Guys and gals does anyone have any experience witha Katadyn  or a Big Berkey

Frankly there are too many options. The plan is to keep this at our BOL and not be taking it camping.

Thanks in advance.

ONG

I'm not familiar with that size Katadyn filter, but the smaller versions for hiking and backpacking are GTG.  They tend to get top marks in filter tests.  Their ceramic filters have a good life-span and facilitate ease of cleaning.  

They tend to be a little slower than other filters because of their smaller micron size.  The plus side, they do a better job filtering out the nasties.  
This is especially important if you don't have another source/form of purification (boiling, bleach, tablets, etc.)  
The model you've referenced is a gravity-feed drip filter so that's not as big a deal since you can set it and forget it; rather than spending effort pumping.

I have a need to filter questionable water daily. in my RV.  I don't do bottled water because my trips to town are sometimes 30 days in between.  The BEST physical filtration is going to get 99% of the bad stuff.

My solution was to prefilter the water coming into the RV with sediment, charcoal and a final sterasyl  cartridge -- all in filter housings outside the RV.  Once inside the RV I installed two more canisters that feed a small potable water spigot next to the sink.  Those 2 filter housings have another sterasyl ceramic and a final UV light filter powered by 12v from the RV.

I find this setup to be less hassle than an RO system.  I replace the UV bulb on New Years day and scrub the outside of the sterasyl filter with a stainless steel scrubbie to restore it to like new when water flow falls off.

FWIW, this has been my setup for the past 5 years and it has worked flawlessly.

YMMV

I'd go with the Berkey. Yes they had issues with some black elements some time ago but it has been taken care of and its without a doubt your best long term solution as your core water filter which you may combine with other water treatment methods. I'd still drop a bit of chlorine after filtering if the water is of questionable safety. Pre filtering will also greatly increase the life of your ceramic elements.
FerFAL

I would periodically bleach my RV tanks with granulated spa treatment chlorine.  I never needed to filter my water in or out.

We use the ceramic filters from justwater.me

Takes care of nasties down to .2 micron


We use them to filter our daily use water.


If you have a lot of chemicals to filter out, I would secondary through a carbon block filter. There is carbon in the justwater.me filters, but they are not primarily meant for chemical.

I don't use a filter for daily use, but opted for the Sawyer .1 micron 5 gal bucket filter for emergency water treatment, augmented with Clorox for virus smaller than .1 micron... I don't perceive a heavy metal or agricultural run off problem where I live... a Sawyer mini in my car bag....

stay away from ceramics, they're actually the "high maintenance option" these days.

a sawyer gravity filter (sawyer or sawyer mini) is EXTREMELY cheap, EXTREMELY fast, and EXTREMELY easy to back flush with the provided kit.

you can often find 5 of the minis for around $100 (one for each member of the family?)

I DO need to filter my water.  It is delivered on the honey wagon that pumps out my septic.   This delivery routine is not of my doing and I cannot control the method.

My outside water storage is a 500 gal black potable water tank and I treat it with 1" chlorine tabs.  Much easier to use than the powder I found.  I test Chlorine PPM in the outside tank every 2 weeks in the summer; less in the winter.

BTW, liquid chlorine bleach works fine for sanitizing the tanks and lines.   My process:

To sanitize the water system use a quarter cup of household bleach for every fifteen gallons of water your fresh water tank holds. Mix the bleach, with water, into a one-gallon container and pour it into the fresh water holding tank. Fill the fresh water tank almost completely full of potable water. Turn the water pump on, open all hot and cold faucets and run the water until you smell the bleach at each faucet. Close the faucets. If it’s possible drive the RV or pull the trailer so the water can move around to assist in cleaning the entire tank. Let it sit for at least 12 hours. Drain the entire system again and re-fill the fresh water tank with potable water. Open all of the faucets and run the water until you no longer smell any bleach. It may be necessary to repeat this process again to eliminate all signs of bleach from the water system. Once this is done it is safe to use your water system.

Explain please?????

Ceradyn user here.
5+ years daily use.
Cleaned filters lighly once at year 3.
Zero issue at all.
I run two vs three filters in mine. Flow rate is good.
not one issue.

Only this.g berkys have going.g for them is looks...
Its easier to convince mommy that a filter is OK because its purchase stainless.

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ceramic filters break, very typically can't be back flushed, must be "scour'd with a pad" in order to clear clogged areas, and generally speaking, don't filter very quickly.

I have a MSR Miniworks pump filter that I love..

but the last 10 times I've been out hiking or camping, I've always used my sawyer.. it's extremely fast/small/light/nearly indestructible.


do whatever you want, get whatever you want.. but the Sawyer mini is just about the best water purifying product to come around in 30 years..

HERE IS A LINK TO THE 4L system

Have never had a ceramic filter in the ceradyn drip break.
The. Plastic housing(nipple) did because it got dropped from a counter with ten liters in it!
Good thing unlike a berkey unit the katadyn is not metal...so no dents or scratches just a wet floor.

Haven't had my mini or pocket filter break either.  In fact the Guy I buy mine from would routinely stand...smash them.on the concrete when demoing the units for sale.

Now I guess if you took the filter element out and threw it full force onto a rock it may break.......


Like ya said buy whatca want...

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I use a Big Berkey. We don't have running water and it's for our normal daily use. I get water from a local spring and filter it since finding a little swimmer in it once. We have extremely hard / mineral filled / heavy metal laden water. The filter grabs all of that; if we don't filter the coffee machine and water boiler get scaled very quickly. The flow rate is pretty good too IMO. I have the 4 tall black elements in mine for higher flow rate.
I recommend it with confidence.

Cheers!
-JC

I've got a Berkey.  Have used it x 2 years.  Works great.  We love it.  Downside is size, but I don't move it much.  Would recommend.

I think the big difference in mindset here is usage.   My filtration system is part of a permanent installation that has seen daily use for years.   The flow rate is not marginalized by the ceramic filters and maintenance is a few minutes a month.  

Different venues entirely  --- daily vs. camping

They are fragile although handling them with care there's no problem once installed. The flow will depend on how many filters you have. You can back flush them and well, them maintenance is what it is, scrubbing the filter takes some time but then again it means you dont have to buy a new one. It is more of a stationary sistem rather than a hiking camping one.
FerFAL

Before the Sawyer ohhh ma gherd its 19$ at chinamart...craze.
most good backpacking filters were ceramic. MSRs sweetwater..works and mini works..katadyns pocket and mini.
And others.
But 19-20$ vs 80-300$ which do you think the use twice or at all prepper crowd will buy?
I git a hiker in 04..put few hundred gallons through it. I upgraded to the mini and pocket.due to capacity. 200 gallons vs 2000(on the hiker vs mini) .
The table tops are no different and can (iirc the ceradyn fir example) can be rigged as a gravity /siphon filter with dome tubing!

I chose the ceradyn due to filter life. Like I said five + years...and the time I did clean (all of 10 seconds with a 3m pad)  wasn't even needed.

Id still trust my mini over the Sawyer.ymmv


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None of the hollow membrane filters inc. the Sawyer Mini or the ceramic filters remove viruses.   Chlorine or UV light will.

Stationary - berkey
On the move - katadyn