Mar 10 2008The iStraw Is Horribly Named But Cleans Water As You Drink It So You Won't Get Sick
The iStraw, thanks to special micro-filtration technology, makes drinking water from the toilet safer than ever. Available for $40 from Thinkgeek, the straw can filter about 130 gallons and "reduces up to 99.99999% of all waterborne bacteria." Wow, that's a lot of 9's! You can use it to suck directly from streams and lakes, but brackish and turbid water and highly not recommended. The iStraw looks like a magic wand and makes the perfect addition to an outdoor survival kit. I definitely just ordered a few for myself in case of an emergency. My girlfriend is going to have to take her chances with a regular straw. It's not that I don't love her, it's just that, well, maybe I don't. I mean I did spend her birthday at a stripclub. And not the one she works at.
Germaphobes Rejoice, The iStraw is Here [albotas]
Reader Comments
1. daguz - March 10, 2008 12:30 PM
Anyone remember the gooey gopher guts from Dr Demento circa 1980?
2. daguz - March 10, 2008 12:33 PM
"Great green globs of greasy, grimy gopher guts,
mutilated monkey feet,
little dirty birdy beaks,
pints and pints of prehistoric porpoise pus,
forgot my spoon, but I've got my straw!"
3. em - March 10, 2008 12:38 PM
far better, and cheaper, is the lifestraw (http://www.lifestraw.com/) which has been around for longer and is used when providing aid to third world countries who have suffered natural disasters etc to help them access clean water. and it only costs £2 per lifestraw.
4. Rekkid - March 10, 2008 12:47 PM
#3, the Lifestraw does not filter parasites like Giardia and Cryptosporidium, the iStraw does. If you're living in North America, that's a mighty important difference. Most of our rivers contain Giardia and I can tell you from first hand experience, you don't want it inside you. Better to take the iStraw with you when camping in the backcountry.
5. Boydi xXx - March 10, 2008 12:52 PM
I don't understand it.
What the hell is it?
Boydi xXx
6. guate6 - March 10, 2008 12:59 PM
Oh c'mon, someone's not said it yet? Fine, I'll do it...it should be called the iSuck. And on the other side, since straws work both ways, it can also say iBlow. Or make two different models.
Britta all the way!
7. guate6 - March 10, 2008 1:07 PM
#4: It depends on the species of Giardia, as some are way more dangerous than others (read: lamblia). Those aren't the only parasites that we should worry about that are found in water. Enentomeba coli, Fasciola hepatica, and many other dangerous (some deadly) parasites.
8. Cliffjumper - March 10, 2008 1:21 PM
The other 0.00001% is the bactery that can actually kill you
9. Rekkid - March 10, 2008 1:21 PM
#7, it depends a lot on the person too. I've gone camping a lot in the backcountry, some us filter our water, some of us don't (or don't always). I once got lost with a group of four guys when just going for a hike (we didn't have all our gear on us). We all drank from the same river to stay hydrated. A week later, two got sick and I was one of them. The other guy was fine after a week. Two months and 20 lbs later my doctor finally diagnosed it as Giardia (I have no idea what species). A couple of days on some anti-biotics and I was fine. Now of course I filter all my water when camping and I think the something like the istraw would be really handy when on hikes for emergencies. I definately think the iStraw would be better than the Lifestraw.
10. guate6 - March 10, 2008 1:51 PM
#9: agreed.
11. The Moat - March 10, 2008 4:12 PM
I guess the name "iSuck" was already taken.
12. monica - March 11, 2008 1:28 AM
I think this is a pretty cool idea because it's so small and easy to carry along. I might even pick one up for my trips to Mexico because I stay in a small village where they sometimes run out of fresh water in the dry season (the pipes on the mountain get blocked and it can take a day or two for someone to get up there to fix them).