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Written by Jessica Eyre
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Tuesday, 27 May 2008 |
In the backcountry, the natural water that you find may not always be clean. There have been outbreaks of cryptosporidium and giardia and by simply filtering the water, those and others can be avoided.
There are three basic models of simple water filters, separated mainly by the material it is made of and the size of the filter. They all filter down to .2 micron — meaning it filters out all protozoa and bacteria in the water. They all pump at least one quart of water per minute.
For emergency preparedness, Scott Taylor, backpacking expert at Out-N-Back, suggests a filter with an aluminum body. It holds up better and weight usually isn’t a concern for an emergency kit.
Water tablets are also available. The tablets will make the water taste better after you run it through a filter after about five minutes.
For those who really want to keep the weight down in their packs, the tablets will filter the water in about four hours.
For more information, visit Out-N-Back at 1797 S. State St. in Orem.
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