I usually carry some mosquito netting and coffee filters for chocolate milk type water. Never had to use it so i cant say it works but nevertheless its in my water kit. Figure it gives my filter the best chance at not clogging.
I have heard the fine mesh of panty hose works well also, but I also have a bunch of industrial coffee filters from the office I carry with me.
I figured you already knew that -- with your background in -- or is it just an interest in (?) -- biology (as reflected by your forum name). My retort to your poetic assertion -- water is life -- was driven by too many experiences, almost all on the west coast among new-agers (newage, rhymes with sewage) who made that very assertion and were serious about it. For too many of the animistic newagers, everything is alive -- including water and rocks. It's damn near impossible to help most of them understand how water and rocks are fundamentally different from oaks and owls. That fun and important topic -- what is life? -- deserves a thread of its own. I'll get around to it someday. _______ For now, back to water. I'm planning a post about how I meet my water needs here in Maine (where 10% of the surface area is water as rivers/streams (the larger rivers are severely polluted once they get out of the mountainous outback), lakes -- especially lakes (and few of them are chocolate milk) or swamps, which are most challenging) vs what I used to have to do in the deserts. But it's a busy week, so ... I'll get it done before the end of the month. Besides, for today, all I'd have to do is put my two-gallon folding camp water (only) bucket outside, and it could be full enough of freshly filtered pure water by the end of the day.
I'm going to wait n see if somebody has something I haven't tried. There might be, I make no claims to having tried everything. . I have tried seep holes (no amount change in filtration before clotted) pantyhose ( blocked almost immediately, can't be cleaned) paper pre-filtering ( lots of filter changes, time, and no change in the amounts filtered thru pump before blockage) ect ect. The only real thing is a cleanable element pump and just don't lose your cool over having to take it apart for cleaning every 2-3 quarts. If somebody's got a new angle I'm always willing to see if it will help.
So here's a Q for those of you living down there in th' bayous of th' delta .. How do you filter all those ag chems -- fertilizers (esp N) and pesticides from upstream -- I'm talking mid-W .. IO, AR, OK, TN, MO, MS, OH ... -- out of that chocolate milk?
It's not a perfect solution, but what has been found is the stuff you don't (definitely) want, are heavy. They sink to the bottom. So we get buckets of water, let it set for hours, even overnight, then pump off all but the last 2-3 inches in the bucket. The silt and sludge thats left at the very bottom gets swirled and tossed some distance from the source. ( I'm not sure how much help that is as the whole miles wide area get flooded every year, but... ). I have heard that closer to the gulf you can't even filter the Neches to make it potable, that bottled or jugs of purchased water is the only solution for long distance kayaker's. Sad I know, but it's not my fault nor can I (individually) do much about it.
flocculant powder. Gather your water, filter thru a bandana to get rid of the big stuff, mix in the flocc and let it sit. Then filter thru multiple layers of plain ol cotton socks. (on the filter intake) diatomacoues earth is often used as a drinking water flocculate. https://www.koshland-science-museum...nt/Coagulation-Flocculation-technologies.html http://www.survivalcampingstore.com/Chlor-Floc-GI-Powder
It took me only about 900 msec to correct the processing error, but during that first 900 after I read it, my neural network (= brain, a network of billions of neurons that contain a LOT of water, the solvent of the cell component called cytoplasm) read "flatulence powder". OK, I'm over it. Going to the kitchen sink now to fill my glass.
Here in bc we have everything from 365 days a year fog rain (in the Haida Qwaii region) , to rain forests, to actual deserts (Lytton, Lilloeot and area, Grand forks) I have used tarps to catch rainwater, dug seep holes , used buckets to let water sit and clear overnight, got two buckets and big ceramic gravity filter for clear water , ive dug pits in 45 deg C heat in lytton and filled them with smashed grasses and cacti, then covered in plastic and put a little pebble so the evap can drip into a cup <<< it takes a lot of effort to get a cup..... Ive hauled water in with the 4x4 to places where i know the streams dry up. Also in my coolers i use 2 liter soda bottles filled with water and frozen solid, both as ice and backup water. One spot i hiked to had a lake on the map. But when i finally arrived after 9 hours of hiking in 40-45 deg C heat, i found a lovely meadow with shrubs and small trees. No lake left. I dug in the middle and found a lot of moisture, so i dug down three feet and let it fill, then strained thru a towel and treated it with tabs.
I have several issue Millbank bags (they have been issued here since the 40s or 50s I think) among my gear (packs and each vehicle plus maybe 10 spares I got "at the right price) that I use to get the solids and dead bodies out of the mix before sterilisation.
I’m on the North Dakota - Minnesota border, which is the red river. My apartment is 1,000 yards from the Cheyenne river on the east and it’s diversion channel about 500 yards to the west. Minnesota is loaded with lakes so that makes water an ample resource. If you head to the western part of the state you run into a much drier climate. I’m weak gathering water here and need to learn these skills. I use a sawyer mini filter spring through fall. The filter is out for winter because of the whole damn cold winter deal so I opt for carrying water and boiling/melting if needed. More often then not we carry a lot of water. Last summer I bought a 1 gallon yeti rambler. The price is steep but it has done wonders for us. Icy water on hot days makes summer more tolerable. All three of us have insulated bottles which have agin helped increase water intake and reduce the pop.
Here's the lake -- called a 'pond' up here -- near my favorite camp. The outlet to the next lake -- called Nahmakanta -- flows over rock into a granite gorge. I've got pics of it, too, but it's late in my day, so this one of the pond will have to do for now.
@Strigidae going to put a few pics in here, but they are not "new" so I will accept no points for the challenge. Just giving the thread some umpf.
I got interested in the dromedary type bags once and got this Katydyn filter bag. This uses a a throwaway paper element filter that is rated to 200 gallons. I had no illusions about getting that amount...I got around 2 quarts before there was 0.0% flow. Now I did manage to take the element sections apart and clean them to get at least 1 full gallon before the filter had to be replaced. Now at around $10 per filter your potable water would cost around $20 USD per gallon! I quess that's better than beaver fever but not a winner. I did report this and tried to get some warranty but no joy.
The next trick I tried was pre-filtering thru commercial size coffee filters. The thing with the black handle is a ss mesh like the one in your faucet at home, just bigger. We found you could get about 2-2.5 qts thru a filter before it water would no longer run thru. Kid you not, it would hold water like a plastic bag, not a drop coming out the bottom. It was just a long tedious process, 3/4 of an hour to get approximately a gallon. The 2nd lovely fact was this mind numbing process caused no (0%!) increase in the amount you could pump thru the Katy Combi before you had to take it apart for cleaning. 2-3 quarts and you are taking that rascal apart to scrub the ceramic clean. That really interested me as I still don't have an explanation as to why.
Filtering/boiling/processing water for a group is a full time job for someone. Lots of work either way: straining, cleaning equipment, fire for boiling, etc. I once had water duty for a group of twelve guys. Working in an unfiltered water area, jungle type heat. Overwhelming to keep them supplied. I enjoy the tap water here at home.
The Katy Combi is rated to 13,000 gallons, I doubt that number as the ceramic has to be scrubbed about every 3 quarts. There is a "worn down"plastic collar that is used to measure the filter diameter, when the collar slips over the filter you replace it. (It's expensive but I don't recall how much.) now as evidenced by the photos it will turn brown river water into clear drinking water. It's just a lot of work. Still better than the alternative though.
