking and he was telling me about a water filter one of his hunting buddies uses. He said that they used it at a cow pond out in the middle of the Arizona desert and were able to get clean, crystal clear, fresh tasting water. He couldn't recall the brand of it, anyone know about this??? I've never heard of a backpacking water filter being capable of cleaning such foul water. I know for a fact my Katadyn filter won't do it. Anyone have any thoughts on this???

[Hikes in Rain]

First Need filters will do it, although not for very long. Micro-pore filter will even remove viruses, and the activated carbon filter removes organics.

[take-a-knee]

REALLY contaminated water can be rendered potable with a product like Chlor-Floc. The army developed it. It contains a flocculent that causes all suspended solids to settle to the bottom of the container and leaves a chlorine residual in the water. When I went to SERE school many years ago the medic used it on some green pond scum and later drank the water after everything settled, he never got sick. I've seen this stuff for sale in the camping section at Walmart, I think it was under the Sawyer brand name, I don't remember for sure. It was for a 5 gal batch IIRC. If you used this stuff and then filtered the clear water, that should be a foolproof system.

[Manwich]

So a few weeks ago I was sitting around talking gear with my uncles who does a lot of hunting/hiking and he was telling me about a water filter one of his hunting buddies uses. He said that they used it at a cow pond out in the middle of the Arizona desert and were able to get clean, crystal clear, fresh tasting water. He couldn't recall the brand of it, anyone know about this??? I've never heard of a backpacking water filter being capable of cleaning such foul water. I know for a fact my Katadyn filter won't do it. Anyone have any thoughts on this???

My "Katadyn Hiker" filter has turned some nasty cowpond into some delectable drinkydrink.

[garlic08]

I did that with a cheap Sweetwater and it worked fine for a couple of liters. It wasn't until a couple of days later that I was able to find enough decent water to clean the filter and get it back in service. Ask your uncle how much water they got and how it worked at the next pond. Usually hunters have vehicles nearby and don't rely for days on their backcountry equipment.

I've learned to not trust the tanks and troughs as a water source. Once in a while the wind is blowing and the windmill is pumping and you can get good water, but I really try to stay away from the tanks and troughs unless it's life or death. I don't carry a filter anymore in the desert. The water is either excellent or horrible.

[MediumRare]

REALLY contaminated water can be rendered potable with a product like Chlor-Floc. The army developed it. It contains a flocculent that causes all suspended solids to settle to the bottom of the container and leaves a chlorine residual in the water. When I went to SERE school many years ago the medic used it on some green pond scum and later drank the water after everything settled, he never got sick. I've seen this stuff for sale in the camping section at Walmart, I think it was under the Sawyer brand name, I don't remember for sure. It was for a 5 gal batch IIRC. If you used this stuff and then filtered the clear water, that should be a foolproof system.

Here's a link to this stuff (or a very close cousin): http://purpurifierofwater.com/. I purchased some online but have read that Walmart has it too. It's not much needed on the AT, but it is some amazing stuff that will turn absolute nightmare water into clear good stuff.

The procedure is that you mix one packet into 2.5 gallons, stir for 5 minutes (creating a vortex), let that settle for another 5, pour all that into another container through pretty much any kind of screen (e.g., bandanna), and then let all that sit for another 20 minutes.

So it's pretty involved, but it's good for fixing a large volume of really miserable water without plugging up filters and so on. I carry just a packet or two as insurance.