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SteriPEN Safe Water Purifier System

$79.95

(10)

Item # 784449

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The SteriPEN Safe Water purifier system is an all-in-one purifier kit for making great-tasting potable water while hiking the trail or traveling the world.

Safe Water system includes the SteriPEN Classic purifier, water bottle prefilter, 1-liter BPA-free wide-mouth water bottle, SteriPEN carrying case and instruction manuals
Ultraviolet (UV-C) light rays safely sterilize clear water by destroying 99.99% of viruses, bacteria and protozoa, including Giardia and Cryptosporidium
SteriPEN protects you from risks that cause botulism, cholera, dysentery and typhoid, just to name a few
But if clear water is not available, no worries—the SteriPEN 4-micron prefilter clears particulates and debris from water
Prefilter fits the included Nalgene BPA-free water bottle and other bottles with 63mm wide-mouth openings; pour source water through filter, and clean water enters bottle
Then use the SteriPEN purifier to treat the water; just press a button and gently agitate the water with a quick stir
SteriPEN purifies 16 fl. oz. of water (cold or warm) in less than a minute or 32 fl. oz. in a minute and a half
Small size fits most containers—use it in cups, mugs, water bottles and canteens
SteriPEN turns itself off once ultraviolet treatment is complete; can be used up to 8,000 times!
Watertight seals keep water away from the electronics; rubberized inset grips for secure handling in wet conditions
Low-power indicator tells you when batteries need replacing; twist-off cap for easy battery access
Long used by municipal water districts and bottling companies, low-level UV-C light treats water safely, and unit's light will not damage eyes or skin
Purify 200 glasses with 4 lithium AA batteries (batteries sold separately); SteriPEN does not recommend the use of alkaline batteries, as they provide very few treatments
SteriPEN recommends the use of name-brand lithium or nickel-metal hydride rechargeable batteries
Average weight of purifier is 6.4 oz. with lithium batteries; weight empty is 3.7 oz.
Only use SteriPEN independent of prefilter when clear water is available, as cloudy, sediment-laden water hinders effectiveness

Since late 2008, all SteriPEN water sensors feature twice the electrode voltage of older models. The increased electrical current flow allows proper function in water with low conductivity such as snowmelt and even mineral-free distilled water.

Please note: SteriPEN products can only be shipped to U.S. and Canada.

Imported.

Item 784449

View all SteriPEN products

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SteriPEN Safe Water Purifier System Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

SteriPEN Safe Water System

3.3

(based on 10 reviews)

60%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend.

Pros

Lightweight (6)
Easy to clean (4)
Maintenance (4)

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking (8)
Hiking (7)
Day trip (4)

- Reviewer Profile:
- Casual/ recreational (5), Avid adventurer (4)
- Was this a gift?:
- No (6)

REVIEWS

Reviewed by 10 customers

Sort by

Displaying reviews 1-10

Mar

2010

(6 of 6 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

Good, but not for all situations

By skuyler

from wildomar, ca

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Idiotproof
Lightweight
Low maintenance

Cons

Unreliable

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking
Travel

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

This isn't a perfect water purification system, but how/when it works, it is fantastic.

Con: For the most part I use a 2 liter bladder to carry my water. This only filters 1/2 or 1 liter at a time, meaning I have to carry a bottle just to pour into my bladder or only use bottles.

Con: It runs on 4 AA batteries which are marginally heavy and bringing a backup set is highly recommended. The problem is that on cold days/nights, the batteries lose effectiveness, and the blinking light will indicate that the process can't be completed. You have to make sure the batteries are warm before using this, otherwise you'll have a panicked, cold-handed morning.

Also, I haven't used the pre-filter on the bottle with actual dirty water yet, but I imagine if you're really in a bind and have to use stagnant water (I've been there, but with a proper filter), you'll feel uncomfortable about using this and the water won't taste very good. That is why I hesitate taking this on some hikes and opt for my pump-filter instead.

Pro: When you filter a liter of water in a few seconds without any tiresome pumping, aggravating cleaning, frozen hands, or malfunctioning filter, you really appreciate what the SteriPen has to offer. And if you're traveling in developing countries, this certainly comes in handy.

Apr

2010

(4 of 6 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Works as advertised

By cwallen19803

from Wilmington, DE

About Me Casual/ Recreational

Pros

Easy to Use

Cons

Must follow instructions

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

I haven't used this in the field, but I've used it a couple of dozen times in my kitchen.

The area between the two metal probes must be dry before you press the on button. After each use, you must wipe the probes dry. I use my thumb or tee-shirt. If the probes are wet the unit won't work.

Otherwise, the unit is easy to use and works every time. 4 AA batteries are a plus for me, I can buy them anywhere and use rechargeable NiMH. The classic is not the smallest available, but is the only one that uses common AA batteries.

Nov

2009

(4 of 4 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Easy

By Hummm

from chicago

About Me Casual Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Easy to Use
Lightweight

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Day trip
Hiking

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

I have used pumps and pills in the past. I found the UV pen easy to use and very quick. I can't see hiking without it.

Mar

2011

(2 of 2 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Tasty clean water

By Live2Travel

from Chicago, IL

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Easy to clean
Lightweight
Low maintenance

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

I got the steripen because I was traveling in developing countries for 3 months and I just wasn't prepared to pack that much iodine. I loaded it with 4 lithium batteries, and though it says you should be prepared with backups, I only had to change mine once. GO LITHIUM!! And yes, you can buy bottled water in many of these countries, but the empty bottles just end up in landfills (i.e. the river) and if you can purify your own water, so much the better. The filter on this is bogus though, even a handkerchief works better. I will say it was great to taste the water in the himalaya & you'll miss that with chlorine/iodine. Also, if your water is too clean, just put a little something in it and it works fine. This was so convenient & so reliable, I'll never travel without it.

Sep

2010

(2 of 2 customers found this review helpful)

1.0

Does not work well in cold/clean water

By Schwerkraft

from Seattle, WA

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Easy to clean

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
Day trip
Hiking

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

This Steripen does not work well in cold and/or very clean water. Typically what will happen is that it turns off the UV light before the 90seconds for 1 liter are complete. Both a friend and I had the same model with the elctrodes, and both of our units were having the same problem. Our theory is that the electrodes used to detect if the Steripen is in the water do not work well in cold and very clean water as you encounter on higher elevation hiking/climbing trips. Both of us exchanged it against the Steripen Opti and have had no problems since.

Sep

2010

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

1.0

One big problem

By JB from MT

from Washington, DC

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Fast
Lightweight

Cons

Fails
Hard to Clean

Best Uses

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

I have tried this product twice and had the same problem both times -- after about 2 days of using it, it starts turning itself off after just a few seconds in the water, and then signaling that it didn't run long enough to adequately treat the water. Kind of a problem for this to happen in the backcountry.

At first, I thought it was a short, so I exchanged it, and someone else told me that this happens if you don't dry the device between uses -- particularly the two metal prongs that detect when it's in water. I tried that when the second one had the same problem, but wiping it with a t-shirt or towel wasn't good enough. It only started working again if I let it sit in the sun for 30 minutes, which doesn't really work if you're not planning a 30-minute trail break and doesn't work in any case if you're trying to fill multiple bottles.

I returned it for a nice small simple pump and I'll stick with that until this technology evolves to the next level where basic problems like this are fixed.

Apr

2010

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

What a deal

By cupfan

from Las Vegas,NV

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Easy to clean
Good filtration
Lightweight
Low maintenance

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Day trip
Hiking

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

I used the Steripen on a 6 day 5 night hike thru the Grand Canyon. I had treated water on several days but had to use the Steripen on several occasions and had no problems what so ever. Just make sure you follow all the directions on cleaning the outside of the bottle after treating to avoid contact with the untreated droplets on the rim. I also treated some water for others on the trail when they ran out and you should have seen their amazement of the speed and quality of the Steripen :-)

May

2011

1.0

Be Aware

By OldFart

from SLC, Utah

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

I own one older black and yellow steripen and it works fine. I bought one of the classics for my wife with the prefilter. The Prefilter is designed to contact the flange on the included bottle, or any nalgene bottle. That is so if you submerge the bottle in a source, it will keep dirty water from contaminating the threads of the bottle. The Pre-Filter did not touch the flange, and would have contaminated the threads, so, I did my 1st exchange. On the second one the filter did not touch the flange either, and the lid of the steripen was missing the contacts for the battery, so I exchanged it again. This time, when I opened the package, I found it had already been opened, and the english strip of instructions was cut off and missing, and the lamp only lit in half of the tube. And, the prefilter still did not touch the flange. I guess I will return this and get a pump for my wife. That and some pills will at least give safe water. Recap, 2 of 3 would not light fully, and 3 of 3 would have contaminated the threads if used as per the instructions. (I used fresh lithium batteries)

Feb

2011

2.0

Work well , for a while

By danken

from Bellingham Wa

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Fast

Cons

Not durable

Best Uses

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

Worked well until it didn't. Failed while on a 14 day trip into the North Cascade Nat. Park. Started getting red flashing LED error messages. No go after that. Put in fresh batt.'s and cleaned... Nothing. Took back to REI got $ back.
Don't use as only way to filter / decontam. water on a trip.

Feb

2011

4.0

Reassuring but tricky at times

By TriRunner

from Philadelphia, PA

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Easy to clean
Lightweight
Low maintenance

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
Day trip
Hiking

Comments about SteriPEN Safe Water System:

Doesn't filter out particulates but irradiates the water to kill any bacteria that may be present. It is a nice reassuring device when your not sure of the water quality. It can be a little fickle at times with its readings and all but it is fast and works well. Combine this with a filter and your set anywhere.