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drm
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drm
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PostTue Aug 04, 2020 2:19 pm 
Silty Mutton Creek on Mt Adams
Silty Mutton Creek on Mt Adams
Has anybody ever consumed water like this and had a physical problem? I have read that it causes some people problems, but in limited amounts, it doesn't seem to bother me. I tried filtering it with a t-shirt, and that did no good, looked just the same, I didn't try using my filter because I have heard that it clogs them up really quickly. I don't filter all my water normally, if the source is near and the flow is high, and there are no camps between me and there.

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Windstorm
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PostTue Aug 04, 2020 3:30 pm 
I have not had to deal with water like that and can't speak to physical problems with drinking it. I'm not too surprised that the t-shirt didn't work to filter out the sediment. They're generally made from knit fabrics that will stretch and allow particles through. They might catch some of the larger particles, but fine silts, probably not. A tightly woven non-stretchy fabric would probably give better results. Folding the fabric into multiple layers might also help. A coffee filter seems like it could also be worth trying. Another option would be to let the water sit in a container for a while. Heavier particles will sink to the bottom and you can drink the cleaner water from the top, although some of the fine particles may remain suspended.

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JonnyQuest
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PostTue Aug 04, 2020 5:06 pm 
Best bet would be to settle out the sediment before decanting, filtering or cooking. A flocculant would help with that. Alum is commonly used but it takes a bit of time. On a recent Grand Canyon trip we used something called Water Wizard and it settled water very quickly. Water Wizard

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drm
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PostWed Aug 05, 2020 9:47 am 
I did let some sit overnight and I think it helped. The thing is that it is not as easy to see the coloration in small amounts, but the container I let it sit in clearly had a layer of debris at the bottom. Wow, never heard of a silt coagulant. The thing is that if the silt is not actually a problem to consume, not sure I would bother. That's why I asked about problems. I read somewhere that the minerals in silt give some people the runs. But I tend to have a cast iron digestive system that rarely has any issues. But I also consume as little as possible. I may have used some last weekend, but I also got a tad dehydrated because I knew that the next day I would have access to clear streams again and could catch up.

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kbatku
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PostWed Aug 05, 2020 9:55 am 
I know for sure it will hammer your water filter. Maybe carry one of those collapsable 2-gallon water jugs (square with a tap) for settling purposes

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RumiDude
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PostWed Aug 05, 2020 10:20 am 
The issues for me are taste and mineral sensitivity. Other than that, boiling the water for meals will kill any virus and such. My own bout with mineral sensitivity was dramatic, think explosive diarrhea immediately after eating along with constant gas. It wasn't just me, it affected everyone in our party. Using a flocculant like JohnnyQuest suggested is OK, but is pricy and some people are sensitive to that as well. For safe use, volumes must be fairly accurate. Last year in the Grand Canyon we successfully used both a Sawyer rigged as a gravity filter and MSR MiniWorks. The MiniWorks needed to be scrubbed every 2.5 - 3 liters. The Sawyer was slow and needed to be backflushed about the same volumes as the MSR MiniWorks needed scrubbing. We had very little success letting the sediment settle. Only the big stuff settled, even overnight. Rumi

"This is my Indian summer ... I'm far more dangerous now, because I don't care at all."
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InFlight
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PostWed Aug 05, 2020 4:30 pm 
For trips with Glacial Water sources a pump filter is a better bet. I use a coffee filter and rubber-band as a pre-filter at the water inlet. The old school MSR Pump is super easy to clean (and quite heavy). I have the newer Trailshot pump and like it a lot. The other option is the BeFREE filter with a sediment-filter. I have these sediment filters but haven't need to use them yet.

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately...” ― Henry David Thoreau
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Randito
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PostWed Aug 05, 2020 5:24 pm 
Silt laden water is all that is available kayaking the Colorado river through the Grand Canyon... The usual process is to collect the water in 5 gallon buckets, let it sit for a while so the larger particles settle to the bottom of the bucket and then pump filter from the upper 3/4 of the bucket. The filters used are ceramic element filters that can be cleaned over and over again. For backpacking/mountaineering smaller scale buckets and filters are available

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HitTheTrail
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PostWed Aug 05, 2020 7:42 pm 
In parts of the middle east where alcohol is verboten, the oil patch workers would make their own home brew. They used bentonite (drilling mud) as a clarifying agent. It worked so well you could almost turn red wine into white wine. I am sure it would do the same to turbid water.

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Malachai Constant
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PostWed Aug 05, 2020 7:57 pm 
I used the coffee filter and rubber band on a pump filter inlet. Also used an old school gas filter (new) some have replaceable filter elements.

"You do not laugh when you look at the mountains, or when you look at the sea." Lafcadio Hearn
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Brucester
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PostThu Aug 06, 2020 3:47 pm 
Malachai Constant wrote:
I used the coffee filter and rubber band on a pump filter inlet.
Absolutely! And even submerge a bandana to create a cleanish source to make less of a burden on the pre filter.

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Anne Elk
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PostThu Aug 06, 2020 6:23 pm 
When I was a newbie hiker, someone told me that if you drank water like that all the time, you'd get kidney stones. I don't think that's possible, certainly not in occasional doses.
drm wrote:
I read somewhere that the minerals in silt give some people the runs.
Maybe that's why some people drink bentonite clay concoctions during a "cleanse". tongue.gif hihi.gif

"There are yahoos out there. It’s why we can’t have nice things." - Tom Mahood
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Navy salad
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PostTue Aug 11, 2020 3:00 pm 
Full disclosure: Although I have one of these, I haven't actually tried it! ------------------------------------------------------- Another option that would filter better than a coffee filter is a "polyester filter bag", used for various purposes such as filtering dirty restaurant deep fryer oils to remove particles. You can get them here: https://www.amazon.com/Welded-Polyester-Filter-Filtering-Liquids/dp/B074MZTSY8 They are fairly light, and can be purchased with filtration pores ranging from 1 to 100 microns. They are also fairly cheap, and you could buy one and cut it into smaller sizes (the one I have measures about 3 square feet).

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rossb
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PostFri Aug 14, 2020 5:46 pm 
I've boiled water like that (we didn't want to thrash our filters). Everyone was fine. Boiling water isn't too bad, but it is time consuming -- mostly to get the water to cool. It uses a fair amount of fuel of course, but we had plenty extra.

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HitTheTrail
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PostFri Aug 14, 2020 7:29 pm 
rossb wrote:
Boiling water isn't too bad, but it is time consuming
A few years ago up Little Bridge Creek we camped on top with no water. I had limited fuel, so while the "Dudes" melted snow I hiked over the ridge and placed my water bottle under a wet dripping embankment and collected almost a liter of water and mud. The next morning it had settled out to the point I could pour out a cup of thick dark water that I boiled for coffee. Via made it taste like coffee and I am still alive to relate the story.

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