User Review: SteriPEN Classic

SteriPEN Classic
Above: The current Classic, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed August 3, 2009 by John Hyde

Rating:
Price Paid: 80$

Do not buy one.

The Steripen is dead weight on a backpacking trip. I used it successfully for 3 days, and the lamp stopped working. I returned it, which was supposed to take 2-3 days, and it was gone for 2 weeks.

When I received it, it worked at home, but on the first day of my next trip, it only purified 3 quarts, with brand new lithium batteries, (which they recommend), before failing. I tried 5 or 6 times to get it to work, following the manual, with no luck.

I then replaced the batteries with fully charged NiMH batteries. It purified one quart, and failed again. I tried with brand new duracells, with no luck.

Luckily I carry iodine tablets as a backup. Without them I would have been out of luck.

I spend 25-30 days a year backpacking. My old filter is a far more reliable and quicker way to purify water in the back country.

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