Steripen

[sivart]

I have the ultra. I read they are programmed to treat 1 liter. I have a 2 liter nalgene. So if I cycle it twice will that take care of it?

 

[venado mula]

You can do it as many times as you feel necessary. I usually do it twice but they don't work well with really cold water so be mindful of that. But I do love mine and use it every trip with no health issues.

 

[sivart]

why do you say they don't work well w/ cold water? Isn't all mountain water cold?

 

[venado mula]

why do you say they don't work well w/ cold water? Isn't all mountain water cold?

Yes it is but it always throws a frown face when you try it the first time, so I wait until the water comes up to temp and then it works.

 

[sivart]

good to know. thanks for the tip

 

[sivart]

Has anyone else used the Steripen with 2 Liter bottles?

 

[Drenalin]

Has anyone else used the Steripen with 2 Liter bottles?

I used the Classic a few times - I think I hit the button once for one liter, twice for two. Maybe - hard to remember now. I ended up going back to a filter because it didn't like to run a full cycle on the clear water I'm typically sourcing from.

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

Probably a question that's best answered by Steripen

 

[Stubborn_bowhunter]

How do you guys deal with debris in the water with the pen?

 

[Dos Perros]

Having some very elementary understanding of UV water treatment, I don't think a double the volume double the time logic is sound. If'n it were me, I'd treat one liter of water, dump it into another container, and then treat the other liter. Probably be better just to have qty 2 1 liter Nalgene's.

 

[String&stick]

How do you guys deal with debris in the water with the pen?

Floaties just add flavor man!

Buddy carries a cotton neck gator that is specifically used for filtering debris as he fills up his nalgene. . . Personally I'm a Sawyer squeeze filter guy most of the time so I don't have to worry about the floaties.

 

[sivart]

Having some very elementary understanding of UV water treatment, I don't think a double the volume double the time logic is sound. If'n it were me, I'd treat one liter of water, dump it into another container, and then treat the other liter. Probably be better just to have qty 2 1 liter Nalgene's.

You are correct. I confirmed this with Steripen.

 

[Dos Perros]

Floaties just add flavor man!

Buddy carries a cotton neck gator that is specifically used for filtering debris as he fills up his nalgene. . . Personally I'm a Sawyer squeeze filter guy most of the time so I don't have to worry about the floaties.

A note on floaties...the UV light cannot penetrate larger floaties, so you risk ingesting something you intended to neutralize if the floaties are too big. Steripen sells a little prefilter but I kinda have some questions/issues with it. I think a neck gaiter or handkerchief would work better.

 

[WBrim]

I like the idea of the steripen- seems pretty simple and strait forward. I’ve had a few people (of questionable credibility) say not to bother, and a filter is much better.
Any support for steripen? Anyone seeing some good advantage, or like them enough to recommend?

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

I switched to a Sawyer squeeze filter from the steripen. Didn't want to deal with batteries and it feels like the steripen takes longer. Trust the filters more too. Easy to bring a backup when they're 3 oz.

 

[WBrim]

I switched to a Sawyer squeeze filter from the steripen. Didn't want to deal with batteries and it feels like the steripen takes longer. Trust the filters more too. Easy to bring a backup when they're 3 oz.

Thanks. I seem to hear of a lot of people who have switched.

 

[WBrim]

The batteries are the reason I stay away from them now. Main concern with sawyer is that it’ll slow down as it clogs. If you carry two dirty bags in case one pops, you pretty much have no worries. But if anything electrical fails in the steripen you’re outta luck. Of course you can carry two but it’s just personal preference at that point. All my partners carry sawyer too so it’s really just redundancy that I’m aiming for.

That makes sense. Go with something dependable, eliminate likely flaws or fail points.
Thanks