When I did the first survival still review I heard two types of comments
- its neat, but too expensive
- its cool, but the commenter had a filter, and therefore had no need.
Those are both valid concerns, but – at least in my situation (and probably many of yours) they aren’t accurate.
I know $279 seems expensive, but when looking at durable goods you have to balance cost with benefits. The price of the still is very competitive with filter systems like Berkeys – but unlike filters – they never clog, break, or need maintenance.
As a firearm instructor – I see students try to skimp on quality – and when they come to class with cheap guns trying to save a few dollars on guns and end up with malfunctions and problems – until they end up buying quality the second time.
I would not expect anyone to only have one piece of equipment for such a vital need. At my house we have stored water, multiple chemical purification means, filters, and the materials to make filters. But each has its own pros and cons.
Distillation takes energy, but it its 100% effective. Filters can clog, chemicals don’t work on toxins, and sodis doesn’t work on chemicals.
In the video below we purify salt water- filters won’t work on chemicals in solution – so salt water will be a problem if filters are your only means of water purification.