About half of people will not ingest water when working or finding recreation outdoors because they fear that it is not as clean as the water they receive from a countertop water filter. It further appears that the other half of people rarely use any source of pristine water purification when they are outdoors because they feel that the water outdoors is even more pure then anything that they cold get at home. In the first example, ignorance towards safe drinking water outdoors dramatically increases the risk of dehydration. In the second example, failure to treat water that may contain microorganisms increases the risk of gastrointestinal illness and other sicknesses.
Water found outdoors that is not treated, either with a handheld or countertop water filter, may contain organisms that can make you ill if ingested. To assure as much safety as possible, water should be disinfected, defined as "the removal or destruction of harmful microorganisms." In most instances, water found outdoors must be appropriately treated using an available method which can effectively "disinfect" the water. Disinfection is commonly confused with "purification" although they are inherently different. Pristine water purification, especially in an outdoor situation, may not be able to remove or kill all of the pathogens in the water to ensure its safety. To make sure water is drinkable, it must be treated by boiling, treating it with chemicals, or filtration of some sort.
Boiling water is different from using a countertop water filter in that it kills any organisms living within it. Contrary to popular belief, water does not have to be boiled for ten minutes, plus an additional minute for every thousand feet above sea level. The time it takes for water to actually come to a rolling boil will kill most water-borne pathogens such as Giardia and Cruptosporidium. Since the boiling point of water decreases as you increase in elevation, the temperature at which water boils is hot enough to kill any organisms which might otherwise make you sick. Keep in mind that being able to boil water is wholly dependent upon having fuel to burn, a metal container to heat the water and time sufficient to allow the water to come to a rolling boil.
Utilizing chemicals is also very different from using a countertop water filter because time and water temperature become very significant. The effectiveness of halogens, such as iodine and chlorine, is directly linked to how much is used, contact time for the chemicals within the water and the temperature of the water - the more cold the water, the longer the contact time required. Most chemicals come in both a liquid and tablet form. The tablet forms are widely popular, finding use within the US Military, disaster relief agencies, and those who work outdoors.
Filtration is a final option for assuring safe water outdoors. There is a lot of confusion that exists in relation to the usefulness of filters in effectively disinfecting water. Some filters only remove the "big stuff", while others also remove common viruses. Some filters come in the form of pumps, some are bottles with a filter matrix, and some rely on gravity. Devices that only remove larger organisms are referred to as "filters" while those that remove both the larger organisms and the finer organisms are referred to as "purifiers."
While it may not be practical to carry a countertop water filter to obtain pristine water purification when working or finding recreation outdoors, finding another form of filtration to assure your water is clean is probably a good idea.
Water found outdoors that is not treated, either with a handheld or countertop water filter, may contain organisms that can make you ill if ingested. To assure as much safety as possible, water should be disinfected, defined as "the removal or destruction of harmful microorganisms." In most instances, water found outdoors must be appropriately treated using an available method which can effectively "disinfect" the water. Disinfection is commonly confused with "purification" although they are inherently different. Pristine water purification, especially in an outdoor situation, may not be able to remove or kill all of the pathogens in the water to ensure its safety. To make sure water is drinkable, it must be treated by boiling, treating it with chemicals, or filtration of some sort.
Boiling water is different from using a countertop water filter in that it kills any organisms living within it. Contrary to popular belief, water does not have to be boiled for ten minutes, plus an additional minute for every thousand feet above sea level. The time it takes for water to actually come to a rolling boil will kill most water-borne pathogens such as Giardia and Cruptosporidium. Since the boiling point of water decreases as you increase in elevation, the temperature at which water boils is hot enough to kill any organisms which might otherwise make you sick. Keep in mind that being able to boil water is wholly dependent upon having fuel to burn, a metal container to heat the water and time sufficient to allow the water to come to a rolling boil.
Utilizing chemicals is also very different from using a countertop water filter because time and water temperature become very significant. The effectiveness of halogens, such as iodine and chlorine, is directly linked to how much is used, contact time for the chemicals within the water and the temperature of the water - the more cold the water, the longer the contact time required. Most chemicals come in both a liquid and tablet form. The tablet forms are widely popular, finding use within the US Military, disaster relief agencies, and those who work outdoors.
Filtration is a final option for assuring safe water outdoors. There is a lot of confusion that exists in relation to the usefulness of filters in effectively disinfecting water. Some filters only remove the "big stuff", while others also remove common viruses. Some filters come in the form of pumps, some are bottles with a filter matrix, and some rely on gravity. Devices that only remove larger organisms are referred to as "filters" while those that remove both the larger organisms and the finer organisms are referred to as "purifiers."
While it may not be practical to carry a countertop water filter to obtain pristine water purification when working or finding recreation outdoors, finding another form of filtration to assure your water is clean is probably a good idea.
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