Drawing water from a lake

myredracer wrote:

Gjac wrote:
I camped for a few years at Lake of the Woods Canada and they got their water from the lake. Everyone drank it. I noticed my water flow into the MH was getting slow so I removed the filter and found it was full of jelly like substance. Kind of looked like many small jelly fish some darker than others. This was at a FHU camp ground but don't know if they filtered it first before the hookup at the campsite.

Did it look anything like this? This was on our city water inlet after an early season camping trip. It's a result of the CG failing to flush their water piping system out after sitting stagnant all winter. Chlorine levels dissipate over time to the point that organisms present can flourish and multiply. I spoke to the head of the local gov't water district and was told it was a harmless biomass. May not be harmful but it sure doesn't look appealing and isn't something I really want to ingest. I installed a fancy filter setup shortly after that...

Do they treat the water with chlorine or with any other method? If not, organisms could grow. Filters may have little effect, depending on micron rating and if they maintain them. It takes only one bacterial cell to multiply too. Warmer temps and water sitting for long periods make it an opportunity for "stuff" to grow in the water as well.

I will not use water from any unfamiliar source while away camping without using filtration. RV-ing is unique in that you can't test the water everywhere you go and typically you won't know how water is treated. Water from a municipal system is no guarantee the water is good.

The organisms were smaller and more clear like CFurguson posted but some brown like your photo. No one in the CG got sick from drinking the water most people have been going to the same CG since they were kids. My canister was half full when I changed it.