I noticed the archived discussion on this matter and was just wondering if anyone had come up with anything else recently? My main concern about Condoms is they can be a bugger to fill and I've heard that some purification tablets can cause the rubber to disolve. Anyone found any alternative easily compactible storage device that can hold about a liter of water?

Did you see Doug's review of breast milk bags? They hold about a half liter, but you can play catch with a full one. Quart freezer ziplocks work well too.

Platypus water container are, in my opinion, the best option. Lightweight, compact, easily filled and cleaned. Platypus here

Carrot:

I use plastic bags designed to transport fish from the pet store. They'll give you a few for free if you ask nice. They fold up small and are tough, but have no closure -- zip lock etc. (That's one reason why they fold up so small.)

I went one step further and ordered a case of 1,000 from a manufacturer. I'll send you a dozen or so if you send me a self-addressed, stamped envelope. E-mail me or PM me for the mailing address.

Bear

I have used the Platypus and its very durable but you'll NEVER get it in an altoid tin <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />. I have used the gerber bags and they are the best seal I have seen. I just wish they made a one liter bag. I have also used condoms and qt sized Ziplocks. Ziplocks are nice cause theyre almost exactly a liter. I suppose my ideal bag over all would be a 1 liter gerber bag.

For something that would fit in an altoid tin or simmilar, what about gloves? Poly or latex gloves would work, and have other uses, too. You can even get them rolled down to really small sizes. Easy to find, easy to fill, easy to pull over your head and blow up like a baloon...

Rena

for me when it comes to Altoids tins and other kits that size, the Gerber bags or the condoms win. Anything smaller than an Altoids tin is condoms all the way. Nothing packs down anywhere close to a condom removed from its wrapper and nothing anywhere close to its packed size hold nearly the same amount of water. There really is no comparison to the condom. I suggest getting over the social stigmata if you really want the most water storage in the smallest packed space.

I forgot Reynolds Oven Bags ... I have had great success with them in Altoid-sized kits. They hold 2-3 liters of water and pack down REAL small! Still nothing beats a condom removed form the factory package for a micro kit. That what is in the handle of my CRK shadow (which is micro kits size for sure) and also im my other (standalone) micro kit which I have just finished.

Oh, I don't know... I can think of three options that come pretty close in size.

Probably the best is the fish transport bags that David Chinell (dchinell) mentioned in his recent post. I still have several, and they are very flat and thin indeed.

Reynolds used to make their "oven bags" in medium and large as well as the big turkey bags that they sell now. I have a couple of boxes of the old medium size, and I've carried one in my wallet for a long time now. Don't even know it's there. As I recall, it was about a quart and a half.

I can tell you from my personal testing that both are amazingly tough in use. None of them will withstand sharp objects, but the bags withstood dropping, full, onto a flat surface much better than the condoms. Of course, in the forest, there will always be a twig...

You can always use a latex balloon, of course... they're compact and cheap, and thicker than a condom, but in the wild, it's much, much harder to fill than a condom or either of the bags. The condum will expand from just the weight of the water that's filling it much easier than a balloon will.

The argument is sometimes made that the bags can't easily be tied shut, and need a twist-tie or something, whereas you can tie the balloon or condom. This seems valid until you try to untie them to drink...

It's worth noting that exposure to heat will deteriorate latex condoms, the more heat the faster. When that happens, they just split as soon as you try to use them- not good. Those who store them in wallets and glove compartments often find this out at awkward times.

I hate to sound like a dissenting voice here, but as universal as bottled water has become, why not just add a liter bottle to your EDC, that way, you've already got water on stand-by, and a lot more durable, sealable, carryable, fillable container when you need it. There shouldn't be a problem with anybody looking at you strangely for carrying one, eccept for the occasionable person who snickers quietly about your paying so much for bottled water. This brings to mind a story about how bottled water got started... a bunch of French businessmen were sitting around the board room one day, and suddenly one of them said "You want to know just how gullible I think the American public really is..."
After that... just something to think about, spell Evian backwards.

Troy

P.S. No offence meant to our French friends, sometimes it's good to poke a little fun at yourself, and somebody had to be the villain.