The life straw is just a basic water filter that blocks bacteria and some cysts and

lets in deadly viruses. Over time [weeks] the life straw which only blocks bacteria
and some cysts has a dangerous level of bacteria growth within the straw as the
blocked bacteria massively multiply. A life straw is really only a single use water
filter and should not be used in my opinion over several days. There's a reason why
it's cheap to buy.

BioSand Filter
S THIS FILTER SAFE?
If properly used and maintained, this filter is very safe and it already save lifes
all arround the world since decades. HOWEVER!!!! You need to put fresh water on a
daily basis to keep the inside ecology alive and efficient. You need to avoid any
dryness on the top layer (the filter is design to keep this area wet all the time).
You need to avoid any chemical in the feeding water (such as chlorine or any
contaminent). You need to avoid drinking the water for the first 2 weeks to let the
filter build up its good bacteria colony (cycling process).

WHAT IS THE FIRST LAYER?

The first layer was the same fine sand used at the build day. However, after 2
weeks, it will populate with bacteria that eat armfull bacteria. This layer will be
active as long as you use the biofilter on a daily basis to continuously feed them.
Otherwise, you it will be safer to cycling the biofilter (add 1 gall/day for 1
week) to get the "good bacteria" active again.

WHAT TYPE OF SAND?

It is a filtration type sand. You can buy it or make it by multiple seiving.
This fine sand has no small nor large particles. It has a very uniform particle
size distribution witch allow for a higher filtration to flow restriction ratio.

WILL IT FILTER "EVERYTHING"?

No, it will only filter biological stuff. Most of the chemicals won't be filtered.
Note that the first healt risk is generally biologic and not chemical.

Water Filter Discussion

The proposed water filter presents a promising solution in terms of economic

feasibility and effectiveness for purifying contaminated water sources in poor,
rural communities. The materials (i.e. AC derived from waste coconut shells,
bamboo, and citricidal) are essentially low cost, and environmentally friendly
(i.e. they biodegrade). To ensure sustainability within this community, one future
study aims to find indigenous analogs to citricidal, which represents the only
monetary cost in our filter. Additionally, we also aim to examine material and
energy impact using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).