STERIPEN

I’m looking into getting a steripen.

Classic:- 4xaa batteries, 213g
Journey:- 2xcr123 batteries, 123g (gimmicky display panel)
Protector, Traveller, Adventure:-2xcr123 batteries, 103g (all seem to be the same except for the colour)

There is a solar charger which would work with the Journey, Protector, Traveller, Adventure but its seems ridiculously expensive, and of limited use (except epic hikes with no power available for a while)

Has anyone got any experience of any of the models?

Is there anything particularly bad with the classic? Effectively a classic and 4 spare batteries would be the same weight as Journey, Protector, Traveller, Adventure with a solar charger. Also could use other stuffs AA batteries...any flaw with this plan?

Anyone used Sanyo eneloop batteries with the classic?

Sorry for all the questions but any help is appreciated!

Take a look here and read the linked PDF by Keith Conover. A bit dated now; and there are other (especially UV) products doing similar things...

http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/forum/forummessages.asp?URN=2&UTN=18166&SP=&V=1

I know what you mean, trouble is with all of them are they the emporers new clothes, just some clever words to get around truthfulness in advertising. Still if the theory holds true its just like at the water treatment plant!

I've never used anything and not got sick. I really want it for walking off the beaten track in oz.

I've only seen one review with pictures which showed the results after using it on petri dishes showing the culture grows before and after. It was done by a couple (some sort of biologists) with comments from Steripen. I would like to see a independant test with a wide range of filters, uk and sterilisers but I suspect it won't happen the outdoor mags have to much to lose in ad rev.

The PDF about the Miox option... as mentioned above.

Hi.Have a look at www.drinksafe-systems.co.uk . Hassle free water purification with no batteries or chemicals and ok for use worldwide!! If you have any doubts read their testimonials or ring up and speak to Giles. He knows everything about water purification!

A group of us use their products. Brilliant!!

There are reports of Steripen failures, or very slow working, which can leave you in a very difficult position if you are out in the wilds, as can running out of batteries. Personally I'd not want to rely on it unless I was carrying an alternative or had loads of fuel to boil water if needed (or could light fires to boil water on).

(I should declare a bias, as we sell an alternative water treatment option!)

I'd imagine its the same with filters getting clogged...

I suspect what ever I buy would need at least some pre-filtering to assist it in running smoothly. I always carry iodine in the first aid box anyway (nice dual purpose) and if at all possible go for free flowing water not stuff thats been sitting in pools.

For sake of arguement what are other decent filters/bottles?

No 6 - I bought the classic steripen last summer for a trip around the lakes. After about 3 days I had the runs for the next week. The first set of batteries ran out on the 8th day. It was temperamental in that sometimes it just turned itself off. You had to dry it and restart the process to be sure it worked. It takes 90 minutes for 1 litre, not strictly true as you first have to pre-filter the water when filling the bottle you choose to use (must be wide mouthed like nalgene - not the best bottle to drink from). Then you have to use the steripen.

All in all I found it cumbersome to use as I found you had to hold an open bottle of water while taking the cap off the steripen then stir the pen around in the bottle once the bklue light comes on and then replace cap while holding the open bottle. Not difficult but filters are easier as you just have either hoses into a bottle and the water source or the filter screws onto the bottle to be filled and a hose goes into the water source. I found others in the group filled their containers quicker and with less fuss.

Also if you use a drinks bladder you might end up having to treat the water in a separate bottle and then repeat to fill the bladder up if more than 1 litre capacity. A filter can be used continously straight into the bladder until full. In the height of summer I don't want to have to stop all the time to re-fill. I also want to be able to do more than 1 litre at a time.

As far as filters clogging, true but unless you are away from civilisation for a long time it is not a problem if you maintain it properly when at home. You can always use treated water to back flush and clean a filter, you can not use spent batteries on a steripen and you have to carry them out of the area you are in.

My conclusion was that I bought it because I liked the idea of the UV treatment and I got a good price from the Climbers Shop. With hindsight I think I should have spent more and got a good filter. The 213g of the classic is without the spare batteries (might be the weight of the steripen without any batteries). You also have the wide mouthed bottle to carry when with a filter you can fill direct into your bladder. Using a bottle is not as user friendly as  using a bladder while walking. I now use aquamira for the UK which means the steripen is reitred (for now at least).

I used the Classic for a 3 month trip to S America recently.

It was great; it saved us buying (and thus discarding) lots of plastic bottles and was very easy to use. It worked fine with rechargable NiMh batteries and with Lithium cells (we used these while on trek as they were considerably lighter). It was robust - chucked around and dropped with no ill effects. And it worked - I only got sick through eating dodgy food in Cusco (pretty hard to avoid). We used a pocket recharger to charge the NiMh batteries.

Treating water in a Platypus is possible - the Steripen has a rubber stopper around the neck to allow the platypus to be upended and 2 litres can be treated by using 2x 1 litre cycles. Iodine for a backup is a good idea as it is multi-use and weighs nowt.

I used no prefiltering and had no problems. Certainly plan to use it on future trips.

E H-R - not sure if they recommend doing 2 x 90 second cycles for 2 litres of treated water. They say you can use 2 x 500ml cycles to get 1 litre of treated water but doubling up on the larger volume of water could mean there is more chance of some nasties being left with unaltered RNA causing problems. This is especially true if the water is cloudy or peaty. The information on steripens do have a level of clarity that they are not safe to use and I think they recommend boiling in that case. Of course I doubt you would want to take water from sources that bad. It is just one thing for people to check up on prior to doing that.

Also, people say they have never had problems with using a certain treatment method but in the uk particularly you can;t be sure of the fact that the treatment method is keeping you bug free or the fact that the water is just sufficiently bug free to allow you bodies to keep you well.

I have taken water direct from streams in the UK without problems using common sense and a good look up stream. As far as safe water in more far-flung locations I think I would prefer a good filter system that is field maintainable. That is not to say my steripen is not safe from my experiences I found a filter system easier to use. Afterall Steripen do market it as easier to use which is not my experience. Of course we all have different viewpoints, all I can say is that among my friends no-one else has a steripen after they saw how ill I got when using it in the Lakes. Not that I am saying it is the fault of the steripen (not my viewpoint) but that is how others see it.

I've got a Steripen Classic. The first one I bought was faulty and after a quick call to the manufacturer I went back and got it swapped over.

I used it on an overnight in the White Mountain in NH and as others have said, not getting ill may have as much to do with the water being perfectly drinkable as it did the Steripen!?!?

One thing I did read about was the manufacturer being pretty good at replacing defective units, especially if you're out on the trail. I think I saw something from a guy do the Appalachian Trail, his unit broke and Steripen dispatched a replacement to coincide with his route?