granite4brains wrote:Just a follow up on the Steripen, which was the filter I ended up getting.
Turns out, I'm not super crazy about it for our purposes. Doing some of the mountain hike/climbs in the Sierra means I'm drinking quite a bit of water throughout the day, ideally.
To fill up our large camel Baks takes three 1-liter bottles, which is the Steripen's 90 sec stir. For me and my wife, that means we have to do 6 of those everytime we want to fill up. It starts to sound easier to just get one of the new high-efficiency light-weight pumps.
Also, we have a hard time seeing the lights in the bright sunshine, which sometiems makes one wonder if they even really filtered the water.
That said, I do really like that it kills viruses too. It's lightweight, compact. And, if you just want 1-2 liters, really easy.
I'll probably get a light-weight pump too, and take one, or the other, depending on the type of trip.
Type of trip is important, as well as number of people being hydrated with it. Steripens are ideal for water with fewer particulates, fast and light trips, and good for getting a quick liter or two of water. Trying to disinfect water for a group, with only one pen, is not efficient. Steripen is just another tool for certain people and certain applications.....definitely not a one size fits all solution!