Emergency fallout water filter

[Setfree]

'Standard water filters will remove radioactive particles as well as bacteria and parasites (within the specs of the individual filter of course'

IanM - This is contrary to everything I have read who say that ONLY distillation or Reverse Osmosis can remove radiation particles (apart from radioactive dissolve gases, think they can be removed by carbon filter)

[hazmat]

Distillation after filtering rules as far as I'm concerned.
I was told by a friendly prepping radiologist that that's the only way to get rid of water soluble radioactive isotopes / iodine's. Even then she warned my that some of the boiling points of these nasties is pretty close to the temperature of boiling water.

[Ian]

Setfree, a particle is a particle and can be filtered out radioactive or not. The finer the filter the more that will be filtered. The problem comes with the soluble material which cannot be filtered. Distillation or chelation (lovely word) removes some of that material but as Hazmat has pointed out that also has problems.

Fallout may be considered to be dirt and earth splashed into the atmosphere which hot radioactive isotopes condense onto as they cool. What will filter soil will remove those contaminants (which are the majority) but some soil is soluble so the active liquid will pass through unfortunately.

Best is to avoid the problem completely by using stored water or an uncontaminated source but, as Worried Mother has pointed out, that is not always possible so having an expedient filter like her bucket or a commercial filter in storage gives you that edge. Not 100% but it would go a long way to save lives.

[Setfree]

Thanks IanM - I really dont know much about the subject but its one Ive recentlyvbecome really interested in due to Fukushima and have been trying to read what I can on the subject..Im going to get the oxfam bucket and non electric distiller for a SHTF situation and then for now Im buying a reverse osmosis system and I feel much better doing something than nothing, thanks for the view. much appreciated.

[worried mother]

There is also a lifesaver distiller, 1 kilo or under in weight that attaches to a pressure cooker.



IanM what water filter does filter our radioactive particles ?

[Ian]

Any filter will remove particles that are within its limits, but fall out particles come in all sizes so the smaller ones will pass through.

When you get to very small sizes filters don't work like a sieve but remove particles by physiochemical effects trapping them by making them stick to the filter matrix. This is how activated charcoal works and can even adsorb individual atoms onto its internal surfaces, trapping them:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Activated_carbon

So a good filter removes containments by a number of ways and the only real world way of seeing if they work is to challenge them and see what gets through. Such testing is expensive and beyond anyone outside of a specilised lab.

So to find a filter which can remove significant (all) particles you must research the published specifications of what is available. Don't believe all their claims and go back to the original lab reports, not just what someone trying to sell to you tells you. The filters will be expensive, slow, bulky and require specilised containers and pumps.

Thus the selection of a filter is always a compromise. The Lifesaver brand range are getting a good reputation but I have never seen one let alone tried one. Of course the dissolved radioactive material will still go through.

As I mentioned before the only sure way is to avoid the problem completely by using stored water or an uncontaminated source.