Water (1) Treatment and (2) Carrier

imported
#1

  1. What is your opinion of using chlorine bleach for water treatment? I want to go light, so I was thinking of Aqua Mira, but a friend of mine who thru-hiked last year said he used chlorine.

  2. What is your opinion of carrying water bottles vs. a hydration bag? For weight I thought I’d carry two 1-liter Aquafina bottles (plain old water bottles) rather than Nalgene because it’s heavier, but my friend strongly suggests using a hydration system.

Thanks, Barbara, planning a thru-hike for '05

Barbara Kerns

#2

From what I understand is that Bleach (Sodium Hypochlorite) isn’t even close to being as effective as Aqua Mira (Sodium Dioxide) in killing Crypto. You can use bleach if it’s all you have (it’s better than nothing) but as with iodine, long term use is generally frowned on due to possible health problems. I’d personally use Aqua Mira since it’s safer and more effective. I figure my health is worth the extra $$$. As for how to carry your water? I agree with your friend. It’s much easier to take a sip of water with a hose located near your mouth than to get out a water bottle, open the lid, take a drink, put the lid back on, and put the bottle back in its place while trying to hike. I’d still want a bottle as well for getting water at a stream and when preparing supper. How about getting a 1.5L hydration bladder AND a 1-liter Aquafina bottle?

Nooga

#3

Kerns. You should check this article out regarding the safety of polycarbonate plastics (clear nalgene bottles) when used continuously.
http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/200311/lol5.asp
it is especially important for females.
i reccomend a water bladder personally, i’ve used them widely for hiking and cycling. you can carry a small cup with you to mix things and some water filters screw directly onto the bladder. and they’re not as bad to clean as people think, as long as you dont put anything but water in them.
take care and good luck
james

james

#4

Choline bleach is not effective against cysts and bacteria like cryptosporidia and giardia, at least not in a potency that would be non-fatal to humans. Aqua Mira is a Chlorine Dioxide solution that is effective AND safe. It is light, easy to use, not very time consuming, and a good choice. It’s also what I use for water treatment.

I use a hydration system and/or bladders rather than bottles. Bottles are restricted to their shape and are much heavier/capcity than bladders. Also, with hydration systems, you can drink a sip while you walk, not having to stop to get out a bottle - they encourage good hydration. I’ve had good luck with Camelback systems (I use a 100oz bladder and tube- their bite valves are the best - bar none). I’ve had OK luck with MSR systems - their bladders rock, but their bite valves aren’t very long lasting. I’ve not had good luck with Gregory systems (though they’ve changed radically since I last used one and are now much more durable).

-Howie

Hungry Howie

#5

the auquafina bottle are what i use…you could use surgical hose (similar to the hydration systems suggested) that you buy at lowes or home depot, go to plumbing section and tell them you want to fit the surgical hose thru your plastic bottle cap, add the camel back bite valve for 3.99 and you have a cheap, renewable water system, that you can take the bite valve off and hook to yer Katahdin water filter and pump directly into yer cheap water system. takes 15 mins to get the parts, and 2 mins to put together. cost, maybe 8 bucks, and you can just buy new water bottles every 100 miles to prevent cleaning delima…i think i will build it and place it in my journal. will, see

burn

#6

Soda bottles are cheap. They only weigh 1.5 ounces. They NEVER leak. There’s no tube that will store bacteria like with the bladders. You can increase or decrease your water capacity at ANY town stop, even if that stop is simply a convenience store. You replace your soda bottles all the time, and each time you do, you get a bonus liter of mountain dew, or pepsi, or whatever pop you like.

yogi

#7

I haven’t used a hydration system, but my nephew has one in his pack and he says the water gets heated up by being in close contact with your back. He wasn’t too pleased about drinking tepid water, but he did like rubbing it in that all he had to do was turn his head to take a drink. I was having to stop and get him to get my water out of the side pockets of my pack–a bit irritating. If were hiking alone, I would have to stop and remove my pack completely every time I wanted a drink. I think I may try to rig up something like what Burn is talking about.

Ardsgaine

#8

Burn’s system sounds good. Good advice.

I’d go with and I personally use soda bottles. Cheap, easy to replace, etc.

Water bladders are hidden and you can run out of water and not know it by sucking them completely dry.

Taking the pack off now and then, taking a break, and taking a sip of water when you do is actually a good thing for you and your body.

I’ve heard too many stories about fungus and other growth in hydration tubes and water bladder to make me want to get one. I’ll stick with the soda bottles, thanks.

See you out there. :cheers

Maintain

#9

while soda bottles may not leak water, they may leach carcinogens like DEHA after repeated use.

be careful what you put in your mouth.

james

#10

A little bottle saver can be affixed to the shoulder strap of most packs. I thought of that while hiking GA, but eventually decided i could throw down and set on my pack and not wait for a sweet stump or soft looking rock. I thought, it took me 70 miles to realize my backpack made a great country lazyboy recliner, i am such an idiot for not resting more often, when i felt like it. From now on, i will drop pack whenever the slightest notion hits me and sooth my silly sadsack.
oh, and,
DEHA actually depleats various carcinogens that us lard fryin, meat eatin, smokers prefer, so on second thought, go with Camelback.hahaha

burn

#11

I began my thru with iodine and a water pump. Somewhere in the Smokies I threw caution to the wind and completed my thru hike without treating my water. Instead I drank right out of springs and streams, only iodining very questionable water sources. I never got sick from doing this. I’m not saying this is a good idea, just offering my experience.

jersey joe

#12

it is true that some hike without filtering or poisoning their H20 at all. It depends on two factors: 1)individual immune system 2)source selection. I have a very strong immune system and I think it has strengthened by not filtering. I always carry a homemade filter, however, and use it on occasion. The only time I got really sick with CRYPTO or something like it, I had filtered the water. So did ADDER, with his own name-brand filter. We were sick as dogs. More than anything in backpacking, water is a personal choice. I will tell you this: putting bleach in your system, no matter how small the amount, is not good for you. Think of what that stuff is made for.

Tha Wookie

#13

this is probably the most hotly contested debate on the trail. I like my platypus bag because it reminds me subtly to keep drinking. its convenient as well as I always fill it (3 liters) when i stop for water. i also keep a couple of coke liter bottles for long hauls between water. i sweat alot so i need to replenish alot. sometimes if i am near a shelter i can cheat and just fill the bottles. they work well with my filter; the cap fits right onto the bottles.

I originally have purchased a sweetwater filter with viral stop drops. heavy; probably. does the job? yes. easy to use? yes. i like it? yes. i also carry iodine pills in case i want to cheat and just get some water and go. have i done it? yes. repeatedly again and again? no.

have i tasted aqua mira water? yes. its fine. i can pump 4 liters and be gone by the time they fiddle with all the caps and make 1 liter of water. does the time saving matter? not to me. cause i usually sit and talk to people. will i carry aqua mira? probably not. it would take too long for me to treat enough water to keep me going for a day. my choice.

what am i going to do? probably spend the 130$ and give the msr Miox a dry run. Fill up at night; let the water rest all night; its safe from everything; including nuclear bombs i think. weighs 3.5 ounces. I’ll carry iodine in reserve and bump my sweetwater ahead. I’ll carry a little more water weight every morning but it will slowly lessen.if i dont like it; the miox goes back to msr with a letter detailing why it doesnt work for backpacking and i get my filter back.

at least thats the plan right now.

Big Boy

#14

Personally I use Nalgenes and will continue to use them just because for me, it has always been part of hiking; you drink water from a nalgene. To maintain forward movement, I use the tubing accessory Nalgene sells to convert bottles into a hands free system. I think it works pretty well, a little hard to suck when your bottle is full, but you get used to it. Heres a link:
http://www.nalgene-outdoor.com/store/
Also in response to the comumnist-left-wing-hippy Sierra Club article on the leakage of chemicals from nalgenes, here you go:
http://www.nalgene-outdoor.com/technical/letter.html
HYOH

Ben Reuschel

#15

I personally like the bladders. They do fail though. I have little space in my pack and the folding aspect appeals to me. I use Aqua Mira and always force some of the freshly treated water into the tube and I haven’t grown anything in the tubes so far… I may rethink this for the PCT though because of the longer distances between outfitters. I had Two yes Two platapi fail in one day…go figure the odds on that one! My hiking partner shared her water so all was cool though!

yo-yo

#16

Never had a soda bottle fail and I’ve used lots of them.

Strange isn’t it that a $50 to $100 hydration system fails, and a free soda bottle doesn’t. Never had a soda bottle get a hole in it, but I reckon it could happen—but it hasn’t yet. And if one does, I always carry two of them full of water, so failure of part of the soda bottle system is not a complete failure of the hydration system like when a water bladder fails (and it’s all you got).

And if it does, a soda bottle is very cheap to replace. :cheers

Maintain