There are a range of items you can purchase and accumulate in order to prepare for uncertainty in your lives. None might be more important than a water filter. We all recognize that water is the most important thing for us to have. We can go much longer without food than we can without water. We need it and we need lots of it. Unfortunately, water is bulky and tough to store large quantities of. And, no matter how much you store, you will eventually run out depending on the circumstances.
A water filter guarantees acceptable drinking water as long as we can find a water source. Where I live in Florida this really isn’t too difficult. For me, I already had some stored water and some purification tablets. Adding a water filter essentially completes my water preparation strategy.
I chose to purchase the MSR Miniworks Microfilter since it is one of the most popular water filters on the market, and it is relatively inexpensive. At this point, I felt it was necessary to add the item to my preps. Down the road, I may consider adding a Berkey Water Filter or one of the Katadyn water filters.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I own a berkey and a katadyn and love them. The berkey is in my kitchen, and its advantage is that it is so practical for everyday use rather than just having it in my cache. The katadyn is a bag/gravity style (fill a heavy plastic/nylon bag and hang from a tree) and i use it backpacking. I’ve used MSR filters and they’re very well made and easier than other hand pump style filters. The reason i like katadyn is that they’re so universal, they fit pur filter replacements and some off brand filters too whereas MSR only fits with MSR filters (same with MSR stoves/gas).
I’ve used the SteriPen for about 4 years now all over the country, from South Carolina to Alaska, and it has performed very well. The model I have (the Adventurer Opti) has a solar charger as well as an AC charger. Size and weight are not an issue as the tool itself is just a test tube with a handle more or less. The durability is great as I’ve just thrown this thing in my pack and went in the past. The major plus to the SteriPen is that it only takes about a minute to kill all the major bacteria and other microorganisms in 32oz of water and render it drinkable. The only downside I have noticed is the solar charger is ridiculously slow to charge the battery so getting a couple backup batteries would be a good idea so you can charge one while using the others. Depending on your sensitivity to such matters, there will be some particles floating around in the water as this isn’t a filtration system. I’ve never had any major problems with particles as long as I pulled my water from a moving source.
Just for additional info… I use the Just Water, ceramic drip filter from Monolithic Marketplace. They last for a long time, are more effective than Berkey filters, and are much less expensive.
I use mine with two five gallon buckets. Filter every drop of water consumed in my home.