LifePack Water Filter

[Guest Baron]

I found these today at a Costco in Memphis for 14.99 a pack. Each pack will provide 3 days of drinking water for one person. The link below is for info and a video.

Costco - LifePack Water Filtration Kit

Not a great "bulk" item (I use Berkley cartridges), but looks like a great way to lighten up a BOB. I do have a small concern that they compare it to home RO units. While the RO membrane is the key component, its usually not the sole filter of a home RO unit. However, it looks legit and adequate.

Anyone every try these?

[UncleJak]

I have one, but have not used it. The idea is cool. I keep it in my BOB.

[analog_kidd]

Can it filter out chemical contaminants, like gas, oil, etc? In a flood scenario, where there is water everywhere, but none of it drinkable even with a standard backbacking filter, I could see the benefit. Otherwise, I'll just stick with my backpack filter that will last for a much longer time than a few days.

[Spook]

I found these today at a Costco in Memphis for 14.99 a pack. Each pack will provide 3 days of drinking water for one person. The link below is for info and a video.

Costco - LifePack Water Filtration Kit

Not a great "bulk" item (I use Berkley cartridges), but looks like a great way to lighten up a BOB. I do have a small concern that they compare it to home RO units. While the RO membrane is the key component, its usually not the sole filter of a home RO unit. However, it looks legit and adequate.

Anyone every try these?

Just so that I understand correctly, you paid $14.99 per pack in the store and they are $54.99 for a 2-pack online? If so, that's a very good deal.

[Guest Baron]

I didn't buy one, I just saw it and wanted to see if anyone had used them. After some thought, I think I will pick up 2.

The ceramic filters are the best value and will handle most conditions (with the addition of activated carbon). They are going to produce hundreds to thousands of more liters than these disposable bags.

However, these RO bags (if they really use what they claim) is going to be able purify the nastiest water there is. I imagine that is why they add the "sport drink mix". RO water is void of everything...good and bad. Its abut the purest water your going to find.

[monkeylizard]

Otherwise, I'll just stick with my backpack filter that will last for a much longer time than a few days.

What's a backpack filter?

<<n00b question, I know>>

[analog_kidd]

It's a small hand held filter device you take backpacking. Very light, small and can safely filter bacteria for a thousand liters or so. Here is one that I have: MSR® HyperFlow™ Microfilter

[Guest Lester Weevils]

I have a couple of different models of backpacking filters put up for emergency, and an assortment of water purification pills.

The price of many of the backpacking filter units is barely bigger than the price of replacement filters for the units. The replacement filters seem the most expensive piece of the package, at least at the retail level. So it might make sense to have 2 or more entire filtering units rather than having one filtering unit and a couple of replacement filters. It would be about the same price either way.

The better ones are spec'd as good to filter "virtually all" pathogens, but I don't think any are spec'd to remove 100 percent of pathogens without chemical assistance. I've read some backpackers' opinion that the belt and suspenders method is to gather the water, add water purification pills and wait for the pills to work and the sediment to settle, and then run the chemically-treated, settled water thru the filter. Supposedly that is likely to kill off about everything, make it less likely to clog the filter, and the filter will in some cases remove from the water some of the bad taste from the purification pills.

[Guest Baron]

I went back Friday and the price dropped to $9! I just saw these at a Sportsman's Warehouse for $38!

I bought six. Three for the house and 3 for the cabin.

For $9, they are a very affordable option and options are always nice to have (especially when it comes to water). I think I may test one of them after the holidays are over.

For mass water filtration, I already have 4 Berkey filter cartridges. They are the same type of ceramic filter used in the "backpack" filers, just much larger. You don't have to have an actual Berkey filter (WAY overpriced) as a 5 gallon bucket with a hole drilled through it works just as well. The filter cartridges are reasonable priced, include all the plumbing you need and each one will filter over 1200 gallons of water.

Edited November 21, 2011 by Baron

[Shorty]

I'd like to know how well they work. I've thought about getting a couple but didn't want to waste the money if they weren't any good.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

For mass water filtration, I already have 4 Berkey filter cartridges. They are the same type of ceramic filter used in the "backpack" filers, just much larger. You don't have to have an actual Berkey filter (WAY overpriced) as a 5 gallon bucket with a hole drilled through it works just as well. The filter cartridges are reasonable priced, include all the plumbing you need and each one will filter over 1200 gallons of water.

Thanks, that's good to know.

Do you mount the filter cartridge facing up in the feed bucket, or facing down into the destination bucket?

[Guest Baron]

Thanks, that's good to know.

Do you mount the filter cartridge facing up in the feed bucket, or facing down into the destination bucket?

It will face up in the bottom of the feed bucket.

How well does each system work?

Neither one is a complete solution. Most water filtration\purification systems use a combination of resin, carbon and RO filters as well as ionizers and UV sterilizers.

The RO method that the LifePack uses is considered the best because it filters out more impurities than any of the other methods (if you were to pick one and not use a combination). However, RO is slow and the LifePack takes 6-12 hours just to filter one liter.

The Berkey filters are actually a combination of micro-filtration media and activated carbon. The 2 together makes it almost as good as a RO filter, but will produce a lot more water and produce it faster. It will fail to filter out some nasties like fluoride, but you probably ingest that daily anyway.

Neither will give you drinking water from seawater or antifreeze and I wouldn't want to try my luck with anything straight out of a sewage line. However, I would be secure in using Mississippi River water (about as gross as I would get) or water from my pond.