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Best Water purification tablets for Survival Kits?
- Thread starter Sesoku
- Start date
- Joined
- Oct 6, 1998
- Messages
- 957
Hi Sesuko,
Get yourself a bottle of "Polar Pure" which essentially is a small bottle with pure Iodine crystals and a combined thermometer to read the water temperature in order to know how much "parts per million" Iodine is dissolbved in the water that you have put in the Polar pure bottle.
You then know how many mills you have to put in a quart (liter) of "to be purified" water in order to kill off any "bad boys".
The Polar Pure bottle is enough to purify up to 4000 quarts of poluted water and costs $9.95 at www.campmor.com.
The other advantage Pure Iodine Crystals don't loose their potency and a opened bottle of small water purification pills that use some kind of Iodine based chemical DO LOOSE their efficiency after beeing opened quiet quickly (half a year or so).
Best scouting wishes from Holland,
Bagheeta
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Get yourself a bottle of "Polar Pure" which essentially is a small bottle with pure Iodine crystals and a combined thermometer to read the water temperature in order to know how much "parts per million" Iodine is dissolbved in the water that you have put in the Polar pure bottle.
You then know how many mills you have to put in a quart (liter) of "to be purified" water in order to kill off any "bad boys".
The Polar Pure bottle is enough to purify up to 4000 quarts of poluted water and costs $9.95 at www.campmor.com.
The other advantage Pure Iodine Crystals don't loose their potency and a opened bottle of small water purification pills that use some kind of Iodine based chemical DO LOOSE their efficiency after beeing opened quiet quickly (half a year or so).
Best scouting wishes from Holland,
Bagheeta
------------------
- Joined
- Oct 6, 1998
- Messages
- 957
Hi Sesuko,
So size matters, I thought only women said that
.
If size really matters then forget about the Polar Pure bottle and get yourseld a small bottle of "Potable Aqua" 50 pills in small bottle.
Here's some text from Doug Ritters Equipped to survive website and deals with your size Dilemma
:
The most practical commercial products are either "Polar Pure" iodine crystals/saturated iodine-water solution by Polar Equipment or "Potable Aqua" tablets (Globuline-Tetraglycine Hydroperiodide) by Wisconsin Pharmacal. The former is a much better choice if minimum size isn't a criteria, the latter is what is most commonly found in commercial kits. It's smaller and less expensive, but has its disadvantages.
A bottle of Polar Pure will be good for 1,000 to 2,000 qts of water, depending upon clarity of the water. The 50 tablet bottle of Potable Aqua will only disinfect 25-50 quarts of water, depending upon how clear it is. Cloudy water requires two tablets per quart and they now recommend two tablets to ensure killing off Giardia cysts as well, so keep that in mind when deciding how much you should carry. While it is the smaller and cheaper package of the two products, by a significant margin, in the long run the Polar Pure is a much better value. The Potable Aqua tablets have a useful life of about 5-6 years and once the bottle is opened, should be used within 6-12 months because the tablets lose potency after prolonged exposure to fresh air. The iodine crystals in Polar Pure will last indefinitely.
Potable Aqua is now available packaged with a same size bottle of "P.A. Plus" tablets which are used after the water has been treated to eliminate the iodine and iodine taste. They work, but I can't say the iodine tastes all that bad to me. If it bothers you, the additional cost and weight is pretty insignificant. For those using iodine crystals, such as Polar Pure, you can always buy a small amount of sodium thiosulfate at your local chemical supply house and put it into a small waterproof container. A pinch or so per quart will have the same effect. Easier perhaps, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) is also effective for eliminating the iodine taste, but some tablets can take a while to dissolve.
For use in small personal size kits, you may need to re-package the Potable Aqua tablets to fit inside the selected container (such as a tobacco tin, hollow handle survival knife, etc.). However, Iodine is extremely corrosive to almost all metals and also affects almost all common plastics, so neither a plastic bag or plastic vial will work. After years of searching we finally found a solution that's easy, effective, and affordable!
Best scouting wishes from Holland,
Bagheera
------------------
So size matters, I thought only women said that
If size really matters then forget about the Polar Pure bottle and get yourseld a small bottle of "Potable Aqua" 50 pills in small bottle.
Here's some text from Doug Ritters Equipped to survive website and deals with your size Dilemma
The most practical commercial products are either "Polar Pure" iodine crystals/saturated iodine-water solution by Polar Equipment or "Potable Aqua" tablets (Globuline-Tetraglycine Hydroperiodide) by Wisconsin Pharmacal. The former is a much better choice if minimum size isn't a criteria, the latter is what is most commonly found in commercial kits. It's smaller and less expensive, but has its disadvantages.
A bottle of Polar Pure will be good for 1,000 to 2,000 qts of water, depending upon clarity of the water. The 50 tablet bottle of Potable Aqua will only disinfect 25-50 quarts of water, depending upon how clear it is. Cloudy water requires two tablets per quart and they now recommend two tablets to ensure killing off Giardia cysts as well, so keep that in mind when deciding how much you should carry. While it is the smaller and cheaper package of the two products, by a significant margin, in the long run the Polar Pure is a much better value. The Potable Aqua tablets have a useful life of about 5-6 years and once the bottle is opened, should be used within 6-12 months because the tablets lose potency after prolonged exposure to fresh air. The iodine crystals in Polar Pure will last indefinitely.
Potable Aqua is now available packaged with a same size bottle of "P.A. Plus" tablets which are used after the water has been treated to eliminate the iodine and iodine taste. They work, but I can't say the iodine tastes all that bad to me. If it bothers you, the additional cost and weight is pretty insignificant. For those using iodine crystals, such as Polar Pure, you can always buy a small amount of sodium thiosulfate at your local chemical supply house and put it into a small waterproof container. A pinch or so per quart will have the same effect. Easier perhaps, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) is also effective for eliminating the iodine taste, but some tablets can take a while to dissolve.
For use in small personal size kits, you may need to re-package the Potable Aqua tablets to fit inside the selected container (such as a tobacco tin, hollow handle survival knife, etc.). However, Iodine is extremely corrosive to almost all metals and also affects almost all common plastics, so neither a plastic bag or plastic vial will work. After years of searching we finally found a solution that's easy, effective, and affordable!
Best scouting wishes from Holland,
Bagheera
------------------
- Joined
- Oct 19, 1998
- Messages
- 498
I am not sure that repacking is feasible. If I understand the concept of this crystal Polar pure, then you pour water into the bottle, where it disolves some of the iodine crystals. Depending on the temperature of the water (as indicated by the "fishtank" thermometer on the side of the bottle), and the volume of the container, the concentration of the resulting iodine solution will vary. Whether it's enough to make a difference I don't know, but it seems that you need empty space in the container to produce the iodine solution. You would also have to make a new strainer for the new, smaller bottle to prevent undisolved iodine crystals from spilling out of the container while pouring the solution out.
What I would really love to see is a mini version of this product.
What I would really love to see is a mini version of this product.
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2000
- Messages
- 14,444
Try to find the Katadyn Micropur tablets. They come 25 to a card, 1.5"x3.5". Each tablet does a quart. There is also a "powder" that does a 25 gallon batch.
The tablets fit into any kit, and take up less space than a bottle of iodine tablets.
Plus, no crappy iodine taste...
------------------
Run and you only die tired....
The art of being wise is knowing what to overlook.
Take the Test...
The tablets fit into any kit, and take up less space than a bottle of iodine tablets.
Plus, no crappy iodine taste...
------------------
Run and you only die tired....
The art of being wise is knowing what to overlook.
Take the Test...
- Joined
- Oct 19, 1998
- Messages
- 498
Negative on the Katadyn. It is designed to INHIBIT bacterial growth, and although it may remove some that is already present, it is not effective against many types of microorganisms. I think it is meant to be added to clean water that is going into storage for a long time.
Can anyone post a picture of the polar pure bottle with dimensions so I can get a feel of how large it is?
What are everyone elses thoughts on repackaging the polar pure into a smaller vial?
[This message has been edited by Sesoku (edited 02-02-2001).]
Can anyone post a picture of the polar pure bottle with dimensions so I can get a feel of how large it is?
What are everyone elses thoughts on repackaging the polar pure into a smaller vial?
[This message has been edited by Sesoku (edited 02-02-2001).]
- Joined
- Dec 10, 2000
- Messages
- 554
I was just thinking about a small "tobacco tin" type of kit I bought at a show a couple of weeks ago. I was looking for ideas and the one thing I really liked was the fact that they had 10 water purification tablets individually wrapped. Look like a good idea. I will check them out and let you know what i find out about them this weekend.
Another thought. I have one of those vacuum sealers that is used in the kitchen. I have used it to seal matches etc with great success. I used to vacuum pack emergency supplies while on active duty. It saved space and made sure that my clothes etc were clean and dry when needed. I wonder if this would work for repackaging Potable Aqua tabs???
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Hoah! (Its an Army thing!)
Another thought. I have one of those vacuum sealers that is used in the kitchen. I have used it to seal matches etc with great success. I used to vacuum pack emergency supplies while on active duty. It saved space and made sure that my clothes etc were clean and dry when needed. I wonder if this would work for repackaging Potable Aqua tabs???
------------------
Hoah! (Its an Army thing!)
- Joined
- Nov 30, 2000
- Messages
- 860
Go with the bottle of polar pure. If it doesn't fit into your kit, get a wider kit or duct tape it to the outside.
The taste on the polar pure is pretty awful, but its a lot better than getting horribly ill. If taste is a big concern, get a ceramic filter (which most certainly wouldn't fit into your kit).
The polar pure makes alot more clean water than tablets, and you don't have to worry about the storage lifetime. When I go backpacking, I take a bottle of polar pure before I'd carry my big and heavy water filter.
-- Rob
The taste on the polar pure is pretty awful, but its a lot better than getting horribly ill. If taste is a big concern, get a ceramic filter (which most certainly wouldn't fit into your kit).
The polar pure makes alot more clean water than tablets, and you don't have to worry about the storage lifetime. When I go backpacking, I take a bottle of polar pure before I'd carry my big and heavy water filter.
-- Rob