Aqua Mira drops–how long to wait?

Hello

Not trying to hijack post. I am also curious how long solution is still usable once mixed.

Jim

I wait a minimum of 15 minutes and use the regular dosage. I do try and pick better water sources and much prefer springs over creeks/streams. There have been a few times that I have doubled the dose and waited the 4 hours but it was very suspect water.

When I used AM drops in the past, I followed normal dosage and waited at least 30 minutes. Unless I was treating water overnight, I never consciously waited for more than an hour or so — even when water source was cold. I just didn't have the patience. But then, I knew I was playing "Russian Roulette". I didn't get sick, but then, there are also people who NEVER treat their water and didn't get sick either — it's hard to tell really — but that still didn't mean I felt comfortable not following the directions.

I switched to AM tablets (and Micropur tablets) to eliminate the semi-tedious drop counting and 5-min pre-mix waiting time. I also liked the fact that tablets had 3 times higher concentration. But again, I was not a patient person — I waited the same 30-plus minutes.

I finally switched to using a combo method: chlorine (bleach) and AquaMira Frontier Pro fiter.

1. Chlorine is a heck of a lot cheaper than AM or Micropur. I use 6 drops per quart or liter and wait 30 minutes — allowing the chlorine to kill bacteria and viruses (if any).

2. I then drink water through the AM filter (weighs just 2oz) — to clarify water, remove bad taste (including chlorine), and block the bigger and harder to kill protozoa.

The combo method provides a very light and compact "do it all" system. By relying on chemicals to kill the tiny stuff and a simple filter to block the big stuff — I cut down drastically on wait time (compared to using chemicals alone) and cut down drastically on filter weight (compared to regular pump filters).

I've never worried about protozoa and "difficult to kill" big bugs. Nor have I ever payed much attention to water temperature.
I use Aqua Mira drops or tablets (mostly drops, but tablets on fastpacking/running adventures), treat for ~30 minutes, and call it good.
I've never worried about taste or floating debris in my water so I've never carried a filter or worried about pre-filtering.

As for pre-mixing Aqua Mira, I've used it pre-mixed for up to a day…all I know is I've never been sick. Not sure how long it can be pushed. Wasn't Klearwater just pre-mixed chlorine dioxide? I believe the key is in not exposing it to light/keeping it cool. I beleive the first I heard of pre-mixing was from Mike Clelland…uh oh…who happens to be Benjamin Tang's water treatment nemesis…so I'm sure Ben will argue this point.

As for recommended times and manufacturer guidelines…I suspect that any manufacturer/customer service rep is going to err on the side of extreme caution to avoid lawsuits…hence triple/quadruple dosing, 4 hour wait recommendations, etc. Are these wait times based upon hard facts or manufacturers covering their butts?

Years of field experience of many, many, many seasoned people I know and read about, including my own experiences, tells me selecting good water and waiting ~30 minutes is fine; drops, tablets, whichever…

To each their own.

I can't give you an exact time. Instead of worrying about it, I carry two light 'n cheap water bottles. I drink from one bottle while the other one is in the treatment process. That means the drop will have a good deal of time to work. In the rare instances when I've reached empty at a source, I wait 15 to 30 minutes or boil some if I need/want water in under 10 minutes.

I am in the same camp as Craig and Ben in terms of wait time. I wait 30 minutes and call it good. I just do not have the patience for more than that. I don't use a prefilter, most of the water sources I am getting water from is relatively clear and I don't worry about the floaties. Now…I don't use the Aqua Mira drops…I use Micropur tablets. My solution tends to be a bit more concentrated…for better or worse…I use a 710ml gatorade bottle and 1 tab is supposed to treat 1000ml.

It all depends on how lucky you're feeling about the water. :D

With a 3x (tripled) dosage of AM drops, I've waited about 50 min for 3 liters of water which was estimated to be around 50-60 F without getting sick. It probably didn't need treatment in the first place though. Try this at home first. At 3x dosage, the water was barely tolerable even though I was thirsty. I rate 1x dosage as slightly unpleasant (equal to city water).

I've switched to using a pump filter now which weighs around 17 oz (First Need). It's still at least a pound lighter than the extra liter of water I'd often be carrying waiting on treatment time, and it great enhances my wilderness experience to drink water without chemical taste. Boiling is my backup method, and I usually carry 10 Micropur tablets too, due to their insignificant weight and convenience.

To my knowledge all dose/treatment times are based on published EPA guidelines. Briefly, the relevent quantity is dose times time. Stronger dose, less time needed, and vice versa. But only within limits.

The EPA docs show treatment times for various types of water, bugs, doses and times. E.g. if I recall the 4 hour treatment time comes from worst-case Cryptosporodium contamination (not nearly as common in the US as Giardia) in cold, nasty water. If you only are worried about Giardia then the treatment time, even in cold water, is much less. Some product instructions go into this.

I often use one-half dose (sometimes lower) if the water will sit for a very long time before use, e.g. when I treat six liters right before bed time and it sits all night. But note that sunlight can deactivate chlorine dioxide (AquaMira) and reduce the effectiveness of long dwell times.

Also note the difference between initial dose and residual dose. Sometimes the active ingredient can be quickly inactivated due to contaminants in the water, so a high initial dose leads to a smaller residual dose. The residual dose is what does the work.

Although the EPA docs are fairly clear, the situation for consumers is a bit of a muddle due to the many factors involved and the difficulty of succinctly describing the EPA results.