to best enjoy the wilderness experience you need tranquil surroundings clean air
a nice view and water
now I've done videos on water in the past especially people's fear of water
you know they they get all concerned weather out in the woods well where are
you gonna get the water and what if it's poisonous or got bacteria and all that
stuff what I typically do when I'm going on a camping trip is I take a big fixed
gallon jug like this one by Reliance it's six US gallons and I filled it up
with tap water I'm not overly fussy it's drinking water that works for me and
something like this usually lasts me at least a week if not more now what if
you're going for longer or what if you're just extra thirsty I guess you've
got to have other options as well now I don't drink out of this jug obviously I
pour it into something else now a lot of people will just use little
plastic water bottles recycle them it's not a good idea
at least for me I don't think so because the problem with these is when you take
one drink the bacteria in your mouth get stuck on this little screw that's here
on this thread and you take a drink you put it down if you've ever use this in a
car and you've had a sip and then you leave it for two days and you open it up
to have another sip and it's like whoa you know that it collects bacteria and
they're harder to clean so I don't recommend these what I like to use is
stainless steel because it's easier to clean to sterilize to sterilize
stainless steel I just pour boiling water in it give it a little shake and
it's clean and also the lip is very smooth so if you just wipe it down
you'll get a lot of the bacteria so if you don't have a chance to wash it out
I'd recommend that but the problem with stainless steel is it's cold and
especially like now it's pretty cold that's why I'm wearing all this hoodie
and and hoodie underneath it and it's cold on
the hands so what I typically like is something like this this one's made by
Nalgene widemouth bottle it actually has a pocket insulating thing I didn't bring
it because I use this um in the wintertime when I'm out hiking and if I
don't have insulation around and it freezes but it's got a nice wide mouth
it's easy to clean and yeah you can pour boiling water in it but I'd recommend at
least just hot water but it's easy to wipe it down so that's how I carry water
when I'm hiking and how I you know the smaller containers I drink it out of but
what about when you need to use the local water now people have seen me in
older videos drinking right out of a stream I do that occasionally but only
water that I'm absolutely a hundred percent sure what the source is and then
it is clean and that's not very common in a lot of the places I travel but
right now it's the spring runoff so all the water is terrible because anything
that's any critters that have died during the winter they're rotting in a
stream somewhere and any nasties are being washed off the land and into the
stream salt that is the time I do not trust the water even water provided at
campsites may be dangerous this time of year it's best to be prepared so if you
ran out of water or if you're out in the woods for an extended period of time
that means you've got to use the water that's at hand from streams rivers lakes
and use a filtration system well my original intention was to only test two
water filtration systems a brita and a miniwell however after I did those
tests I realize I'll hold on a sec they're not all for the same purpose so
I went back and it got a couple more I've got another water bottle which is a
do brass I've got something I've had for a long time this little lifestraw
and I also got a lifestraw water bottle adapter kit a universal kit so I think
with these this gives you a little bit more broader picture and I can show you
why you don't have to spend hundreds of dollars to accomplish the same thing
some of the big expensive ones do let's start with the simplest one the
LifeStraw personal by Vestergaard the packaging clearly shows it removes
waterborne bacteria like e-coli and Giardia which is essential another
good point is there's little throwaway packaging pretty basic a covered
mouthpiece on one end and a filter cap on the other plus a strap
yes crouching over a stream is not convenient for everyone and it took two
hands to get the cover off and straps out of my way
it worked fine but I think if possible it's better to just put the water in a
container first then crouched over a stream Brita is a world-famous brand for
water filtration so including it in my review seemed a no-brainer and the Brita
is just a water bottle with a filter inside you fill it up with the water and
let me just find it here here we go there's a little nozzle on the end to
drink out of pretty simple basic reading the instructions did not reveal anything
unusual except that in the fine print it had expected reduction levels of
chlorine and particulate but no mention of bacteria it wasn't until later when I
looked at the tiny print on the outside packaging I threw out that I saw the
hidden disclaimer do not use with water that is microbiologically unsafe why
could they have not just said in big letters not intended for outdoor use
that would have been great info to know before I dip the bottle into the stream
I think it's ironic that the key slogan on their packaging is get ready to drink
smarter didn't seem to apply here
fortunately I did not get any of the side effects the dobrass water filter
bottle claims a chemical free portable water filter system but it also states
that it removes 99.9999% bacteria and a quote "of protosa"
which is really a bad translation of removes bacteria and protozoa bad
english aside it was a slick product with little to do but just remove it
from the box and it included a straw and clip well the dobrass is a lot easier
to use because you don't have to crouch right down to the water all you have to
do is take off the lid in the filter
filled up with water
release the nozzle and you're ready to drink
hmm tastes clean
I was really impressed with the cap design as with just one finger the
mouthpiece flips up rapidly but the best part was the mouthpiece was protected
from outside elements when not in use and locks for security as a bonus hidden
under the lid is a secret compass not essential but I just appreciate the
ingenuity now as far as versatility at a reasonable price goes one has to
consider the miniwell portable water filter model 630 the small packaging means
less plastic to throw out and includes the filter a connector a hose clip and
the hose
I really appreciated the easy-to-read manual complete with color photos not
only did they clearly show you what bacteria they filter the capacity and
the shelf-life they also have easy setup and maintenance instructions
another trip to the stream for a little dirty water crouching over the edge had
the undesired bonus of soaking the bottom of my hoody tastes like water but
to be versatile I needed to try it out in different ways I had an old soda
bottle I could use to hold water
and the mini will happen to incorporate the same thread in their design smart
you could use any size popper soda bottle for this but I prefer two big one
for volume
now here's a blooper watch the bottle cap
Oh
well there goes my cap hey nobody's perfect
now the concept of carrying dirty water around to fester just didn't really
appeal to me I preferred to store clean drinkable water
squeezing the soda bottle seemed to work fine but I'm lazy sometimes why not just
let gravity take over but since there was no air flow that was really slow I
needed a more practical option one especially for campers I found an ice
cream pail work good and made a 9/16 of an inch hole towards the bottom using
the supplied connector I removed the cover and one washer and push the
connector through the hole I added the other washer screwed in the cover until
everything was sealed now all I needed was the hose clamp and filter
it was time for another visit to muddy waters
use whatever method is available to elevate the bucket I used an old fallen
tree
to use unlock the hose clip
pop off the mouthpiece cover and the water starts flowing
how fast it pours depends on how much water is in the bucket and how clean
your filter is I speed it up the camera here but it took about two minutes to
filter thirty two ounces of water
the last system is another LifeStraw setup called the universal it included a
lid bag and filter plus caps for two different sizes of bottles and yes the
labeling not only states it removes bacteria and parasites
that it also reduces chlorine and improves taste and I haven't even opened
it I hope I can get it open how did it take me a sec I'm gonna have
to tear it and the reason I like this tonight I didn't try the filter but lots
of plastic that's not good I'm sure the filter works cuz it's a
lifestraw but what I liked about this is it's good for other bottles like my
favorite one here it has an adapter for it all I have to do is put the filter on
which would be like that put it in and now I can use my favorite bottle with a
lifestraw filter and it also has oh gotta find it here a new cap the key to
keeping these filters working properly is maintenance lifestraw in particular
mentioned that to clean their products you blow your breath through the
mouthpiece to backwash the filter and remove water and residuals I'm not
convinced this is sanitary for the miniwell system I propose a different
approach put a little water you already cleaned in a bottle hold it against the
rubber gasket on the inlet and flush the filter by squeezing the bottle this
seems much more cleaner to me a little shake down and you're done
well I think that's a pretty fair comparison because the water out here
it's certainly this time of year is indeed suspicious if you have to drink
the water you should filter it and I think I gave
a good general assessment of these products at least so what was the winner
and what was a loser well one that is a total fail is the brita and it's simple
it's not meant for water in the wilderness this is meant strictly for
tap water it removes the taste of chlorine so for outdoors please do not
use as for the do brass actually I like the concept it's it's relatively
inexpensive this is all you need to get water it's great for the trail and stuff
like that I really like this part here the mouthpiece it pops up but and I know
LifeStraw has something similar for a little bit more money but the thing
about the LifeStraw one is it doesn't protect the mouthpiece this one does and
that is a good feature you just use it and you drink it's that simple
the portable lifestraw it's fine it works of course you have to crouch down
every time you need water so it's no good for filling containers fits in your
pocket I like to strap because yeah if you drop it in the stream there it goes
but the one I like the most definitely was the mini well because it does the
same thing as a lifestraw but it's smaller easier to fit in your pocket and
with the other features you can use it on a bucket or a big bag and yes you can
fill up all the water you need for camping and if you're with a trailer as
opposed to just going on in a day hike that's important but of course this is
only one man's opinion feel free to pick the best option for yourself but I hope
that gives you enough information you could make a reasonable decision and by
the way if you're ever sure of the water even if it's filtered
there's a third thing you can do boil it
and by the way all of these items I purchased with money out of my own
pocket or through the people that have donated thank you very much I appreciate
that no sponsorship it's a it's a clean slate I could test anything as long as I
can afford it and that's the big thing if you have any
suggestions please put them in a comment but don't send me any links they get
filtered out and I miss them I hope you enjoyed this please check out my other
videos as well I'm gonna have a drink
good water please check the video description for more info on these
products and if you like this video please give it a thumbs up and subscribe
happy camping