Best Portable Water Filters in 2021

Some of the most critical outdoor essentials are strapped to your side, or resting in your external frame backpack. Survival knives, gun belts on your waist, and even paracord survival bracelets are all items you need in the wilderness to survive, but if you’re not properly hydrated, it’s going to be a short-lived excursion. Arguably, the most important item in your arsenal is your portable water filter. Small enough to fit in a backpack, lightweight enough to rest in your hand on difficult journeys. There’s a lot of science that goes into this technology, so let’s bust this case wide open, and discuss everything there is to know about portable water filters.

How We Chose Our Selection of the Best Portable Water Filters

They’re one of those items that you don’t really think about having a complex buying process, but when you get under the hood and learn about some of the things we’re going to display in this guide, it’s going to blow your mind. We used the following criteria to determine our list:

• Brand reputation on quality
• Warranty information and ease of access to customer service representatives
• Total number of gallons/liters filtered per filter life
• Convenience
• Price and value
• First-hand accounts and online reviews
• Overall quality of the build

Features to Look For in Portable Water Filters

Size - Water volume and physical size dictate how ease this will be to use, and how effective it’s going to be. On top of that, nobody wants an overly bulky water bottle.

Weight - These filters don’t exactly come lightweight, you know. Every ounce counts when you’re stuffing your hiking backpack, and while this is an absolutely crucial component to your camping or hiking trip, it’s also important that it doesn’t add in killing your back.

Ease of Use - It’s water; you want to filter it, drink it, and be done. Unnecessarily difficult screw caps and filters that have to rest a certain way are a pain to deal with. Take a look at how complex the system looks to reassemble after using, and after cleaning.

Filter Capacity - Filters come in different sizes. They’ll hold varying amounts of water, and filtrate that volume all at once, working it through the carbon or charcoal system to reach your mouth. The filter capacity will also influence the viability of our next item: flow rate.

Flow Rate - This is affected by the current lifespan of the filter (see guide below), and is rather important to quench your thirst quickly, and effectively.

Durability - This can also derive from the materials used. Nine out of ten men are buying these for the outdoor world, so will it hold up to the elements and rugged mystique of nature? While you probably won’t be swinging this around and dropping it, you want as much accident protection as possible.

Portable Water Filter FAQs

Q: What is a Portable Water Filter?

A: Portable water filters are either active carbon or active charcoal-based systems (and in some cases, there are unique other systems in place) that remove harmful bacteria and viruses from water. Their primary use is for cleaning water found in nature, allowing you to drink it and cook with it when you’re out in the wilderness.

Alternatively, they’re also used to help purify water that we already drink out of our faucets. In the United States, there’s a lot of leniency when it comes to what’s allowed in our water supply. Bringing a portable water filter allows you to enjoy clean water, and remove unnecessary additives put in place by water processing plants and facilities. We’re also big fans of bringing these into the gym to cut down on single-use plastic.

Q: How to Care for Portable Water Filter During Freezing Weather

A: What happens when the water trapped inside of your filter freezes? You’re thirty and up the creek without a paddle. If you’re going somewhere where the temperatures drop at night, or it’s generally snowy, then you have a hard time ahead of you keeping this issue from arising. On average, these don’t need to meet much lower than the 32F temperature range to freeze. They’re very susceptible to the cold.

So how do you keep it going even when it’s cold outside? You’re going to use it a lot more sparingly than you were before, and you’ll be keeping it close to your at all times. If your backpack rests against you (if it’s an internal frame, not external), you’ll want to keep this right up against your back to keep it warm. At night, sleep with it in your sleeping bag to keep it from freezing. Your body heat will keep it at the proper temperature.

Q: How to Tell if Portable Water Filter Needs to be Replaced

A: One way to immediately tell is if your flow rate has dropped significantly. This indicates that the filter is getting clogged, because it’s housing loads of bacteria that prevent water from getting through as easily.

Apart from that, you’re going to have to use some judgment calls. If you can try to monitor how many gallons it’s rated for, and keep track of your cleaning and use, you’ll be able to determine when it’s time to get a new one. To sit on the side of caution, we’ll personally toss out the filter when it’s within 10% of it’s expected end of life.

Q: What do Portable Water Filters Remove From Water?

A: Oh boy, get ready for a really, really gross science lesson. We all just bench on the idea that it removes bacteria, but what does it actually remove? You’re stripping all this junk out of the water you drink:

• Chlorine
• Chloramines
• Salt
• Chemical Filter Residue (Found in most water supplies)
• Sediment
• Sand
• Fluoride (Some filters)
• Pesticides
• Iron
• Sulfur

Pretty scary stuff, huh? There’s a lot more to it, but without sending you into a full-blown germaphobe frenzy, we thought it best to stop here. We’ve got one more list of serious reasons why you should filter your water, and then after that, we’ll get back to the fun parts about owning a water filter. By removing all the items listed above, you’re also eliminating the possibility of encountering these diseases, viruses and bacteria:

• Giardia
• Dysentery
• Traveller’s Diarrhea
• coli
• Hepatitis A
• Hepatitis E
• Cryptosporidium
• Campylobacter
• Cholera
• Typhoid Fever

It’s beyond worth it to filter your water. You can’t see, smell, and in most cases, you can’t even taste differences in the water that would give these away. They piggyback on bacteria and make it into your water, and while your body can sometimes fight this off, it’s not guaranteed. The only thing that you can guarantee, or come close to, is that a filter will remove this from your water, and save your immune system the gambling man’s odds of fighting it off.

Q: Should You Wash Your Portable Water Filter?

A: Absolutely. Every single time you use this on an outdoor excursion, you should be cleaning this out. If you’re grabbing one of these to use for the gym so you can cut down on bottled water (you environmentally-friendly budget-savvy guy, you), then you’re already working with filtered water from your faucet, you’re just providing a second level of cleaning. If this is the case, you can usually use your bottle about five times in a week before needing to clean it.

Waterborne illnesses come in the form of bacteria, viruses, cysts and more, including typhoid fever, hepatitis A and E, dysentery, and more. Basically, it’s a really big deal, and you should never take the risk of drinking water that hasn’t been filtered in some way, especially with the way our planet is currently with its state of decay and pollution.

Q: How and How Often do You Clean Your Portable Water Filter?

A: Given the materials used and the critical necessity for clean, potable water, we’re only going to recommend this one cleaning method. It’ll break down and kill every spec of bacteria in your portable water filter, so long as you follow protocol properly.

For this example, we’re going to assume your portable water filter has a 32oz capacity. Fill it up with 32oz of hot water, and then drop two tablespoons of unscented bleach right into the water. The heat will help water rise out any stubborn bacteria that’s resting in the carbon (or alternative) filtration system.

Now comes the time to drop a truth bomb about your filter. If it said, “Good for 1,000 gallons of water,” it’s not kidding, but you’re going to be cleaning and rinsing these after every use, so that isn’t going to be 1,000 gallons of drinkable water. Keep that in mind.

After letting this sit for about five minutes, you’re going to shake gently, and let the water run through the filter as best you can. To get all the bleach out, you’re going to be using at least three full rinses, so out of one of your gallons of usage, you’re filtering one quart of drinkable water, and three quarts of rinsing water to keep filter clean. It may seem like a bum deal, but try to picture 250 gallons of water and the associated cost. Now, look at your filter, and it doesn’t seem so bad.

After you’re done rinsing, it’s important to let this air dry. Air dry methods aren’t just recommended to be an annoyance; it actually provides a superior level of cleanliness before use, and eliminates the possibility of water or bacteria breeding filth in dark crevices.

Next comes the frequency. Guys, don’t bring these with you on more than two-day trips if you don’t intend on cleaning them while you’re out. The minute you put impure water in here, the filter absorbs the bacteria, but it also becomes a breeding ground for said bacteria. You need to get this through that bleach solution as quickly as possible.

Since there’s no clear cut-and-dry way to know what’s in the water, it’s always best to assume that there’s a good amount of waterborne bacteria, and you need to focus on that. If you’re wondering, “If it breeds bacteria, won’t the filter just block it?” Yes, and no. The bacteria doesn’t just sit on the outside of the filter; it’s inside of it, where it begins to grow in a damp, dark place. While you should still be safe to drink from this, you don’t want bacterial growth to creep up further through the filter.

Q: What is Potable Water?

A: It’s what you’re aiming for with your portable water filter. Potable water is defined as being safe to consume without incurring any negative effects to your health. Potable water doesn’t necessarily have to taste good, it just has to be healthy enough for you to drink. Keep in mind, you’re not going to be getting Poland Spring water out of your portable water filter, but it’s going to reduce or eliminate bacteria, making it safe to drink.

If you’ve ever fired-up a camping stove to boil water, making it safe to drink, then you were making it into a potable source. Alternatively, it’s important to understand that water doesn’t have a specific taste when it’s potable; it can taste a bit cloudy or like you’re drinking it from a not-so-clean glass, and that this instance is also what non-potable water can taste like. This is why it’s ultra important for you to monitor your filter, and ensure it’s functioning properly before you hit the hiking trail.

Q: Can Portable Water Filters Purify Snow?

A: We’re not all out in the middle of July in the Catskills. There’s a lot of terrain to cover on Earth, and there’s a million differences in the water in America, to the water in Sweden, and wherever else you may travel. Snow and rainfall each carry traces of pollutants that are not water-soluble, meaning they’re going to transfer and lock-in when that water turns to snow, and when that snowfall hits in key camping and hiking areas.

If you circle back and check the list of chemicals and pollutants in the list above, you’ll have a better understanding of what does, and what does not get filtered out. There are certain things that just stain nature, but in most cases, if the snow appears white and pure, you can throw it into your portable water filter, and exchange some of your body heat to melt the snow and turn it into drinkable, sustainable water.

Q: Can a Portable Water Filter Render Urine Drinkable in Emergency Situations?

A: Well, I suppose it’s on everybody’s mind, right? Technically, yes, you can purify your own urine (to an extent). We produce urine to evacuate bacteria and unnecessary components from our body, whether it’s toxins or waste from the beverages we consume, and the moisture packed into the foods we eat. Your body doesn’t absorb it all, so part of it ends up in your bladder.

Urine depletes, because even if you drink its most purified form, your body is going to use whatever electrolytes and pure hydration it can extract. Then, you’ll be left with even more concentrated levels of bacteria and bodily waste. If you end up drinking your own urine, you can purify it in your portable water filter, but you won’t produce even 1/10 the same amount of fluid during your next urination, meaning it really is a last-ditch effort.

Gear Hungry, its writers, editors, staff and webmasters are not responsible for anything you may do with your portable water filter. This guide is not written by trained professionals in the art of survival, or nutritionists with relevant degrees. These are the opinions of men who have personally tested these products, declaring their first-hand accounts and experiences. This article should be read for entertainment and buyer’s knowledge only, and any additional information you require on drinkable water, filters, their properties and other entities residing around the subject, should be researched on your own accord.