# Water source selection for filtration: bacteria, viruses and pollution



## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

*Offer opinions*: how should I choose my "_not-so-in-the-wild_" water sources for *purification*? I live and ride in eastern Massachusetts/Greater-Boston. ***Concerned about chemical pollutants.***

I'm a mountain biker, bikepacker, and occasional hiker. I'm used to working with water _filters_ like the Sawyer Squeeze, the MSR TrailShot, and the Katadyn Hiker. I've used these in remote and mountainous areas of New Hampshire and Maine where I feel confident the water run-off is coming from mountain springs. These are *not* areas with farming or dense human habitation (think Baxter SP, Carrabassett Valley, and the White Mountains). And I'm usually up the mountaiside.

These_ filters_* remove bacteria* *but not usually viruses nor chemical pollutants*.

I'm also familiar with chemical purification like Aqua Mira. I've used this when I was concerned about virus contamination after filtration. When used as part of a two-part system (could be substituted with a steri-pen), this *setup is effective at removing "living" infectious bugs*. However - AFAIK - *they're ineffective for chemical pollutants*.

For shorter, closer to home rides, I'd like to ditch the Camelbak and carry a filtration bottle like the Katadyn Be-free or the Grayl One Press. These could provide the freedom to carry less water and fill-up as required in streams, ponds and puddles. But...

*The conundrum comes down to water source selection in higher population areas to avoid chemical pollutants and farm run-off.*

Has anyone else explored the idea of filtering water in areas where pollution and farm run-off are a concern? Is there general guidance on source selection? Tips and tricks? Products I should consider? Websites that list water quality?


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Well I'll reply to my own thread! Grayl's website claims their press system removes viruses and chemicals including:

Chlorine
Benzene
Chloroform
Lead
Arsenic
Chromium

Hmmm... Can anyone confirm this?


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

as far as I understand, if you're concerned about chemical runoff, what you need to look at are filters that use activated charcoal, which ADsorbs chemicals (different process from mechanical filtration). It doesn't address every possible chemical, but it does with many.

Also, IIRC, filters that use a solid block of activated carbon do this better than filters which rely on crumbled bits of activated charcoal. Though the solid block is typically much more expensive. This is also often combined with other types of filter media, which helps preserve the activated charcoal.

Digging through GrayL's website, it seems like their filters do take advantage of activated charcoal and its adsorptive properties to remove chemicals.


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## Le Duke (Mar 23, 2009)

So, being well versed in this sort of thing from a professional point of view:

1) The higher up, the better. 

2) If there are a lot of THINGS living in the water, that's actually a good sign. Algae (aside from blue-green), amphibians, water dwelling insects, fish, birds, animals like beavers, etc. Some of those are pretty sensitive to water quality. 

3) Clear isn't necessarily a great indicator; some very clear water can be seen in remote areas near Moab, UT. Note that none of the indicators I listed in No. 2 are found in/near that water. Drink enough of it, and you'll start registering on a Geiger counter. Also heavily laden with arsenic and other such delights.


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Well I've spent my Covid-19 "_Work-from-home_"  afternoon reading up on these filters and have "homed" in on the Grayl Ultralight and the Rapidpure Intrepid. Relying on carbon, both claim to filter out:

bacteria
viruses
heavy metals
pesticides
some chemical pollutants

There's a really nice comparison chart here.

Both also seem to incorporate silver to keep bacteria from growing in the systems.

The RapidPure is 12.5 inches tall and the Grayl is 9.6 inches tall. I want this for my Ibis Ripmo. My bottle cage clearance is limited to the Grayl. The RapidPure bottle design looks more bike cage friendly with that compressed mid-section - just too tall for my bike.

REI has a *20% off coupon* right now - so this is sitting in my cart and hopefully will checkout at $55.96.

*@Le Duke*: Thanks for the tips! Elevation changes around here (Greater Boston) are pretty pathetic. Hills on my favorite day rides hit about 300ft. Do you know anything about _phosphates and fertilizers_? Concerns?

And... I took the trip of a lifetime and went to Moab last spring. I read up on all the Uranium history there and even drove to see the Superfund site north of town there with all the fresh dirt. Quite a history! There's a restaurant up on a prominence that was once a uranium prospector's residence.


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Grayl arrived today. It kinda sorta somewhat fits in a bottle cage. A little bit. But not exactly.

And not just in my limited frame triangle space. It didn't perfectly fit any of the cages I have on any bike I own.

It sits weird and I worry that my expensive bottle will jiggle loose and drop away without me noticing.

I need to get a cheap plastic cage and see if I can whittle down some of the plastic.

I did post on the REI site asking if the Rapidpure cap fits in a bike bottle. No answer yet.

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## Finch Platte (Nov 14, 2003)

connolm said:


> Grayl arrived today. It kinda sorta somewhat fits in a bottle cage. A little bit. But not exactly.
> 
> And not just in my limited frame triangle space. It didn't perfectly fit any of the cages I have on any bike I own.
> 
> ...


Can you secure it using a Velcro strap?


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

More info with pictures.

First pic shows a bottle cage with a regular bottle. The cage overhang tab locks down on the bottle groove.

Second pic shows the Grayl lacking the groove.









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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Finch Platte said:


> Can you secure it using a Velcro strap?


Would be great if there were a "bottle cage" that was just the bottom-rest and a velcro to wrap around the middle.

Know of one? Maybe a Salsa Anything Cage?

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## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

An Arundel Looney Bin might work. A modified cage with an added strap would be good too.

https://www.arundelbike.com/product/looney-bin/


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

connolm said:


> Would be great if there were a "bottle cage" that was just the bottom-rest and a velcro to wrap around the middle.
> 
> Know of one? Maybe a Salsa Anything Cage?
> 
> Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk





Lone Rager said:


> An Arundel Looney Bin might work. A modified cage with an added strap would be good too.
> 
> https://www.arundelbike.com/product/looney-bin/


I have a Looney Bin that I put on my commuter. Main reason for it was to hold the straight-sided coffee mug I took to work every day. Works great!

Cargo cages like the Anything Cage and others (I have a Blackburn) work better for much larger items. I've frequently carried a 64oz growler full of beer in mine (also on the commuter...stopping by the local brewpub on the way home).


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Ordered the Arundel Looney Bin. Gets here on Saturday. Thanks for the suggestion and endorsement 

Will send pics and review of the Grayl and Looney Bin once tested.

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## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

connolm said:


> I live and ride in eastern Massachusetts/Greater-Boston. ***Concerned about chemical pollutants.***...


Totally. MA is the home of the US industrial revolution and untold megatons of stuff was dumped and leaked. Read about the Ashland superfund site.

The Nyanza Colorant Plant - The Ashland-Nyanza Project

I've ridden in the Boston area, and actually in Ashland. There are plenty of places where you can suck up some really nasty water to filter. Thinking about many of the non-northeast areas I ride and have ridden, I'd have to very carefully plan a ride to get to sufficiently closely spaced water source, if at all possible.


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

What do you think of reservoir ponds? With fish and living things...

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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Reservoir...









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## evasive (Feb 18, 2005)

None of those portable technologies will remove nitrate from water. Since you mentioned agriculture as a potential contaminant source around you, there will definitely be nitrate in the water. But as long as you’re not a baby and it’s not your primary water supply, it probably won’t hurt you.


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Thanks Evasive. We dont have a lot of cattle farming around Boston. But strangely there are chicken farms and a ton of horse farms. I ride by 8 foot tall piles of horse dung on a couple loops.

The crop farms tend to be small and focused on "organic" farming. 

I realized a bigger fear when I was scouting for water sources earlier this week. Found a nice bubbling brook with green algae. I followed it up and up only to discover it was flowing out of a capped landfill. Probably insta-death to drink that! 

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## evasive (Feb 18, 2005)

Chicken litter is the “hottest” animal waste there is, actually. Nitrate is pretty ubiquitous. It’s not solely from cattle farms. Any sort of agricultural runoff is likely to include it. But the acute effects are mostly limited to infants (e.g. blue baby syndrome).

Landfill leachate is not something you want to drink...


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

The Arundel Looney Bin arrived today. It is indeed a nice suggested solution. Thanks.

Pictures below show it mounted into my Ripmo. It just fits. With or without my EDC OneUp mounted, the bottle is still flush.

I think the shock pushes upward with rear travel - so it should be ok. Even with only 1mm clearance.

Have to wait until Saturday to get out.









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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

Also note: I prepared the bottle for field use as described in the manual. I'm a bit shocked by the amount of force required to clear clean water. I really have to push HARD.

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## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

Yeah. The pores in the filter media are really tiny to be able to stop viruses so it takes a lot of effort. The filters I've used in the past were pump based and it took a fair amount of effort to get reasonable amounts of water. I used it up in the Rockies and Sierra, not in low lying more densely populated and industrialized areas. 

I looked at how your filter works and thought it was pretty clever by comparison to the pump type. Based on the price of the filter it looked like it was something like 65 cents a gallon if the filter lasted for the full rated duration. If it starts getting clogged, it won't make it.

For my purposes, I really wouldn't consider filtering water in MA unless is was in western MA in the hills somewhere. I'm sure it would mostly be OK but you never know. Sure there are many drinking water reservoirs around, but that water is regularly tested and treated.


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## connolm (Sep 12, 2009)

*1st use and still alive...*

Rode yesterday at Willowdale SF in Ipswich, MA using the Grayl and purifying water from a stream and a pond. See my Ride on Strava here.

Despite purchasing the Arundel Looney Bin cage and fiddling with it extensively (see post above), I couldn't get enough clearance around the bottle. So instead, I used a handlebar bag. I got the MooseTreks Handlebar Stem Bag for $26.99 from Amazon. It's a solid piece that will compliment my bikepacking gear.

















I filtered water from a flowing brook and a pond. The brook is shown below:

















The purified *water smelled and tasted fine*.

It's been 24 hours and *no gastro-intestinal problems* (yet).

As for chemical toxicity - we'll probably have to wait 5-10 years to see if I grow a second penis or third eye.


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## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

connolm said:


> ..we'll probably have to wait 5-10 years to see if I grow a second penis or third eye.


Those would be the beneficial side effects.


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## Ethan Fernandez (5 mo ago)

I have used this bottle for last 4 months and it looks fine for me. According to it's manual it has IAMF technology which related to extreme filtration. you can check this out from ETA Living


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