Why Water Treatment?
In the not too distant past, we did not need water treatment in the wilderness. One could walk through pristine wooded lands to the nearest stream and enjoy the fresh clear water that flowed by.
Those days are no more.
All backcountry water should not be trusted any longer as a pure drinking or cooking source.
It could be perfectly fine but you don't want to take a chance.
It's what you can't see that is the problem.
Whatever the reason there are several ways to protect ourselves from becoming ill while out in the wilderness so we may enjoy it to the fullest.
Just assume that all wilderness water needs some cleansing and you will never be wrong.
Getting our drinking water pure is the number one item on our list. We simply can't carry that much bottled water with us for even a simple overnight backpack so we need to know what to do.
What Causes Bacteria In Our Streams?
Old Mother Nature herself is part of the reason. The animals we see, those cute furry things that scurry around, use the water too, and have little respect for us humans along the way.
Debris, algae, sediments, also causes problems for us but that is the easiest issue to cure. A simple cloth filter works well for these things.
It's the micro-organisms or bacteria that can do the intestinal damage that will ruin a trip for you. These organisms can withstand just about all natural environmental conditions, even freezing.
So for all its natural beauty, don't be fooled by that wonderful snow fed stream you are marveling at.
The micro-organism that is most common in our water today is called Giardia Lamblia or just simply, Giardia. It is found in deer, beaver, and birds. It is even found in dogs and cats.
It loges in the small intestine and for humans can cause some unpleasantness. It's easy to remove from the water, but more difficult to remove from our bodies.
Mankind itself is sometimes at fault for contaminations, both visible and invisible.
Chemicals can be present and we may never know.
There are thousands of abandoned mines in the backcountry that can leach unpleasant residue from their operational days. The old miners had little regard for the care of the land and the water downstream.
Contamination is the reason we deposit our body waste at least 200 feet from any water source to avoid contamination when a river swells.
As mankind's knowledge increases so does out awareness of the things that affect us. Naturally we develop ways to guard against them.
Whatever the reasons for the contamination we have to deal with there are several ways to protect ourselves from becoming ill while out in the wilderness.
It is best to assume that all wilderness water needs some cleansing and you will never be wrong.
Getting our drinking water pure is the most important thing you can do for yourself while out in the wilderness. We simply can't carry that much bottled water with us for even a simple overnight backpack so we need to know what to do.
How Do We Purify Our Water?
There are three primary methods of cleaning water in the wilderness, they are:
- Boiling
- Chemical
- Filtering/Purifying.
There is a difference between these three and which way you choose should be determined by where you are going and what is recommended for the area.
Boiling
This is the simplest method and surest method to purify water. It has been done by man ever since the first microbe was identified.
First filter the debris and sediment with a clean cloth (one set aside for this purpose).
Then bringing the water up to a boil will do just fine.
In higher elevations, boiling for a few extra minutes is needed because water will boil at a lower temperature.
If you have any doubts, leave it on the fire for an extra minute or two. The atmospheric pressure change simply from being at a higher altitude allows water to boil below 212 degrees.
The down side of this simple method is that it is difficult to obtain a large enough quaintly of water for drinking today, cooking tonight and then backpacking tomorrow.
All backpacking stoves are small and to do this you will use a huge quantity of your cooking fuel which you must carry with you.
Chemical
It is best to use the Water Purification Tablets purchased from your local camping store. They contain the exact amount of ingredients needed to do the job right.
In any home emergency or other disaster a few drops of simple iodine or chlorine in a quart will also kill bacteria in water.
These tablets contain either of the above ingredients or halazone. They will be sized for a given quantity of water so there is no guesswork. One in a quart of water and wait about ten minutes and the water will be safe. Don't forget to filter it first.
These should be in everyone's household emergency supplies! If opened, replace them every six months as they loose potency over time.
For maximum safety, chemical purifiers can be used in conjunction with any filter device. It is best that you add a charcoal filter with it to remove the taste of the iodine of chlorine.
Filtering
This is the most common method. There are a vast number of filters on the market today by many manufactures. Most are fairly inexpensive and with care will last for several years.
They are good for 100 to as many as 400 gallons, depending on the manufacturer. Using it for your entire party will, naturally shorten its life.
Look for filtering capability of about 1.0 microns.
The Giardia is about 2.0 microns and so you will be fine. That will also take out the fine sediment and provide clear water.
These are all hand pumps so you want one that will do about a quart a minute so you don't wear yourself out.
For the more discriminating there are more expensive type called micro filters. They claim to remove up to 99.9% of all bacteria and other organisms. Just about everything except viruses, but it is unlikely that a virus would be present in the water. They get down to the .02 micron range.
The advantage to filtering is that there is no waiting to drink your water.
Once you pump it through, you can drink it immediately. If you need more, you can pump another quart in just a few minutes.
Combined with a charcoal filter it is as good as anything you can buy in a bottle from the store.
Purifiers
There is a difference between water filters and water purifiers. A water purifier is your ultimate filter.
Getting a water Purifier is more expensive but potentially worth it. It will take out viruses, along with extra cash from your wallet. They will take out any bacteria AND viruses present as small as .004 microns in size (now that is small!).
There are also UV light systems that purify water but you can only do 32 fl. Oz. at a time. The good news is that they are easy to use and it only takes as much as 90 seconds to kill all of that bacteria, virus and protozoa!