No, you do it about how I do it. And if I'm some place where I can hang up my tubes and let them dry in the sun, you better believe I let the UV shine in.

YOu could always flush with potable, but it wouldn't be my first choice. I'd have to have a lot of water available to me- and I do, and I still dont' like to do it. :P

Any filter can stop working in the winter because they all have water, ceramic will break easily where the hiker model won't. It will just have to be warmed up to work again. But anything with water in it could break when you let it freeze.

If you take a ceramic (Any)filter apart (set the filter element on the counter for a few days) and let it dry, it’s OK to leave it in a BOB in the trunk of your car because it has no water in it. But once you use it again it then has water in it and you better sleep with it to keep it above freezing. Hopefully your wife won’t get jealous…


They are very good filters for the long haul as they filter a very large amount of water for the price, you just have to care for them in colder weather.

My next (or spare) filter will be ceramic because of its long filter life.

So if you're out in the boonies for a few weeks during winter, and you're using your water filter every day, how do you keep it warm enough 24/7 to prevent cracking? What's to stop it from cracking while you're in the process of pumping water?

Not to derail the discussion from the OP's question, but has anyone here used a Katadyn Vario? It has ceramic, glass fiber and charcoal elements. It seems reasonably priced compared to some of the other models under discussion.

you keep the filter warm, the same way you keep yourself warm. Just wear it under your clothing/sleeping bag at all times. No it's not comfortable having a filter close to you, if you hate it you can always boil your water. Warm water is much nicer when your freezing you butt off.

I think the main thing is (in the winter) that when you are done with getting your water is that you need to continue to pump out as much water out of the filter (keep pumping until no water comes out)as possible and try to make sure it is as dry as possible. With the combi, it's very easy to remove the filter from the unit to dry it off with a cloth if needed, the main thing is to reduce the amount for the water to freeze and expand.

Katadyn Vario is not a bad filter but the pocket and combi has a 1 micron better filtration with more gallon capacity. I just think the pocket and combi would be better for filtration and endurance than the vario. A $50 difference in price.

Smaller the number the better filtration


Katadyn Vario $89.95
1.0 micron prefilter
0.3 micron glassfiber 530 gal plus replaceable carbon granules

Katadyn Vario Replacement Cartridge $39.95 good for 530 gallons

Katadyn Pocket Microfilter = $200
.2 micron filter 13000 gallons

Katadyn Combi =$139.95
.2 micron filter 13000 gallons plus replaceable carbon granules

Another option as well if you are looking at the cheapest option would be to add a Katadyn Carbon Cartridge on to a .2 micron filter if need be, the main thing is to use a .2 micron or less filter with carbon.

http://www.rei.com/product/709006

$11.95

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I don't do much camping or hiking so my filtration/purification needs are pretty much limited to disaster preparedness/bugout situations. I currently own a SteriPEN and I plan to purchase a filter to pre-filter the water, if necessary, before using the SteriPEN. The Vario caught my attention because it appears to provide a decent volume for minimal effort.

Thanks for your input.

I just now ordered a Combi and 2 replacement carbons. Total price on amazon.com was $126.