# steripen...thoughts



## cm4ever (Oct 26, 2012)

http://www.steripen.com/-journey-safe-water-system

My friend thinks this is a good idea...

thoughts?

Debbie


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## horseman09 (Mar 2, 2010)

cm4ever said:


> http://www.steripen.com/-journey-safe-water-system
> 
> My friend thinks this is a good idea...
> 
> ...


I would be concerned about the non-standard batteries, among other things. Standard batteries (e.g. AAAs or 9Vs) can be recharged via solar chargers, etc. Non-standard batteries....hmm.

You might want to compare the Steripen with other types of filters and systems by doing a search on this forum before you plunk down the $$$$.


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

CA 123's are a very common battery but as mentioned, they aren't standard for rechargers, but those can be found as well if you look hard enough.

Also, Steripen has a model that uses a solar panel on the hard case to recharge it! I think that model only costs about $20 more, but they didnt have any when I bought it and in hindsight I definitely wish I'd waited.

I have the battery operated unit in my BOB and I'm confident it will work, I've read excellent reviews about it, one of the bigger problems that you will need to plan for is particulates in the water. It interferes with the UV killing the cooties, so my plan is to filter water from a source jug through coffee filters into the drinking container I intend to use the Steripen on.


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## cm4ever (Oct 26, 2012)

Well, currently we are looking at making our BOB's. With the intent that we can live out of our packs and off the land within a few weeks using foilage and such to survive till we get to tennessee and find someplace to hunker down off the grid.

That being said, She is going to get the steripen and just in case of EMP's My fiancee and I are both getting two other kinds of nice water filters that have no power setup and extra filters. We are just going to get what we are comfortable with.

Her goal is to make a BOB that weighs only 20lbs and has everything she needs to survive. My goal is a pack for me that is around 50lbs and my fiancee is aiming for about 70lbs. Between the three of us, we should be able to carry everything we need, including enough dried food for about two weeks. 

But I may be dreaming. By the end of this month or next, we are going to have them done, and doing some soft trials (as my fiancee and I are not in the long term hiking shape, but will be in a few months) of our equipment and getting used to it. Plus, it will give us a good lay of the land. My hope is by summer, to be comfortable with my equipment and able to be highly supportive to my friends. LOL

CM4ever


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## WWhermit (Mar 1, 2012)

The Steripen is a great tool, and has improved over the years. They used to have a continual problem of breaking after a small impact, like setting your pack down roughly. That has gotten better over time.

Things to keep in mind. You'll want to pre-filter your water for particulates through a bandana, or coffee filter. I use a bandana. Also, you need a container with a mouth wide enough to put the pen through, such as a wide mouth Nalgene bottle. A sports style water bottle, Aquafina, or even a Gatorade bottle does not have a sufficient opening to use the Steripen.

I primarily use a Sawyer Squeeze filter now. It has a 1 million gallon guarantee, needs no batteries, and weighs only 2 ounces. Great little filter, costs about $60. Just a thought.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

Earlier this year I completed a huge study of all water treatment/purification methods and tools I could find.

I think the SteriPEN is great for individual urban or travel use. It is pocket-sized, features a reasonable treatment time and works well with near-zero turbidity water (turbid means murky). There really is no equal when it comes to single serving, on-demand use for a first-world visitor to a third-world city. 

However, I do NOT believe it to be a viable long term water purification option. To fill a water bladder requires a few to several treatment volumes. How long will a battery last in the summer? The treatment method does little to make bad tasting water at least palatable. And, as mentioned, it is electronic and subject to damage or failure. 

Also, the SteriPEN "works" by damaging the DNA of the pathogen--which prevents the pathogen from reproducing in your body and creating the infection. However, if the treated water is exposed to sunlight it may help the pathogens repair themselves. So it's best to keep SteriPEN treated water in opaque containers. Given these facts... I don't know why anyone would count on a SteriPEN as their primary life water treatment method.

That said, I have yet to find the perfect, reliable, single method of water treatment. I also prefer the Sawyer Point Zero Two/Point One filters. But they can be damaged if allowed to freeze; water expands inside the internal filaments and damages them.

Currently I have a 4L Sawyer bag-to-bag system, and I always carry Katadyn MicroPur tablets and pre-filter material. The KM tablets are chlorine dioxide, and they surpass all other chemical treatment methods. Chlorine dioxide is safe to use long term, while iodine-based treatments are not. In fact, the EU banned all consumer iodine-based treatments years ago. Anyway, if my Sawyer bites the dust I still have the KM tablets... and worst case, I can boil my water.


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## Highwater (Mar 22, 2011)

I think UV technology has some great applications but for backpacking I would not trust it unless you had backup. Sawyer, Katadyn, MSR, First Need, LifeStraw are all good for camping and backpacking and emergency use. I'm sure I'm forgetting others.

Include me in the group who doesn't like to depend on batteries.

If you are looking for Sawyer, Katadyn, or LifeStraw, you will find really low prices at Highwater Filters.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

Highwater said:


> I think UV technology has some great applications but for backpacking I would not trust it unless you had backup. Sawyer, Katadyn, MSR, First Need, LifeStraw are all good for camping and backpacking and emergency use. I'm sure I'm forgetting others.
> 
> Include me in the group who doesn't like to depend on batteries.
> 
> If you are looking for Sawyer, Katadyn, or LifeStraw, you will find really low prices at Highwater Filters.


No doubt--bought my Sawyer 4L from Highwater. Especially liked the whole train fiasco discount a while back.


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## cm4ever (Oct 26, 2012)

She's getting the Steripen (she's really hating the idea of never drinking creek cold water without soaking the now boiled water in the creek....)

We are each getting a pump one....one for each pack. That way if something happens, we can save at least one pack.

lol

CM4ever

(I'm just happy my friend finally got off the hammock kick....for someone who is scared of heights...they are not my friend....)


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## zombieresponder (Aug 20, 2012)

The vast majority of rechargeable 123A batteries output more than 3 volts and can damage electrical devices. As long as the 123A models can handle the additional voltage, I don't see a problem other than having to haul around a bunch of extra stuff just to have safe water. Steripen does make a hand cranked model that supposedly treats 1L of water at a time though. Still, might as well just filter and boil anyway.


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## Paltik (Nov 20, 2012)

Steripen now has a model that can be charged via USB, so anything that charges your camera/cellphone/Kindle/etc. can now charge your Steripen.

Ultraviolet solutions (which Steripen has pretty much a monopoly on) work against bacteria, viruses, cysts, etc. Steripens work as advertised, used as directed. Ultraviolet light kills bugs like it damages your skin in sunburn. However, you can also use UV light from the sun; put clear(ish) water in clear bottles or bags in the sun, and you kill the bacteria and viruses. For a 1-liter bottle of clear water, I'd leave it in the sun for a day just to be safe.

Steripens do not filter out impurities, which is why people are recommending filters. I have a couple of Sawyer filters. These filters do filter out bacteria and cysts, but not viruses--so you may want to have both a filter and a Steripen. On the other hand, viruses in water are not a real problem in the USA, and anyway viruses tend to attach themselves to things that would be filtered out, so you'll be pretty safe just using a filter.

Neither filters nor steripens get rid of stuff dissolved in the water, such as poison or heavy metals.

My own personal conclusion--Steripen is great for international travel, making sure any bugs in the water locals drink are neutralized (it probably won't need to be filtered). A Sawyer filter is sufficient for hiking and camping in the USA, but I'd combine with UV treatment in a third-world country.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

Paltik said:


> ...Ultraviolet solutions (which Steripen has pretty much a monopoly on) work against bacteria, viruses, cysts, etc. Steripens work as advertised, used as directed. Ultraviolet light kills bugs like it damages your skin in sunburn. However, you can also use UV light from the sun; put clear(ish) water in clear bottles or bags in the sun, and you kill the bacteria and viruses. For a 1-liter bottle of clear water, I'd leave it in the sun for a day just to be safe.


Every treatise on Steripen use states you should NOT expose the treated water to sunlight. Sunlight can help the pathogens repair themselves.

Also, what containers are you suggesting for "sunlight" treating water? Most of Nalgene and other durable plastic bottles are made of polycarbonate. Polycarbonate inherently blocks most UV--which hampers the alleged benefits of sunlight exposure.

Also, with some plastic bags or containers, the sunlight helps the plastics break down and taint the water. There are still arguments about how seriously it affects your health, but I do know the water doesn't taste as good.



Paltik said:


> ...I have a couple of Sawyer filters. These filters do filter out bacteria and cysts, but not viruses--


Some Sawyer filters do. Others do not. The Point One filters do not block viruses.

*The Sawyer Point Zero Two filters DO filter viruses*. It is one of the only (if only) filters to successfully remove enough viruses.


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## Paltik (Nov 20, 2012)

Fn/Form said:


> Every treatise on Steripen use states you should NOT expose the treated water to sunlight. Sunlight can help the pathogens repair themselves.
> 
> Also, what containers are you suggesting for "sunlight" treating water? Most of Nalgene and other durable plastic bottles are made of polycarbonate. Polycarbonate inherently blocks most UV--which hampers the alleged benefits of sunlight exposure.
> 
> Also, with some plastic bags or containers, the sunlight helps the plastics break down and taint the water. There are still arguments about how seriously it affects your health, but I do know the water doesn't taste as good.


I am not talking about exposing Steripen-treated water to sunlight, but about exposing untreated water to sunlight to treat it instead of using a Steripen. I am interested in learning more about how sunlight helps pathogens repair themselves in water sterilization setups. For answers to your questions about containers, etc. see Wikipedia's Solar water disinfection page.



> The Sawyer Point Zero Two filters DO filter viruses


You're quite right. I meant that the Sawyer filters I have do not filter viruses. (The cost difference between the filters that do and do not filter viruses is significant.)


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

Paltik said:


> I am not talking about exposing Steripen-treated water to sunlight, but about exposing untreated water to sunlight to treat it instead of using a Steripen. I am interested in learning more about how sunlight helps pathogens repair themselves in water sterilization setups.


It's called photoreactivation. Here are a few articles:

http://halmapr.com/news/aquionics/a-comparison-of-microbial-repair-mechanisms-with-low-pressure-and-medium-pressure-uv-lamps/

http://aem.asm.org/content/68/7/3293.full

The Wiki SODIS link you gave is very interesting. Thank you for sharing it! It utilizes UV indirectly, and it uses the only wavelength that does reach Earth in large volume.

It appears SODIS is useful for short-term supplies; oddly it may allow some organisms to repair themselves if stored in the DARK for extended time. Geez, we can't catch a break.

Highwater Filters and Moontrail are the cheapest places I've found Sawyer products.


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## cm4ever (Oct 26, 2012)

Is there a travel version...or do you have to adapt this to something else? Cause I don't see my hiking through the woods with a 5 gallon bucket..but I will if i have to.

CM4ever


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## Paltik (Nov 20, 2012)

Since you mention the 5 gallon bucket, I assume you're talking about the Sawyer system. I got this "sports water bottle" setup for $20 at a trade show, and this more versatile kit for I think $25. This kit has an adapter so you can fit the filter directly to a bottle of water or one of Sawyer's mylar bags; fill the bottle/bag with water, and squeeze to send the water through the filter and into your filtered water receptacle (glass, sports bottle, etc.). The kit does also come with the bit and fittings to make a two-bucket system.


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## Highwater (Mar 22, 2011)

*Sawyer Squeeze vs Sawyer All in One*



cm4ever said:


> Is there a travel version...or do you have to adapt this to something else? Cause I don't see my hiking through the woods with a 5 gallon bucket..but I will if i have to.
> 
> CM4ever


Yes, there is a travel version. The SP181 All in One filter has a squeeze bag as well as the bucket adaptor kit. If you don't need the bucket kit, you can get the SP131 Sawyer Squeeze for under $46 here.

If you want the versatility of the SP181, it will cost a bit more. Check it out here.

We've got a 40% discount on some accessories if you purchase $40 or more.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

cm4ever said:


> Is there a travel version...or do you have to adapt this to something else? Cause I don't see my hiking through the woods with a 5 gallon bucket..but I will if i have to.
> 
> CM4ever


Among the Sawyer travel options are their bag systems. You can choose a bag->filter assembly, or bag->filter->bag system. I bit the bullet and got the 4 liter bag-to-bag system with .01 filter, product# SP194.

Buying bags separately is not cheaper, and it is certainly more of a headache to make sure they will work with the Sawyer system.

The Sawyer and Sawyer vendor websites can be flippin confusing. In a nutshell, they don't have many different filters... but they can be configured in many ways. I really like the fact the Sawyer is easily maintained (back flush) and is easily adapted and suitable for long term use. I have a Berkey--but it doesn't fit in my pack! Just don't let the Sawyer freeze when it's wet inside.


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## cm4ever (Oct 26, 2012)

The bag to bag system is really looking good to me. 

So I think in a couple of weeks I'll get one. Just as soon as I get my drums for water catching. LOL

Thanks for all your help guys.


CM4ever


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

The bag-bag system is convenient, no doubt. I chose the 4L because I may be assisting family with their kids, and up to 4hr tablet treatment is not really acceptable. If I need less water I don't have to fill the entire 4L; they can be rolled up.

The only drawbacks to the bag system is weight and bulk. I believe the total weight is almost 28oz. The filter itself is almost the size of a 12oz soda can. It is easily split up between two or more people. If high throughput is likely an extra .02 filter canister is about 5oz, easily carried by a second person.


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