Job Discussion Forums

[gqsmoothie]

If i buy one of those nifty portable water filters, can i use it and then drink the water in mexico?

[chula]

that kinda depends on if you bring along nifty replacement filters. it�s probably cheaper to just buy a garifon (the big water bottle, 19 liters). they cost about $2 US. besides, then you�d have more room in the suitcase to bring along food that you can�t get here!

[amelie]

I own one of those nifty filters that I use for purifying water when I am hiking in the mountains. While it is almost 99% effective in removing bacteria and protozoa, it is not able to remove viruses effectively. That means that you could still be drinking viruses such as Hep. A in your filtered water. The filter might be okay to bring for use in conjunction with chlorinated drops that will kill anything else that the filtering process missed. We're planning to bring our filter to Mexico, but only use it when we go on weekend hikes. The rest of the time it would be far more convenient to just buy the big bottles of water. I imagine replacement filters are either non-existent or extremely pricey in Mexico.

Amelie

[doreenp]

I had the same thoughts about the water filter and so i emailed Brita the manufacturers and another "health conscious" web site for their input. Brita sent a long email explaining exactly what their filter systems eliminate.

I won't bore you with all the technical scientific names and details but the bottom line is that they (the filter systems) won't take out everything that makes you sick. It's better to buy bottled water.

d.

[amelie]

I actually wasn't referring to a Brita filter but a heavy-duty microfilter that actually purifies the water instead of just improving the taste like Brita does. A Brita filter is simply activated charcoal that removes things like chlorine and minerals from the water to improve taste. Microfilters need to have the water pumped forcefully through them. They have microscopic pores that allow water to pass, but keep things like bacteria and protozoa out. Like I said earlier, even this type of filter will not stop viruses from passing through. Chlorine drops can be added which will kill the viruses after the water has been filtered. But I wouldn't want to drink that heavily chlorinated water for long periods of time, just when necessary, like hiking in the wilderness. Do not trust a Brita filter to do anything except improve the taste of already safe-to-drink water.

[MELEE]

Just a note on garafons (the 5 gallon water bottles) the price varies from city to city as does the quality of purification. In my small city there are about eight different water purification companies that sell garafons for 10 to 12 pesos, they use different methods of purification and you can taste the difference.

Also, rather than cholrine drops you can also use iodine drops that are used to wash vegetables, the taste is better, but if used long term may be harmful to your liver

If your planning a settling, skip the filter and buy the water, in my town everyone buys water, no one drinks the tap water.

[Ben Round de Bloc]

[MELEE]

I just saw a story on the Oaxaca Public TV news: Amebas Found Living in Chlorinated Water.

[lozwich]

See, that's why no-one should ever watch tv... I stick to Muy Interesante for all my scientific news!

I'm careful with the water and stuff - and have just reverted back to purified water for my teeth brushing activities as the other stuff just tastes sooo bad at the moment, but in general, rely on my complete refusal to get sick as a pretty good medicine. Of course, completely refusing to eat pork, and having a healthy diet of tequila, jalape�os and yoghurt seems to help also...

Have a good day.

Lozwich.

[Julieanne]

Careful when buying those garafons, a lot of them leak.

[Ben Round de Bloc]

Julieanne is right about those leaky garafons. So irritating to flip one of those over onto the base stand, head off to somewhere, and come home to find that all the water has leaked onto the kitchen counter and floor!

I'm not overly paranoid about the water. I use tap water to brush my teeth, although I don't intentionally drink water from the tap. At school on special occasions such as department meetings, coffee is provided. I noticed one of the custodians preparing a large coffee pot for a meeting the other day, and he filled it with water from the tap. However, if the flavor and strength of the coffee are any indication, I suspect there is a possibility that it could kill off anything that was once alive in the water.

Love your diet, lozwich! Do you mix the tequila and jalape�os in with the yoghurt, or do you consume them separately?

[lozwich]