Whats an effective, study and reliable water filter for under £50?

[lub0]

Hi all I'm looking for something small, light and portable to take with me on an upcoming two week speed hike.

I was intending to use the millbank bag but after much thought I realise that with such a strict time schedule to stick to I really need something that is quicker and won't rely on standing around for an hour while the millbank bag does it's work, otherwise I'd love to use the millbank bag.

I like the features of the MSR HyperFlow Microfilter but at £90 it's far too dear when a £10 millbank bag does the same job albeit slower, however knowing me I'll probably end up shelling out for it eventually

That being said, is there anything on the market that works as well as the MSR for £50 or less??

[Jared]

A millbank bag is not a single solution to water filtration.

It has to be used with other methods, chemical, boiling, or finer filtration to make clean water.

[lub0]

I know that!

[southey]

If your bag is takin that long dude, it needs a wash, ten o fifteen mins tops! Have a look at the drink safe travel tap.

[lub0]

Yeah it dosn't actually take an hour, I just said an hour becuase I was including the preperation time and also having to locate a suitible branch, wall or other object to suspend the millbank bag on to.

[andyn]

Take a look at the pre-mac range. they're reasonable well priced but the only down side is the time to pump a litre out water through.

[Jared]

I know that!

Ah k, sorry, just sounded like you perhaps didn't

Sawyer products seem quite popular over in the US

http://www.sawyer.com/

And the squeeze looks interesting, if you want to scoop up water and deal with the filtering as and when.

http://www.sawyer.com/video-squeeze.html

Seems atleast one place is stocking them over here now,

[Hammock_man]

http://www.bwtechnologies.com/type_5...th_filter.html

Is this of any use. Its a filter and 58 pattern water bottle together. Would have to pre-filter really turbid water to extend life of filter but I have used one of their early ones which came in a softer plastic water bottle. Worked a treat.

[elliott92]

i'd stick with a milbank and then boil mate. if not get one of the survival straws. you can drink dirty water straight through them

[lub0]

Take a look at the pre-mac range. they're reasonable well priced but the only down side is the time to pump a litre out water through.

good one, just looked at a video review on this and it looks absolutely perfect. I can't find anywhere that sells them so I emailed the manufacturer asking for price and how to order. Is there any difference between these two, besides colour? ...

http://www.pre-mac.com/PWP_TTW.HTM
http://www.pre-mac.com/PWP_MWP.HTM

[lub0]

ha just discovered this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_w05...layer_embedded
looks like the best so far, and much cheaper than most others!

[Scots_Charles_River]

I'm looking for a Salt Water filter, mainly for Sea Kayaking around the Croatian Dalmation Islands. Very difficult to collect freshwater. The only alternative is to paddle with a lot of fresh water.

Any thoughts ?

[southey]

Rop but pricey but fantastic! http://m.campingsurvival.com/kahaemdewama.html,

[southey]

A search threw up this guy on some oddball forum, maybe worth a try. http://planetxtownhall.com/index.php?topic=2290.0

[lub0]

Hey all I ended up buying the Drink-Safe Explorer 1 liter canteen direct from drink-safe website with the spring discount code I ended up getting it for a total of £36.70 delivered so I'm very happy and now I can rest assured that I'll be able to adhere to the schedule much more freely than having to mess about with millbank bags and pump filters!

I just hope it proves itself to be reliably and durably built. Here check out the video for it, I can't get over how amazing this piece of kit is! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_w05...7&feature=plcp

If anyone has this already I'd appreciate any feedback!

[Shewie]

Hey all I ended up buying the Drink-Safe Explorer 1 liter canteen direct from drink-safe website with the spring discount code I ended up getting it for a total of £36.70 delivered so I'm very happy and now I can rest assured that I'll be able to adhere to the schedule much more freely than having to mess about with millbank bags and pump filters!

I just hope it proves itself to be reliably and durably built. Here check out the video for it, I can't get over how amazing this piece of kit is! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_w05...7&feature=plcp

If anyone has this already I'd appreciate any feedback!

That's a good choice, I was going to suggest the Travel Tap but either will suit

I bought the Hyperflow a few weeks ago for my TGO next week, now I'm thinking about leaving it at home and saving me sen 244g, sad I know

[Miniwhisk]

I have two of these

http://berkeywaterfilterseurope.co.uk/sport-berkey.html

Excellent, lightweight and purify water. Take a coffee filter to filter out any sediment to extend the life of the filter. The bottle can be gently squeezed to provide water for brew making/ cooking pot.

When out with it, never let it go empty - to prevent mould build up. And, you do have to really dry it out between uses!

[lub0]

I have two of these

http://berkeywaterfilterseurope.co.uk/sport-berkey.html

Excellent, lightweight and purify water. Take a coffee filter to filter out any sediment to extend the life of the filter. The bottle can be gently squeezed to provide water for brew making/ cooking pot.

When out with it, never let it go empty - to prevent mould build up. And, you do have to really dry it out between uses!

Hey I have a berkey filter at home with 4 elements inside and absolutely love it, wouldn't dream of drinking tap water ever again. I was thinking of the sports berkey but it just dosn't look well built enough for a long hike and was only 0.65 liter capacity as opposed to a full liter for the drink-safe explorer, however at £18 it's a excellent price.

You make an interesting point regarding mould build-up. I suppose your advice on keeping the filter submerged would also apply to the drink-safe explorer canteen I just purchased, since it too uses a ceramic filter? Would pouring a small quanity of collodial silver before long-term storage prevent mould build-up, maybe?

[Shewie]

You could run a litre of water through it with a drop of bleach in, then air dry it completely before storage.

Some filters can be frozen between uses but you'd have to check with DS about that.

[lub0]

The Drink-Safe explorer 1 liter canteen arrived this morning and I've been testing it out. It takes a lot of squeezing and sucking to draw water but I have no doubt the flow rate will increase as the filter beds-in over time. The overlall build quality is certainly not anywhere near the bomb-proof level of quality I usually want from the kit I buy, so who knows how long it will last, but it does do it's job perfectly well and I'm happy with it.

THanks for the freezing tip Shewie I'll drop DS an email about it now.
By the way Pre-Mac never bothered to email me back with the price of their pump filter, which is exactly what I expected since they have supply contracts with NATO, so they couldn't give a sh*t about one man!

[southey]

Or Pre-Mac haven't replied to you as yet?

[MartinK9]

I think Pre mac and their iodine fliters were removed from sale due to the iodine ban in Oct 2009.

[Podcast Bob]

The new 2012 Travel Tap does everything you want, is certified and tested to over 1600 litres and when you are confident that the water is okay, simply unscrew the filter. Simples!!

[rg598]

I use the Sawyer Squeeze Filter: http://woodtrekker.blogspot.com/2012...on-system.html

It has a good flow rate, it's easy to use, and is in your price range. It is also light weight and compact. Here are some modifications I have made to mine: http://woodtrekker.blogspot.com/2012...on-system.html

[Paul_B]

Got the drinksafe eliminator inline filters. Works great if you attach it right way round. If not you get taste taint. Works we'll and gd flow drinking from a bladder.

Outdoor Warehouse sell the Sawyer. Think it's gd too.

[Teepee]

Got the drinksafe eliminator inline filters. Works great if you attach it right way round. If not you get taste taint. Works we'll and gd flow drinking from a bladder.

Outdoor Warehouse sell the Sawyer. Think it's gd too.

Same here. The Aquaguard eliminator comes recommended. I've been using the Aquaguard and the Webtex(same internals, different body) inline for a few years now. The Eliminator is better than the Webtex IMO, and also much lighter.

If I bought again, I'd get a Sawyer for the huge lifespan and better filtration.

[lub0]

Or Pre-Mac haven't replied to you as yet?

Still no reply from pre-mac, and I'm hesitant to buy a second hand one from ebay becuase I doubt pre-mac would bother deal with me come the inevitable time when spare filters are required!

[lannyman8]

i have been looking into a pump system that filters down to 1 micron, which is the best on the market as far as i am aw-air, i will be trying to get a bulk buy from the company, the price will be good too....