bump for later
Depends on whether you want a backpack portable or non-portable. Berky’s are about the best you can get for non-portable http://www.berkeywater.com/start.main.html
Big Berkey
I’d like to know as well. We’re storing water from our tap in 2 liter pop bottles - I’d like to know how long that water would be safe to drink.
I’m not much into buying jugs of water that have probably come from a tap somewhere else - and then having to lug those home.
We have used a British Berkefeld (also known as “Berkey”) filter for many years. These use four ceramic filter elements which last a long time and work very well. Our unit has a 2-gallon capacity. What sold us on the Berkey is the fact that these filters have been used by many years by aid organizations for water filtering in third-world countries—a proven design that is effective, practical and reliable.
advice about storing food & water
If you don’t, and come upon hard times, what then?
Cistern, drums under gutters, Water heater, bath tub, toilet tank, jugs of all kinds, and Clorox as a purifier. Filters cost money and aren’t necessarily needed in good times, when prepared folks store what is needed for the bad times.
Steripens (a water purifier, not filter) are great very portable but limited in capacity.
Katadyns are very good and portable but expensive and also limited in capacity.
Bleach has a limited shelf life. Pool shock (Calcium hypochlorite) has a long shelf life and can be used to make a solution for water purification.
I have a countertop distiller and a reverse osmosis system.
Think 5 gallon jugs unless you have a water source that does not depend on electricity. For very long term look at sand filters; they have and are being used in places without electricity for centuries.
What are you prepping for? Read “How Long Can You Tread Water”. It is a well documented analysis of how really bad things could get in a hurry.
Good luck.
Tom S.
For back packing I use a Katadyn Pocket, my buddy uses a MSR Sweetwater. I’d like to get a Big Berky for home. And I always have a bottle Iodine out on the trail.
We have a Katadyn for camping, and the water is amazing - it is the only water that I’ve ever tasted that has no taste at all. It is not cheap though.
To extend the life of your filter, I have heard you can use Alum to make the heavy deposits in the water sink to the bottom of a bucket/barrel first, and then adding only the water on top to the filter.
Another cheaper alternative is a homemade filter made with 1/3 sand, 1/3 pebbles, 1/3 gravel. This would still need boiling.
In a pinch, what we do is use a clean t-shirt to filter out the icky stuff, and just boil the water for 10 minutes.
If you google homemade water distillers, or the Watercone, you’ll get some interesting ideas too.
We’ve used Amway’s Espring for years, it’s fantastic. For emergencies we store in plastic jugs with a few drops of bleach. Then we have a Britta with extra filters for when it really gets bad.
I’ve been a member of a preparedness forum since before Y2K. The preferred filter is the Berky. It’s considered the best.
Thanks everyone. I’m just trying to put things back for my toddler & myself (I’m a single mom) since I really believe hard times are ahead, esp since we have not monetized our debt. Thanks, Soros, you dirty bastard.
Berkey. Buy extra filters and spigot to have on hand.
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You can always fall back on distilling the water - if you have a mineral supplement to replace any good minerals lost.
Big cooking pot - an angel food cake pan (with a hole in the middle) and fashion a domed lid and there you have it.
Ping.