mountain high west Portable Water Filtration System (URL This Page: http://www.trailprojects.com/dif_log070805.html) The Water Filtration System Mark 1 Mod 2 is a manually operated water filter and pump with a 20 gallons per hour output of filtered drinking water. The system is housed within a rugged, 1.5 cu-ft field transportable container and weighs 16 lb. It can be stored indefinitely, then placed into immediate use at a field location having unsafe water, or as a backup filter for a small fixed site filtration unit which is disabled. The system was developed primarily to remove Giardia lamblia and Cryptosporidium cysts and other pathogenic organisms from wilderness water, and supply ample drinking water for trail project workers and other work crews. Its self-contained horizontal lever, manual diaphragm pump eliminates the need for electrical power or water pressure to operate the unit. When used as a backup filter, it utilizes similar filter elements and can remove the same contaminants as are normally handled by a household water filtration system. It is not recommended for treating contaminated water found in a flood zone, since the toxins present are unknown and probably would not be eliminated by simple filtering. This kind of filter is ineffective against virus organisms because of their much smaller size. The high functionality of the Portable Water Filtration System in its primary field application is recognized by several trail maintenance organizations. Additional potential applications of this system have been proposed and it is now offered for sale to the public (see bottom of page). System Components horizontal-handle manual pump with check valve foot valve with inlet screen at the input hose two-stage filter system with 3/4" fittings and user selectable and replaceable filter elements total of 10 feet of 1" non-collapsable, FDA-compliant hose for internal connections and input and output hoses These components are mounted and protected within a rigid 18" x 14" x 10" container. When closed for transport, the system is mule packable and rattle-free in any pack orientation. Performance The powerful hand pump pressurizes the water in the filter chambers and delivers 1/3 quart per pump stroke; a 5-gallon water container is filled within a few minutes. Filtered drinking water is discharged via a short hose. No maintenance is required, other than to assure cleanliness of the unit, until the time comes for replacing the filter elements. When the unit is ready for service, the deck containing the pump is easily removed from the filter canisters nested below by disconnecting a zero-clearance coupler. Filter Elements. The filter components are commonly used by plumbers when installing whole-house filtration units. A single filter element is a round cylinder approximately 2.9" diameter by 9.8" long and is made from a variety of materials depending upon its particular use. Within each of the two filter canisters, water enters at the outside of the filter element and passes through its full length inward, and is then discharged from the element center at the canister output. A different filter element is installed within each canister: the first element is for removing sediment and silt, while the second element, called the "fine" element, removes disease-causing organisms of interest. The filter elements will last for several hundred gallons depending upon the contaminant load. They are widely available for sale by Culligan, Ace and True-Value hardware stores, Wal-Mart, Sears, and plumbing supply stores. One standard filter set is given below. Assume that a filter will have no effectiveness against any substance not listed in the following paragraph. Culligan D-250A Sediment and Drinking Water set: The D-250A filter set provides carbon-based filtration - removes contaminants from your drinking water with 0.5 micron filtation - removes MTBE - removes Lindane and Atrazine (a pesticide and herbicide), lead, mercury, asbestos, chlorine, bad taste and odor, and sediment - also removes 99.95% of disease-causing Cryptosporidium, Giardia, Entamoeba, and Toxoplasma cysts. These filter elements are manufactured by Pentair Filtration, Inc. Culligan lists the set of two elements for $39.99. Culligan D-250A Data Sheet Mountain High West has selected the equivalent Ace Hardware models 46776 10 micron element to remove silt etc. (primary filtration), followed by the 45671 1 micron or 48167 0.5 micron elements (fine filtration). Ace Hardware stores are widely located. Ace Replacement Filter Elements Additional Filter Element Discussion Because of higher back pressure, a 0.5 micron filter for removing Giardia is slower and harder to pump water through than is a 1 micron filter. When filling a five gallon container, the times can be 18 minutes vs. less than 10 minutes. Cost can also be an issue in a comparison. A 1 micron filter isn't certified for filtering out Giardia but it's often used for this within low-threat water areas since Giardia cysts are mostly larger than 6 microns. The Ace Model 45671 is a 1 micron element which costs $5.25, compared with $32.99 for the carbon based 0.5 micron element. Thus, the mechanical removal of very fine silt and, apparently, most Giardia cysts is available at minimal cost with the 10 micron and the 1 micron elements Mountain High West pre-installs at the time of sale. A 0.5 micron element is also included. The Screwdriver is For, What? The system employs six stainless steel hose clamps. If a clamp on the pressure line begins to leak (it hasn't happened yet) a screwdriver would be a convenient tool. This is why one is mounted on the unit's deck. Refer to Operation and Maintenance sheet. Did you Know that the chances of getting intestinal infection in the field can be drastically reduced simply by people washing their hands? Not Expensive if it Really Grows Hair. Price for the Portable Water Filtration System, Mk. 1 Mod 2, including three filter elements, is $375 plus shipping. Delivery: 30 days ARO from Bishop, CA. U.S. orders only. We and the Pacific Crest Trail Association are our own primary customers here in the High Sierra, and we're a cottage industry. Information/purchase: campy@mtnhighwest.com ©Mountain High West 2001 - 2009