How do you filter river water to make it drinkable?

You need to to filter river water ? Don't know how to filter river water effectively?

The answers are in this article!

There's no shortage of ideas for effectively purifying river water, and as you'll see, none of them are really difficult to implement. Each solution has its own advantages and disadvantages, which you'll have to come to terms with.

The key is to know what kind of solution you're prepared to keep with you at all times to be able to make river water drinkable.

The best ways to filter river water are :

1. Purify water by boiling in a container
2. Drink water directly through a filter straw
3. Pump water through a filter
4. Purify water with a UV sterilizer
5. Disinfect water with effervescent tablets
6. Filtering water with a filter gourd

Without further ado, let's take a look at each of our solutions for drinking water, one by one.

1. Boil water to purify it

Boiling water is the most effective method for killing all bacteria. Provided the water is clear (filter it with a clean cloth if it's cloudy), all you have to do is keep it at boiling for a few minutes (depending on altitude), let it cool and you're done.

• Below 2000 metres altitude: 1 minute boiling time is sufficient
• Above 2000 metres altitude: boil for at least 3 minutes.

Advantages: No special equipment required. All you need is a campfire or a gas stove and a fireproof container for boiling water.

Disadvantages: You need something to heat (stove, fire) and a container. It also takes time to build a fire and bring the water to the boil. altitude. Then the water has to cool down, which also takes time. Unless you want to make yourself a cup of coffee.

2. Use a survival straw

These filtration tools weigh only about 50 grams, measure between 15 and 20 cm and can be used anywhere. They are best used with a charcoal filter to improve taste.

Advantages: The straws are lightweight, strong, offer a good flow rate (around 1.5 liters/minute) and can filter up to 1000 liters, depending on the model. What's more, they eliminate up to 99.9999% of bacteria and 99.9% ofwaterborne protozoan parasites. A reliable and affordable tool (under €40).

Disadvantages: Impossible to filter bulk water for cooking with a straw. Water is filtered only when you suck it up with your mouth. What's more, it doesn't filter chemicals or toxins.

3. Filtering water with a pump

Visit hiking filtration systems operate with a hand pump or gravity. They are practical, for example, for extended stays or at camp. They can be used to fill bottles or water bottles with filtered water.

Advantages: Lightweight, eliminates bacteria, protozoa cystscysts algae and chemicals, while improving water taste.

Disadvantages: The most expensive solution. Depending on their filtering capacity, they can cost from €60 to several hundred euros.

4. Sterilize water with a purifier

Unlike previous solutions, these tools don't eliminate contaminants, they destroy them, hence their name: purifiers. Bacteria and other viruses are eliminated by UV light, which disrupts their DNA and renders them incapable of replicating and causing infection.

Advantages: Destroy over 99.9% of harmful micro-organisms, including giardia, bacteria, viruses and protozoa. Purification is fast, 1 to 2 minutes to treat 1 liter of water.

Disadvantages: Water purifiers are expensive. They are "electronic" objects, so they require a power supply that needs to be recharged, and they are fragile. They are not very effective with turbid water, so some river water needs to be pre-filtered before consumption.

5. Disinfect water with tablets

Disinfection tablets are effective against viruses, bacteria, giardia cyst and cryptosporidiosis. Simply dissolve them in water, mix well and leave for 30 minutes.

Advantages: Each tablet can purify up to 20 liters of water and is sold in boxes of 50 or 100 tablets for around €10 to €20. They take up no space, are easy to transport and the water can be stored for several months.

Disadvantages: Some hikers are uncomfortable with the idea ofadding chemicals (mainly effervescent chlorine, sodium and silver) to their water supply. For Grande Randonnée (GR) hikers, many prefer filtration or UV sterilization to make their water potable.

6. Drinking water everywhere and all the time with a flask

The advantages of previous solutions, without the drawbacks. A gourd with a filtration system like the Gourd ÖKO can be used simply and instantly anywhere, at home or in the great outdoors.

Advantages: Immediate availability of water: just fill and drink. Effective protection against protozoaviruses and micro-organisms. Pleasant-tasting water thanks to activated carbon. Sturdy, shock-resistant design.

Disadvantages: Because of its design, it can only filter the water contained in the bottle, unless you have another bottle to transfer the filtered water inside.

The best way to filter water is the one you have at hand

We've introduced you to various ways of to make river water drinkable. As you've seen, they all present a certain level of constraint, ranging from the need to carry specific equipment (pump, stove, saucepan, etc.), to waiting for the water to boil (and cool). Not forgetting the use of chemicals or fragile equipment, such as disinfectant tablets and UV purifiers.

That said, before thinking about making water drinkable, it's a good idea to know what's upstream from where the water is collected. Perhaps there's a factory a few kilometers down the road, or an animal carcass lying half in the water... Before the equipmentThe best filter is yourself.

Next, the best water filter is the one you can take everywhere, without any constraints or fear of damaging it, and which is self-sufficient.

The OKO water bottle filter meets all these criteria, being light, strong and practical to use every day (even at home).