One note. The micro-filter in this bottle is 0.3 micron.

Andrea: Timothy answered your question correctly, but let me add some points on activated charcoal inside Katadyn filters.

Activated charcoal improves water taste, removes organic chemicals (which can be downstream from agriculture or industry), and will remove chlorine as well.

However, once you start using a filter with activated charcoal: the charcoal is only active for about 6 months. No problem with it being unsafe when it used up-----it just is not improving taste and removing organic chemicals.

All the small Katadyn filters, except the Mini & Pocket have activated charcoal inside them. The MSR Mini-works also has activated charcoal.

Jeff (as always) is correct, but let me add more. Inside the filter is activated charcoal. It is very stable until you first run water through it. It is then "used up" in about 6 months.

No problem when the charcoal is "used up", except the charcoal improves the taste of water and removes organic chemicals. If you are filtering downstream from agriculture or industry: the charcoal removes herbicides, pesticides, and other stuff that is not good for you in the long run.

So----if you are worried about taste or chemicals, buy a new filter. Otherwise, be like my fishing buddy: who has used the same filter-cartridge for the last 12 years.

One note: remove the clip that holds the pump in and lube the black O-ring on the pump every year or so with the supplied silicon lube. A dry O-ring can make you think the filter is clogged.

Jeff is mostly right about the sponge. If you clog the outer fabric piece (Filter Protector) that covers the inner pleated glass-fiber filter: the sponge is for cleaning it.

Remove the lattice plastic piece by sliding it off, then unwrap the filter protector and clean it both inside and outside with the sponge. Rinse it off (clean or dirty water) and reassemble.

Vince: China origin is an error on Backcountry.com's web site. if you open the outer package, the foil that covers that tablets is marked "made in USA."
That is not on the outer package though. Only the Sodium Chlorite in the tablets-6.4% ------is from outside USA-----it is from Spain.

Also shelf life is 5 years and expiration date is on bottom of package.

1. Is the 4' hose fully extended and the Base Camp bag raised well (best is 4') above the recepticle container?

2. There is a plastic clamp on the hose. Make sure this is in the relaxed position.

3. Just finished dinner and wine and I'm out of ideas. I have never heard of one of these that did not work----but "excrement occurs!"

4. Contact Backcountry.com

I may be a little late on this answer---but: Micropur tablets used as recommended: produce Chlorine Dioxide at a concentration of 4 PPM (parts per million). The Environmental Protective Agency currently recommends Chlorine Dioxide as part of the water treatment process for U.S. cities, with allowance of a higher concentration than Micropur gives.

However, the other part of the city treatment process is microfiltration to remove organic matter from water.

If your water is not clean to start with, you can get a by-product,chlorite, which is not good for small children ----or you, with long-term consumption.

Bottom Line: Use Micropur where the water is pretty clean, if you are going to be drinking a lot of it.

Other Chemicals: Main drawback for iodine is that it does not kill Cryptosporidium protozoa. Main drawback for chlorine liquid is: when you use it in water that contains organic material, you get carcinogenic by products.

For a long solo trip in Nevada: I recommend the Katadyn Hiker Pro microfilter. I use Micropur tablets as a backup, or in Asia and South America with microfilters to kill viruses that filters don't remove.

Hopefully this answers a question that I don't quite understand?
The replacement cartridge has the spout.

The part that screws on it has always been the same size and thread ----so yes the replacement cartridge will fit on old Pockets.

Just one replacement filter-The Hiker Pro replacement cartridge. It will handle dirty water, but the removable filter protector needs to be cleaned with the provided sponge when it gets hard to pump.

The Hiker Pro is an all-conditions filter----it will handle dirty water, as well as clean water.

With any filter system, it is always best to filter the cleanest available water: thus helping filter longevity, and cuting down on cleaning.

No Katadyn microfilter will remove all viruses. There are no vaccines for Hepatitis E, Rotavirus, or Norovirus(Norwalk virus: which can occur in S. America, Africa, & Asia. Waterborne transmission can occur below fecal contamination from infected humans.
My recommend for travel where viruses might be in the water is to first microfilter, then add chemicals to the water. Microfiltering removes protozoan cysts, which the best chemicals (Katadyn Micropur) can still take up to four hours to kill. Microfiltering also removes bacteria, along with turbidity, and organic materials: which can interfere with chemical processes.
Per University of Arizona Dept of Microbiology testing Micropur will kill all viruses, even in dirty 38 degree F. water, within 15 minutes. Although you might notice a faint chlorine odor, there is no chlorine taste with Micropur tablet. Although Chlorine bleach or Iodine tablets will also kill viruses, there is both unpleasant taste and odor

Hiker Pro information in Jeff's answer is all correct-----except Katadyn Hiker Pro is still in their lineup.
The Hiker Pro sells to the more techy user and the Hiker to those that like the simplest, most idiot-proof: fast, lightweight, durable filter.

BainUT did very well in his answer ------until he said that activated charcoal does not remove trihalomethanes. A very simple Goggle search shows all sorts of articles that assert that activated charcoal does remove most organic chemicals uncluding trihalomethanes, and also chlorine.

The key here is to replace the activated charcoal when it is used up. With chlorinated water: that means when you taste chlorine. With the Vario, you can remove the red cap on the filter and replace the charcoal with Katadyn's Vario carbon replacement 2-pack. With other filters, you might have to replace the whole filter after about 6 months of use.

Please note that not all microfilters have Activated charcoal.

Yes! Katadyn bought the Outdoor division of PUR. Same filter.

No. Getting the salt out of water is a much more complicated process, to the point that I don't believe you can get a handheld filter that'll do it. There are reasonably small stills available, but this won't do it. You'll end up with very clean salt water.Yeah, to filter out salt you have to boil the water and collect the steam, and let the condensation drip down to a container. Which is a lot of words to say, "you have to distill it".from riverridgeray: Katadyn does make hand-held desalinators. The U.S. Navy has one in every lifeboat. However, they are very expensive, heavy, require clean offshore salt water, and are really intended for emergency survival rather than regular use. They do make bigger (and still more expensive) battery-powered ones for regular use.

I'm not sure if any pump will be right for you, with that much water everyday. Will the water be cloudy, silty, stagnate, or have a lot of algea? This will force you to operate on regular flow, vs. high flow. Your core will eventually clog up so you would have to bring some replacements. I would recommend using a UV sterilizer for water that doesn't need to be filtered from dirt, etc. Along with their micropure tablets. If you bring a filter, I would only use it on the water that you don't have the "stomach" to drink. If you want a great reference with detailed info, check out the Backpackers field guide by Rick Curtis.From riverridgeray. I have a Vario that in "Faster Flow" mode will filter 5 gallons of water in about 7 minutes. However---if you are going to be doing that every day, the water had best be clear or you will eventually clog filters. After 50 gallons or so, you will need to lube o-rings on the valves. Plan on some regular maintenance along the way. If you are not in a hurry, and your water is clear, I would tend to recommend one of the Katadyn drip filters. I trekked in Nepal for 16 days last fall with a small trekking company and 12 friends. We got all our water through 2 Katadyn Base Camp drip filters. The Katadyn ceramic drip filters are slower, heavier, more expensive and tend to last much longer--none are really designed to work with dirty water.Final thought! In Central America, if your water is possibly contaminated by human feces: you are at risk of various viruses, including hepititis A & E. Microfilters do not remove all virus. In Nepal, we microfiltered to remove the more common protozoa and bacteria, then added Micropur Chlorine Dioxide tablets for virus. The combination of microfiltration and chemicals gave us clean, safe water (with no chemical taster) in 15 minutes.Since the UV systems sold here are designed to do 1 liter or less per treatment: multiplying their treatment process to reach 5 gallons per day seems like a stretch of their capacities.

This stove has more output and can burn more fuels (the whisper lite international cannot burn jet fuel). This stove also has a better pot support system. The trade off would be gaining 4 oz in weight.The Whisperlite has much better simmer control. They both produce 10,000 BTU's.From Ray: I really don't want to argue with Jeff----but I have to. The Whisperlite has a lot of great qualities, but MSR went to the trouble of inventing the Dragonfly to have a stove with better simmer control and more stability. Please refer to my above question answers on the Nova +, then look at Backcountry.com's Nova reviews. The Nova + simmers Great!Ray

Liquid fuel stoves have gotten better @ simmering through the years but they still have a way to go. Lower flame control is still erratic & can burn food if you're not careful. The Nova is a plate burner which is not as simmer friendly as a ported burner e.g., MSR Whisperlite. If simmering is your main priority, consider a canister stove which will also boil water faster. From Ray: As I noted in above question: the Nova, like all Optimus Multi-fuel stoves controls the flow of fuel with a needle valve right under the burner: where fuel changes from liquid to gas. I have not used the Nova or Nova Plus in real cold conditions, but the old 111B, which had very similar fuel control would simmer at any temperature. I could keep the flame at a candle flame, then instantly turn it to blowtorch. This feature makes it very fuel efficient. Ray

Go for the MSR reactor stove.To answer the question: Multifuel Stoves like the Nova Plus work better in below-freezing conditions. Cannister fuel stoves are not as efficient in very cold conditions and as the more volatile contents are used up, they can become very close to worthless. However when you go higher in elevation: due to reduced atmospheric pressure, cannister gas stoves can work surprisingly well at low temps. I'm talking about noted improvement from 15,000 ft. up.The Nova series stoves are very fuel efficient because the flow of fuel is controled with a needle-like valve right where the fuel changes from liquid to gas under the burner. This also allows a range of flame control not seen in stoves that control the flame where the fuel leaves the bottle. Ray

The 2 items are identical: except the Gravidyn ceramic filter elements, per above description, have carbon (activated charcoal) inside them and the Ceradyn elements do not. As noted: the carbon improves the taste of water and removes organic chemicals such as herbicides and pesticides. The carbon is very stable when stored, but in use will only last 6 months or so.

Your concerns are justified but the main compartment is designed to contain suspect water. If you're still concerned, run a 32 to 1, water to bleach solution through it followed by a liter or two of clean water. From Ray. I just returned from doing a 16 day trek in Nepal. Our outfitter used 2 Base Camps. They love them, but also supplement them with Katadyn Micropur tablets if they suspect their water is below human feces and thus possibly contaminated with dangerous viruses. First they filter,then add one Micropur tablet per liter of water. Since the filter has taken out hard to kill protozoa (plus all bacteria), the remaining viruses are killed in 15 minutes. No chlorine or iodine taste either. I'll admit that chlorine bleach would also work, but I don't like carrying bleach, measuring bleach, pouring bleach, or tasting bleach. thanks, Ray

Well if it's outside in sub-freezing conditions, the water will obviously freeze. This isn't pressurized or forced at all, so it probably won't keep it from freezing. That said, it won't suffer any damage from freezing, it just won't run, so if it's out overnight and happens to freeze and thaw in the morning, you're fine.

Just one replacement filter---the Hiker Pro cartridge works for Katadyn Hiker & Hiker Pro and older PUR Hiker & Voyageur.

The filter works until it doesn't pump with easy effort: 1 Liter of water or when newer, 1 & 1/2 liter per minute.If it gets hard to pump and output slows down. 1. check the pre-filter to make sure it is not clogged with small debris (best clean is with a toothbrush). 2. Pull off the small clip that keeps the pump handle in place and see if the rubber O-ring still looks greasy. If it looks dry: grease it with the small container of silicon lube provided: that should improve performance. 3. Unscrew the filter cartridge and see if the pleated glass-fiber filter looks clogged with dirt. If it does: clean it by shaking it around in water or under a faucet.If the Hiker pumps easy and quick: the only other problem is the activated charcoal inside the filter. It is very stable (inert) until you pump water through the filter------and then it lasts about 6 months in use. When it is gone: water won't taste as fresh, since the charcoal takes out impurities and organic chemicals. The major reason for the charcoal is: it also removes herbicides and pesticides from water (which may cause cancer). When the charcoal is used up, if you don't mind the different taste or don't pump water below agriculture or industry----no problem. I've got a fishing buddy in central Idaho who has had the same Hiker and Hiker filter since 1996. I told him all this a few years back and he said "I only filter water above the farmers and it tastes fine to me!" If you agree----keep using your 5 year old filter cartridge. If not: buy a new one!

Yes, but it ain't easy. Katadyn does not price or sell small accessories like that. They are stocked at Katadyn North-America in MN, MN. Some dealers have some spares around. Call 1-800-755-6701 and be patient--they are a small company and have two customer service people or e-mail http://www.katadyn.us/service/customer-service.htmlPlease be patient, they are good MN people, but have a lot to do.

OK! Any good microfilter becomes a purifier if you add Katadyn Micropur tables after pumping water through the microfilter. Please bear in mind that Protozoa cysts (eggs) take up to 4 hrs. to kill with the best chemical treatment and Micropur has that disclaimer on their package. However filter out the Protozoa as any Katadyn or MSR filter will do (along with bacteria) and then add one Micropur tablet per Liter of water. If virus are present--in Africa, Asia, and S. America---you should worry they are: the Micropur kills them in 15 minutes. No need to wait four hours, no need to have to look at all thr ugly stuff floating in your water. I have pumped water out of hotel sinks in both Nepal and S. America. Don't waste money on bottled water and contribute more plastic waste to 3rd world landfills. For one person I'd get the Katadyn Hiker or Hiker Pro for your trip, for a group the Vario is great---if you will read the instructions and maintain the filter.