[pct-l] Steripens

[Trekker4 at aol.com]

I've had 2 Steripens, and have a 3rd: #1 I let the  battery compartment get 
wet, when the directions clearly say not to; Steripen  replaced, not 
repaired, it for $10, and I'm guessing a short like that  can't be fixed, probably 
damaging the lamp as there was water inside the glass  tube.
    #2, the replacement above, got wet again when I  just about drowned in 
the Middle Fork Gila last April; I ordered another one,  but also got #2 
repaired (actually replaced, again, w/#3) for $15. I now  have  #3 in my bounce 
box and #4 new in my pack. Just bear in mind  that means there have been NO 
failures that weren't my fault, and Steripen say  it's working on that 
gasket problem. Course they bin doin that for at  least 2 years; that's the 
failure from my point of view - an item that's  used around water that doesn't 
have a waterproof battery compartment. BTW, both  of mine now have o-ring 
gaskets from my local hardware store.
    I love, & haved, loved, all of mine: they're  less than half the weight 
of any pump filter; they last a long time on just 1  set of lithium 
batteries; and I've never been sick backpacking, even though last  year I treated 
very little h2o all summer. 
    I don't know about cloudy water, as I've never, so  far, had to treat 
any. However, I use narrow neck bottles, so I tilt and rotate  the bottle 
w/the Steripen jammed against the neck while the light is on; this  gets all 
the water close to the light I figure. I think that with cloudy water  I'd 
just take the time to treat it 2-3 times to get all the h2o near the light  
several times.
    There is absolutely no doubt that the time and  effort in using a 
Steripen is less than any pump filter! I'd guess 15 minutes  per gallon, without 
using much energy.
 
Bob "Trekker"  Brewer
Big Bend Desert Denizen, and...
Naturalized Citizen - Republic of  Texas

"Government cripples you, then hands you a crutch and says, 'See,  if it 
wasn't for us, you couldn't walk.' " -- Harry Browne

"If you think  health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it 
costs when its free."  -- P J O'Rourke



In a message dated 2/4/2011 12:31:00 P.M. Central Standard Time,  
csilla.tabor at gmail.com writes:

I'd love  to hear some stories (bad or good) about the use of Steripens for
water  purification. I'm considering getting one instead of resupplying Aqua
Mira  or iodine over and  over.
_______________________________________________
Pct-L mailing  list
Pct-L at backcountry.net
To unsubcribe, or change options  visit:
http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l

List  Archives:
http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/