Hello again forumers (and any chemists),

The latest tablets in U.S. seem to be the MP1's which sell at ~ $14 on most sites, but the P+P is terrifying. However, at Decathlon in stockport there are MT1's at £10. These are chlorine & silver based and I was wondering if
a) anyone has tested both
b) what's the difference in performance, effectiveness, time needed to clean the water
c) any way of finding out which one is better, healthwise, as that kind of info isnt easily found.

Many thanks to all that can help with this one. And to everyone that posts, thanks for the info and insights.

Im confused about what exactly concerns you about the MP-1 tabs?

Absolutely nothing. The MP-1's, according to you guys, seem to be the dogs........, but when I tried to order 2 packs at $13 dollars a pack, the postage was almost the same price. I want some of the MP-1's but that works out as £13 notes each. BUT I noticed some MT-1's in local decathalon at £10 a pack and what I want to know is Do the MT-1's perform as well as the MP-1's. If they do, then they will do for my BOB but if they ain't as good then I will have to trawl the net til I find someone that delivers cheaper. If you, or any one else, knows someone that does, would you drop me a line...PLEASE

I've never heard of MT-1's <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

I guess I would focus more on what product you're going to be confident trusting your life to in a survival situation.

A bunch of us have used the MP1 tab's from Katadyn. They seem like they are well respected by people with a lot more knowledge than I have. I didn't even know about them until I read about them on this site, which is weird, because I've been carrying a Katadyn Guide water filter for a long time in my pack.

That's one of the great values in coming here, to this forum, and having the ability to find out what "really works" rather than just getting marketing hype. With some things, I worry about cost. With water being one of the most basic essentials I need to survive, I worry more about getting the best purification tablets, rather than the ones with lower shipping cost. I can find much cheaper water purification tab's at the local Army/Navy store, but, I carry the Katadyn ones. Ok, off my soapbox.

I must have misundertsood. Thanks for clearing that up for me. Sorry they can't be found over there. They cost me about $15 also but I just pick them up at my local sporting goods/outdoors shop so no shipping charges. I've never heard of MT-1s either. They don't appear to be a Katadyn product unless I overlooked them on their website.

I thought Puritabs had a good reputation in Europe... is that not true?

Katadyn MP1 is based on chlorine dioxide and is not available in Europe. Katadyn MT1 are Micropur Forte [PDF] tablets with silver ion and chlorine as the active ingredients. Their shelf life is slightly higher (5 vs. 3 years), but they are not effective against Cryptosporidium AFAIK.

03lab..... GENIUS!!! . That's what I was looking for (although I didn't know it at the time). I will be leaving the tranquility of the UK in the not too distant future ( along with its relatively clean water supply) for a while and wanted to find out if MT-1 could kill all the heeby-jeebies in foreign water. It obviously doesn't. SO, if anyone knows of a supplier that charges less for postage from USA to UK, then let me know. ( God knows, there's loads of people on ebay can get a heavy knife to me for less P+P than the price of 60 tablets would be)
Once again '03lab' , many thanks. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
Thanks to you all for the invaluable information that you post.
Now, where can I get that sail repair tape from???

Hey Reddave if you knew someone here in the States couldn't they just mail them to you? Don't think postage would be $13. Wonder if the tablets would fall under some USPS chemical restrictions though?