Customer Reviews

Polar Pure Water Disinfectant With Iodine Crystals

5 star:		(58)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

The EPA estimates that 90% of the world's fresh water is contaminated and unsuitable for drinking. The days of kneeling down on a hike and sipping from the stream are long gone. Don't make the mistake of thinking that just because water looks clear or tastes good that it is free of contaminants. That includes frozen water, which can house hepatitis A, Salmonella, and Cryptosporidium for months.

There are many options for purifying the water, but this post will compare commercial products that rely on halogen chemical treatments.

Polar Pure - contains iodine crystals, has an almost indefinite shelf life if kept tightly sealed, and very inexpensive per dose cost, requires measuring the dosage using the cap (which can be imprecise).

Potable Aqua - contains iodine tablets, shelf life of up to four years if properly stored - if they've turned a light green don't use, moderately expensive per dose cost, easy to administer doses (two tablets per quart of water).

Micropur MP1 - contains chlorine dioxide tablets, has a shelf life of at least four years, moderately expensive per dose cost, and comes in easy to administer doses (one tablet per quart of water).

Simple household bleach - 2 drops per quart of water (assuming a a bleach solution of 5-6% hypochlorite), may wish to double the dose for cloudy water, shelf life of bleach is only about 6 months, must use a dropper to administer dose, very inexpensive per dose cost.

Tincture of iodine - 5 drops per quart (assuming a 2% iodine solution), may wish to double the dose for cloudy water, almost indefinite shelf life if properly stored, must use a dropper to administer dose, modest per dose cost.

All of the methods are effective at killing bacteria, somewhat effective against viruses, and of limited value against protozoa cysts. Cryptosporidium in particular is resistant to halogen treatments.

Most treatments only require 30 minutes. However, very cold water (i.e., less than 40 degrees F) should be allowed to sit for 2 or more hours, or be treated with a double dose.

As far as taste, all will introduce some chemical taste into the water. In a very unscientific taste test of chemical treatment methods, my own family concluded that iodine-treated water was by far the worst smelling and tasting, bleach-treated was second, and water treated with Micropur MP1 ready-to-use tablets was the least objectionable.

Finally, you can add Kool-aid to treated water to help the taste. Not only will it help to mask the chemical taste, but the ascorbic acid (vitamin C) converts the chlorine or iodine to tasteless chloride and iodide.

Please be kind enough to indicate if reviews are helpful.

Written by Arthur Bradley, author of "Handbook to Practical Disaster Preparedness for the Family."

I have used Polar Pure for a number of years, sometimes under difficult conditions. It's much better than any other chemical treatment I have found. I don't recommend drinking stagnant water from a swamp, but if you treat it following the manufacturer's instructions, you can do it and won't get a disease or parasite.

One bottle of this product will treat a LOT of water...at least in the thousand liter range. Most products are sold as little tablets and only treat about 50 liters. This is hands-down a better product.

Like all chemical treatments, it only kills living organisms. If the water is toxic, you are still out of luck.

Great product. I swear by it.

Shri says, "Just dip your water bottle over the side of the canoe to fill, add a capful of Polar Pure solution, shake, and wait 20 minutes" - but this may be dangerous advice. The problem is any water left on the outside of Shri's water bottle was, of course, not cleaned by putting iodine inside the bottle. Since Shri didn't report getting sick, Shri might have built up a tolerance to giardia, which is found in all waterways... or, Shri could have only gotten sick up to 4 days later and not connected the two (half of all Flu reports, in fact, are due to bacteria). Shri should have, perhaps did, "burp" the treated water bottle in order to clean the outside as well. Just as important, though, is to regularly clean hands and cooking utensils (since these are more often the sources of bacteria and viruses). You can reduce the minor iodine aftertaste by halving the dose and doubling the wait time - including doubling either dose or time if water is cloudy (the point being that adjustments are far easier with this product than, say, tablets like Potable Aqua Water Treatment Tablets). Instead, I add an acidic sport mix to both counter (turns the iodine to iodide) and cover aftertaste (only after 30 minutes to next day wait to let iodine first do its work). I also dilute powder with twice recommended water in an attempt to aid faster digestion.

Issues being addressed are large 2-15 micron Protozoa and medium 0.2-0.6 micron Bacteria most likely to affect dehydration by causing diarrhea as well as rare small 0.02-0.03 micron Viruses from other humans (as animal waste not generally considered a problem) - note many feel Viruses are not likely in U.S. (at least it's a smaller problem). Issues NOT being addressed include very large 25 micron tapeworm eggs, etc from raw sewage contamination (dealt with by any filtration including with coffee filter, silk scarf, or boiling). Tennimon's natural sand filter suggestion could take a week to work optimally (so, water should be treated anyway - unless naturally occuring, why spring water is so clean) and his claim of nasty taste (while never trying) is wholly unfounded. Just fill the Polar Pure bottle with water and shake. The solution will be ready for use in about an hour. The particle trap should prevent crystals from getting into the water - this is important as iodine in a crystal is poisonous and can burn tissue or eyes. Always refill the bottle so the solution will be ready for next use. Enough to treat about 2,000 quarts (compared to only about 50 quarts for tablets).

When camping, take water from the surface since it will be cleaned by the sun's ultraviolet rays while giving floc a chance to settle. Important to remember iodine is less effective (requiring more) if water is below "room" temperature, so warming water first can be useful (say, by leaving in sun). Best if water is filtered in any way (even if just with a coffee filter) as floc can shield pathogens from iodine (and no one likes to chew their water). Even the very best filters, though, can possibly leave some types of viruses (which are tiny dead protein fragments) but which iodine will destroy. I prefer this to other forms of iodine as well as chlorine (if just for the indefinite shelf life) - only other treatment product I would consider is Aqua Mira Water Treatment (1 kit) (good for 120 quarts). No treatment, of course, will affect toxins like industrial waste or heavy metals from mining tailings. Don't use if allergic to shellfish (since you may also be allergic to iodine). Good for foreign travel as well as backpacking. Homeland Security also recommends having at home in case of emergency, they prefer boiling or filtering AND treating water to be 100% safe.

I have read in books that one of the best methods for purifying water was by using iodine crystals, but I must admit, I didn't really understand the concept.

This is a bottle that is about 3 inches high, inside is a relatively small amount of iodine crystals that appear similar in size and shape to shotgun pellets.

The process is to fill the small bottle with water, let it sit for an hour, and then pour the liquid from the bottle (measured in capfuls using the bottle cap) into a liter of water for purification. On the side of the bottle is a simplified strip thermometer which indicates how many capfuls of liquid to use based on the temperature of the solution. The bottle has a built in mechanism (really just a tube but it is difficult to explain) that prevents the iodine crystals from being poured out of the bottle during the process.

The process is similar to using water purification tablets with the added advantage of indefinite shelf life and lower cost.

The bottle has all instructions 'painted' on the side which is an added plus; unlike paper labels, the instructions will not fade away or unpeel. The product also comes with an short description of various purification methods, which is both interesting and 'transparent' as the company is not just promoting their own product.

The company's web site is basic and provides more details if you have interest; and, to give them credit, they responded to one of my e-mail questions within an hour.

If I was starting a basic disaster / survival kit, this would be one of my first four purchases; behind a flashlight, first aid kit, and a good knife.

Two things to note. The bottle is thick glass (I would guess relatively hard to break). Also, if you keep the bottle full of solution, take steps to ensure that the water does not freeze as the bottle may break.

An interesting approach to water purification and a well-implemented product.

Our group used Polar Pure in the Boundary Waters and Quetico on a week-long canoe trip. At first, everyone was squeamish about using iodine and so we spent a lot of time pumping water with a conventional filter. But the filter leaked and so some of us decided maybe we'd try to survive the awful taste of iodine in the water. Color me surprised - the water tasted fine. It was convenient - just dip your water bottle over the side of the canoe to fill, add a capful of Polar Pure solution, shake, and wait 20 minutes. It tasted great. Could I taste the difference between Polar Pure and filtered water? Sure, on a side-by-side taste test I could tell a slight difference. But it was so much more compact and convenient than the water filter that I switched to Polar Pure for the rest of the week. Now I'm going to get bottles for the rest of the family so that we can take it on our hikes and trips in the Cascades and Olympics. A small bottle in a backpack and we'll never run out of water on those hot grinding switchback trails.

This is a fine product for treating water, I'm sure. I've only used it once and didn't get sick.

The only real problem I have with it is that the bottle leaks if stored full in a pack. The website recommends (and it seems to make perfect sense) that you fill the bottle after every use, so the solution is pre-prepared for the next time you need it. I ended up with a backpack full of iodine stained clothes. And, yes, I'm 99.9% sure I screwed the cap on correctly. After seeing the horror show that was the inside of my pack, the first thing I did was grab the bottle. I inspected it before I opened it- the cap was on tight, and I had to apply the downward pressure to unscrew it, yet the contents of the bottle were not at all where they were supposed to be.

So- if you don't keep it full, and this is your primary means of water treatment, you'll have to fill the Polar Pure bottle, wait an hour for the bottle solution to be ready, treat the water, wait another 20 min, and then take a drink. Long time from thirsty to first sip.

I think, perhaps, this is best kept in a home earthquake/emergency kit, because (for its size and weight) I am impressed with the amount of water it can treat.

Happy camping.

Backpackers, outdoorsmen, survivalists, campers, all should own a bottle of polar pure. It is the best investment in water disinfection you could ever make. One bottle will last a lifetime, or 20,000 liters. Need I say more? It makes a fine addition to you first aid supplies as well. If you need more Iodine, you just fill the bottle with water and wait an hour. The convenient temperature bar on the side tells you how many capfuls of iodine you need to disinfect your water. As a survivalist and camper I think every household should have at least one bottle of polar pure in case of a water emergency. I also suggest a good hand pump filter.

After reading some of the bad reviews of this product I've come to the conclusion that a lot of people simply don't understand how it works. Some people seem to expect that the jar will be filled to the top with the iodine crystals and that you should put the crystals in your water. When in reality you only want a few of the crystals at the bottom of the jar to make your iodine solution with. You pour dirty water into the Polar pure jar, wait for it to make a solution, and then pour the solution into the water you want to treat. The jar has a little inner neck to keep the crystals from pouring out while letting the iodine / water solution out. The idea is to pour a solution of iodine into your dirty water to treat it. NOT to pour the crystals into your water and drink them. (I doubt you'll die from drinking the crystals, but I'd bet you'd would wish you would)

Bottom line is that the Polar Pure doesn't affect the taste of the water that much, and it will reliably treat A LOT of water. Another nice aspect is that once your done with your trip the jar will wait years for you to come back and use it again. The little bottles of pills should be thrown away after they are open for more than a few months.

I have a bottle of Polar pure that I have been working with for close to 10 years. It has treated a lot of water and it still has almost 1/2 of it's crystals remaining.

This is a great product, all the people who know how to use this product that have reviewed it have got it spot on! The negative reviews (1 star) are simply people not knowing how to use the product correctly. When the bottle arrives there is maybe a teaspoon of iodine crystals in the glass container, THIS IS NORMAL. If the water temperature indicator doesn't show the green dot to indicate how many capfulls of water to add, then the water is probably warm enough that it only needs one capful of the solution. Most of us will fill it up at the kitchen sink first, my tap water was pretty warm. Other possibility is the water is too cold, you'll be able to figure it out with your finger. I've used this product in the field and it has worked well. I usually add a bit more than needed (according to the chart) because I feel safer, and because I have spilled many times trying to dump a capful into a standard water bottle. Awesome product simply because If cost to amount of water you can purify, combined with shelf life. If I have a bottle of iodine tabs and open it up and use 6 on a trip, 3 months later the jar is bad and a total waste. A jar of tabs cleans 5 gal maybe, this product 500.

This is a great product from a great company.

Amidst all the hype surrounding the earthquake and subsequent nuclear meltdown in Japan, it seemed the entire world supply of Potassium Iodide was bought up in a heartbeat. Resigning myself to having faith that the media was overheated and the government may not be trusted to save me, I decided to put the whole radiation scare out of my mind.

But then I remembered I had a bottle of iodine crystals in my earthquake kit. So, feeling sheepish at this point, I emailed Polar Pure, asking if they knew if their product would serve in a pinch, should the worst-case scenario unfold. To my surprise, they emailed me back within 1/2 hour with this:



"While the original intent in the use of Polar Pure was meant for backpackers to disinfect their quart/liter bottles of water, we periodically get questions regarding using Polar Pure to saturate the thyroid gland in case of radioactive nuclear fallout. Polar Pure is not manufactured for the purpose of protecting the thyroid gland in this way but because it is iodine, it will, theoretically, achieve this goal.

From what we understand, the thyroid gland "picks up" iodine 300 times more readily than any other organ in the body and when saturated, contains approximately 15mg of iodine. Anything ingested or absorbed beyond that is excreted by the body through the urine. The thyroid gland may already be partially or fully saturated with a normal diet.

I believe that the 130mg that you refer to is the dosage of potassium iodide tablets - not necessarily 130mg of iodine specifically. I do not know how much iodine is in a potassium iodide tablet.

Each bottle of Polar Pure contains approximately 99.5% pure elemental iodine to create a saturated solution to disinfect your quart/liter bottle of water. Our treatment parameters are based on EPA testing and each treatment contains approximately 4parts per million (4ppm, or about 4-5mg), however this may not necessarily be in one capful. The number of capfuls required depends on the temperature of the solution in the Polar Pure bottle. A warmer solution will be more saturated and so, fewer capfuls are required to achieve the optimum 4ppm dosage. The green dot on the side of the bottle indicates the required capfuls to create this 4ppm dosage for your quart/liter bottle of water.

When used as directed, your quart/liter bottle of water will contain approximately 4ppm, or 4-5mg of iodine. To reach 15mg needed to fully saturate the thyroid gland (assuming the gland is not already partially or fully saturated by normal diet and assuming full saturation of the thyroid is 15mg) you would need to at least triple the amount of Polar Pure solution needed for treatment of water. The number of capfuls required is dependent on the solution temperature, so I cannot tell you how much iodine is present in one capful of your own bottle at any one time. You would have to go by the dosage table on your bottle to reach the 4ppm per treatment dosage."



Well, now I can feel just a little bit better, knowing I won't die of dehydration, nor of Thyroid Cancer.

Separately, with all the gravity I can muster, my heart goes out to Japan. I hope I am never in their position, and I hope I never have to pull out my Iodine Crystals, unless I am backpacking on vacation.