[pct-l] water filter/purifier?

[elee at microsoft.com (Eric Lee (GAMES))]

Aaron wrote:
>
Anyways that's how I justify carrying a filter.  As heavy as the Katadyn
Pocket filter is, it still weights less than 1 liter of water.  However,
I would be willing to try a lighter filter if there are any good ones
out there, any suggestions?
>

I like the Katadyn (was Pur) Hiker.  It's reasonably lightweight (12 oz
vs 19 oz for the Pocket), has decent throughput (1.5 liters per minute
vs .86 for the Pocket), and requires less pump force (8 lbs vs 16 lbs
for the Pocket).  All specs taken from REI's web site.

The one disadvantage of the Hiker is that it's not field cleanable.
When the filter is clogged, you have to get a new filter.  You can
mitigate this problem by pre-filtering very dirty water, avoiding water
with lots of glacier flour, and changing the filter on a regular basis
before it completely dies.  I think it's worth it, myself.

Eric