DGI Hydration Reviews

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Reviews \ Hydration
	Potable Aqua Plus Consists of tiny iodine tablets in a small glass bottle. Directions are one or two tablets (depending upon temperature, clarity, and Giardia control) per liter of water. Shake and let dissolve, then loosen the cap and shake again to allow the iodized water to spread over the threads, killing germs there. Proven effective against Giardia Lamblia when used as directed. Not proven to inactivate Cryptosporidium cysts. It's ready for drinking in twenty minutes. The water has a slight brownish-orange color, and a moderate iodine taste. Potable Aqua also comes with ascorbic acid tablets, called P.A. Pure, which greatly reduce the iodine taste and off-color. Potable Aqua tablets should be left sealed in the glass bottle until use as they have a limited effective life after exposure to air. The first pill makes water bacteriologically safe after five minutes. The second pill is added 30 minutes later to remove the iodine taste (not necessary for purification). Each tablet will treat one pint (two tablets treat one quart). There are fifty tablets in each bottle. For this system to work effectively you must be patient and exercise water discipline. Do not keep opened bottles for more than a year, since humidity, moisture, and exposure to air reduce effectiveness. Unopened bottles should remain effective for four years.	Weight: 28.3g Purifies: 23.7L Rating:
	Polar Pure Consists of a four-ounce (120 milliliter) glass bottle with crystallized iodine in the bottom. First, the bottle is filled with several ounces of water, then after a few minutes (time dependent on water temperature--a small thermometer is attached) this bottle is poured into a quart of water to be purified. The crystals remain in the original glass bottle. While Polar Pure is slightly more complicated than Potable Aqua, less iodine is used, and it has a longer shelf life.	Weight: 85g Purifies: 1.893kL Rating:
	CamelBak Insulated Tube Cover This overpriced swatch of hemmed neoprene is designed for use in extreme winter and summer conditions. The insulated tube cover ensures the last sip is as cool or warm as the first - which seems totally insignificant after youve pulled all your hair out trying to get the *#$! thing over the tube in the first place! Assuming you can get it on, you may discover sadly that the stitching just starts to unravel. Why might this product fall apart? Can you say hecho en Mexico? There's GOT to be a better solution. Nobody should have to pay for this much frustration.	Rating:
	CamelBak Chemical Resistant Reservoir 2.0 This tough water bladder integrates directly with any two liter or three liter reservoir pocket (ThermoBak 3 liter), and can be attached it to your protective gas mask making it useful in virtually every situation. It features the HydroLink Modular Connection System with positive shut-off HydroLock. Compatible with standard protective mask fittings via HydroLink Protective Mask Adapters Type A or M. Type-M Adapter fits Millennium, M17, M40 Series, MCU2P, M70 Series, and C4 (Canada) protective masks. Type-A Adapter fits S10, FM12, and JSGPM (XM-50) protective masks. Specs: Capacity: 2.0L Dimensions: 432 x 152 x 25mm Empty Weight: 0.45 kg Filled Weight: 2.43 kg	Rating:
	HydroLink Conversion Kit with HydroLock Use this kit to retrofit any CamelBak Hydration System to fit HydroLink components. Translation: it gives you a shut off valve and an interchangeable bite valve. Here's another mouthful (no pun intended): the kit includes both the HydroLink HydroLock and the HydroLink Bite Valve Adapter with Big Bite Valve. This is great system, especially if used in combination with the Hydrolink Protective Mask Adapter and the CamelBak Chemical Resistant Reservoir.	Rating:
	HydroLink Protective Mask Adapter CamelBak has made it easy to attach a standard reservoir or Chemically Resistant Reservoir to your protective mask. For most protective masks, it only takes a second to snap the HydroLink Protective Mask Adapter into place. Use in a lethal gas environment requires CamelBak's Chemical Resistant Reservoir. Type-M Adapter fits Millennium, M17, M40 Series, MCU2P, M70 Series, and C4 (Canada) protective masks. Type-A Adapter fits S10, FM12, and JSGPM (XM-50) protective masks.	Rating:
	TABSŽ GI Canteen Straw Adapter Kit This simple refit kit allows you to use 1, 2 & 5 quart GI plastic canteens to get the benefits of bite-and-suck drinking without interrupting your activities. System includes canteen cap, three foot drinking tube, bite valve, tube clip, and a subdued olive drab insulating sheath. The clip holds the valve in position for on-the-go hydration but the insulating sheath is a piece of garbage. It rides up on the hose extremely easily and it's very difficult to slide it back down. The bite valve isn't very good either. The bite valve tends to leak, especially if you roll up the hose and put it inside your two quart canteen cover when it's not in use. We were able to replace the bite valve and the insulation with similar components from competitive brands (CamelBak, Platypus, and Blackhawk). After adding the replacement parts, you would be better off building something similar from scratch. This is an okay alternative to expensive bladder systems, but could use a some improvement.	Weight: 113.4g Rating:
	LC-1 One Quart Canteen This replaced the metal canteen around 1965, and has been standard issue ever since. It is lightweight, quiet, inexpensive, and sturdy. On the down side, the cap has a tendency to cross thread, which results in leaking at night inside your tent on all your gear. The canteen is made of high density blow-molded polyethylene, which tends to retain the flavor of your MRE beverage base powder or Gatorade. Not always a good thing. The real military version is a 3 pc. design, not the 2 pc. import copy. It is usually available in black, olive drab, or khaki. If you do buy this canteen, we recommend buying one with the M-1 NBC Valved Drinking Cap for connecting to military gas masks and respirators with drinking tube.	Weight: 50g Rating:
	Echo Collapsible Canteen This one quart canteen is made of heavyweight soft plastic. The air can be squeezed out as water is consumed, which reduces the noise of sloshing water of partially full canteens. If your canteen is empty, you can collapse for space saving efficiency and store it in your ruck. The flexible canteen greatly improves the water flow through the drinking tube of your M40 Field Protective Mask because the canteen body can be squeezed. Edgewood Arsenal Tests (Chemical Biological Defense Command) showed 2 times the water flow rate while drinking through the new Joint Services Protective Mask using the flexible 1-quart canteen compared to old, hard-shell plastic canteens. The benefits of increased consumption do not outweigh the fact that this canteen smells like chemicals and makes your water taste funky. The manufacturer claims that it reduces impact related injuries caused while landing on your side. What impact related injury can a canteen cause besides a bruised hip? The pliability of the plastic makes closing your LC-2 canteen cover snaps difficult. When you push on the snap, the canteen just gives and the snap doesn't fasten. This could be remedied if you use a canteen cover that doesn't have snap closures. Take the good with the bad. The improvements over the LC-1 Canteen are slight and don't justify the extra cost.	Weight: 50g Rating:
	2 Quart Canteen This is the new military style 2-quart canteens. They are made of Ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer and are usually available in black, olive drab, or khaki. The larger capacity allows for extended use. It fits the two quart fleece-lined carrier and is used to carry spare water on your ruck. Because it collapses, you dont have bulk to contend with when empty and you can carry several extras if the situation requires.	Weight: 170g Rating:
	Canteen Cup The cup is made of stainless steel with wire handles that unfold for use. Many a soldier knows how essential this single item is for life in the field. Boil water for coffee or tea, heat MRE entrees, or heat water for a shave. It nests in the LC-2 Canteen Cover and will hold the standard issue one quart canteen. Nothing bad to say here. Some people have suggested a Teflon coating, but since most soldiers use metal silverware the Teflon would scrape right off. This standard-issue cup is, incredibly, perfect the way it is.	Weight: 250g Rating:
	LC-2 One Quart Canteen Cover Sturdy carrier holds plastic canteen, cup, stove stand and water purification tablet bottle. Made with spec nylon fabric with reinforced construction. The interior synthetic fleece lining keeps beverages insulated. The lining allows you to soak your canteen cover in water and hang it out your HUMMWV window while you drive to cool your water. Design holds the standard Army 1 quart canteen, stainless steel canteen cup and stove stand. Outside accessory pocket holds water purification tablet bottle. Comes with two ALICE clips that fit belts to 2.25 inches. They are usually available in black, olive drab, or khaki.	Weight: 170g Rating:
	BlackHawk Swimmers 1 Qt. Canteen Pouch This one quart canteen pouch is virtually identical to the current military issue, except this is designed with up-to-date specifications. The BlackHawk is held in place by a double flap with two Durasnaps. The bottom is made of mesh for quick water drainage during river and stream crossings. It attaches to your belt with velcro belt loops or A.L.I.C.E. clips. It is made of coated 1000 denier NyTaneon nylon for water and abrasion resistance. This canteen model does not have the insulated fur liner that can absorb water and adds weight to your gear. Sounds like a bad thing until you consider that a wet canteen pouch can be used to cool your canteen if hung out the window of a moving HMMVW window. A wet pouch can also be handy in keeping heated water warm. So youll have to be the judge in determining whether that is significant for your purposes. Delta Gear feels that it is an all around good design except for the fact that the canteen barely fits with the canteen cup inside. This is a major strike against the Swimmer since the canteen cup is a piece of essential gear.	Weight: 113.4g Rating:
	Eagle 1 Quart Light Canteen Pouch (CTP-1L) The CTP-1L has a snap down closure system, inner CorduraŽ lining and holds a 1 quart canteen. It has a big side pouch large enough for a high capacity magazine, utility tool, small GPS, snack bars, etc. I would probably only carry food in it since it's only secured with velcro. The bottom has two drain grommets. The top snaps are covered on the outside so that the metal will not cause noise if some other metal bit of kit hits them. They also will not reflect light when the finish is eventually worn off. They come in both an insulated and non insulated type. The insulation is nice in my opinion, but some people prefer to save those few ounces. My cover is attached with ALICE clips. Close examination to this gear reveals the thought and effort that Eagle put into them. They are double stitched and made from 1000 denier CorduraŽ. The CTP-1L is available in Black, OD, Woodland Camo, and Khaki.	Rating:
	SOE 1 Qt Canteen Cover with Strobe Pocket The quality of the construction is comparable to the Eagle CTP-1L. It has a big side pouch large enough for a strobe light, high capacity magazine, utility tool, small GPS, snack bars, etc. I would probably only carry food in it since it's only secured with velcro. The SOE 1 Qt Canteen Cover is available in black, coyote brown, tri-desert camo, woodland camo, OD, or tan. The SOE canteen cover is twice the price of the Eagle, but you're not getting anything more to justify the price difference.	Rating:
	Coming Soon: -Water Bladders