Silver ?

[Silverclaws]

Does anyone know if silver is definately a water purifier ?

The reason I ask, is I have it in my mind to make a silver water flask, an exercise in silversmithing for a college project. I have pondered the benefits of silver for ages, and have even heard of a producer creating a water vase with silver pellets in the bottom, to purify the water poured into it to be latter tapped off for drinking water. So, many believe silver is a natural purifier, my question is, is it ?

To note, the water I draw from supplies out in the boonies, I do so via an MSR Miniworks, I then store it in a pewter flask, my idea was to replace the pewter flask with a home made silver flask and there take advantage of any further water enhancing properties the silver has to offer.

Also, of the silver, if it is a water purifier, is that pure silver as in fine silver, pmc, roughly 99.9% pure, or will sterling silver do at 92.5 % pure. The impure bit for strength properties is copper, 8.5 % ?

[silvergirl]

Don't know for absolute definate about purifying everything out of the water, but silver does kill most bacteria. It is in increasing use for treatment of wounds to stop infection.

And I wouldn't worry about the copper, studies (in india) have suggested that leaving water in copper vessels for 24hrs reduces to fractional the chances of catching diseases such as cholera and typhoid.

[British Red]

Sterling silver is anti microbial. Storing water in a silver flask (or even dropping a silver dollar in water) will NOT kill all nasties however!

[Toddy]

Ingestion of colloidal silver is a bad thing too...........the result is called Argyria.

There were a couple of local ladies who looked like this from taking it as prescribed.

http://rosemaryjacobs.com/rose1.html

Worth a read too, even if it does have an inbuilt bias.
http://www.silvermedicine.org/safetyinformation.html


cheers,
Toddy

[y0dsa]

Silver has also been incorporated into fabrics for similar reasons e.g., hospital fabrics for helping fight MRSA, see

http://www.qmc.nhs.uk/newsdesk/press...Feb/050208.htm

or smelly feet, see

http://www.sweatguard.co.uk/silver-socks/silver-socks

No connection etc.

If you do go ahead with the project, remember to use pure silver solder eh!

[Goatboy]

I know that silver will "reduce" odour causing bacteria in clothing if incorporated, and I've always wanted copper worktops in the kitchen to be naturaly anti-bacterial. Cant afford it though.
GB