I recieved this water bottle/filter as a gift, and am unsure of the quality. The brand name is stansport, and is labelled as made in the USA. It claims 2 micron filtration, and says it was tested by "state & epa reg. laboratories to EPA, ANSIINSF (Std 53) Protocol. It claims 99% reduction in Crypto, Giardia, lead, chlorine "and more". Would this be a good choice to take to mexico? Would it protect against viruses? Thanks in advance for the help. --Ian

Generally speaking, water bottle/filter combinations are not considered "high end" filtration units. For sure, because it's a filter, and not a purifier, it won't eliminate viruses. Need a purfier and/or chemical treatment to get viruses.

Which method you use depends in part on where and under what conditions in Mexico you'll be sourcing water, and how sure you want to be of using trouble-free water.

For what it's worth, I've been going to Mexico (Manzanillo, Colima) almost annually for over 20 years, two to six weeks at a time. Drink, and brush teeth with, bottled water only, but have washed dishes with tap water. And we eat with abandon in restaurants in some pretty out-of-the-way places. Neither me nor my wife have ever gotten Montezuma's Revenge (YMMV). For the record, neither of us has a drop of Hispanic blood, so if there's such a thing as genetic immunity, we don't have any.

Having said that, I'm not convinced that bottled water is necessarily better, at least here in the U.S. The Natural Resources Defense Council did a 4-year review/test. Conclusion: just because it's bottled is not an assurance it's any cleaner/safer than tap water.

Tequila and Sol beer have been problem-free too. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

2 micron is pretty large, might work okay for mountain streams for Giardia,
but wouldn't catch smaller stuff, certainly not viruses. I only know of one water
bottle type that both filters and uses iodine and charcoal that will get both
viruses and bacteria as well as some heavy metals etc. they are from (sp)
Katadin and run around $40. They are handy if you aren't able to get bottled
water, but are a bit heavy and can get you questioned at takeoff because the
tsa folks aren't familar with them. Good to take the documentation if you fly.

This usually means it's a carbon 2 micron filter. It will not remove or kill batteria or virusses unless it has a iodine resin stage build in. But because bacteria and virusses are not named on the line, i doubt it has. But i'm not formiliar with this brand so my observation may not be accurate.

Thanks for the information, guys. Most helpful. I'll do some more research into what would be a better bottle. Perhaps the katydin. Thanks again! -- Ian