Initial Report: AquaStar Plus Water Purifier
Date: Sept 12th, 2005 Manufacturer Name: Meridian Design, Inc. Website: http://uvaquastar.com	Product Information Manufacturer: Meridian Design, Inc. Model: AquaStar Plus Year of Manufacture: 2005 Capacity: 32oz  (1 L) MSRP: $95.00 (US) Listed Weight: 8.5 oz  (240 g ) Measured Weights:        Control head/UV Tube 2.6 oz  (74 g)       Batteries (pair) 1.1 oz  (31 g)       1 L Polycarbonate bottle 4.2 oz  (119 g)       Total  8.0 oz  (227 g)

Initial Report

Product arrived absent any packaging material, documentation, or merchandising/display material.  Included was the purification unit, installed batteries, and the Chief Technical Officer's business card.  The product is so new that the manufacturer's web site has yet to include a user's manual for the AquaStar Plus.  I contacted the Chief Technical Officer and he emailed an updated 6 page manual in .pdf format.

The Plus model has an integrated white LED lantern feature, and a lengthened cleaning cycle from 60 seconds to 80 seconds.  There is supposed to be a 300 ml (10 oz) detection "gold pin" that senses if the bottle has water prior to activation.  I am unable to find the "gold pin" and the unit actives with a simple push of the button when empty. 

My first impression was that of delight, as the unit is lightweight, cleverly designed, and simplistic to operate.  Operation is confined to filling with water, pressing a button, and agitating the bottle for 80 seconds while the UV rays kill the contamination.  Don't let the 8.0 oz (227 g) weight fool you, as that includes the bottle, thus putting the actual purification unit at 3.7 oz (105 g).

The unit is powered by two 3 volt CR123A lithium batteries that are accessible by easy access screw fasteners.  The fasteners have self-contained bail grips, thus no need for a coin or screw driver.  Current draw, in cleaning mode, starts at 800mAh and drops to 725mAh after 15 seconds as the filaments/bulb heats up.  I inquired as to the bright hot spot on the filament (see photo below) and the reply was that the circuitry senses current and the hot spot is common.  This reply also satisfied my concern that UV intensity would decline as the battery reserves dropped.  Since the design is current sensing/controlled, UV repeatability should be consistent regardless of battery strength.  A completed cycle is identified by the activation switch's LED turning green, whereas a red LED identifies an incomplete cycle.  This test unit’s purification cycle clocked in at 84 seconds.

I inquired as to the possibility of using rechargeable Li-ion batteries, and the reply is that they can NOT be used.  The peak Voc of rechargeable Li-ion batteries is 4.2 volts at full charge verses the 3 volts of lithium, thus 8.4 volts as would be the case of the two batteries in series.

Lithium CR123A batteries have anywhere from 1100mAh to 1300mAh of power.  Taking worse case 1100mAh battery reserves and 800ma current draw, that equates to 59 water purification cycles (1100mAh/800mA*3600seconds per hour/84second cycle) or 15.5 gallons (59 L) at 50F (10C).  The manufacture recommends a double cleaning cycle for cold water under 50F (10C).  Manufacturer specifications are that battery life expediency should be 70 cycles, which seems achievable given my worse case scenario.  This will be substantiated during field-testing.

The new Plus model includes a bright white LED housed in the cap that aluminates down into the bottle.  They coined the "Lantern Mode" and cycles for 14 minutes before dimming and turning off a minute later.  Activation is by a quick double pressing of the momentary switch on the unit head.  As per the photo, illumination would be great for auxiliary lighting around camp or in the tent.

LED current draw is 30mA, thus taking worse case scenario of 1100mAh as per above, this equates to a battery life expectancy of 36 hours of light (1100mAh/30ma).  Given the LED’s timed cycle is 15 minutes that equates to 147 "Lantern Mode" cycles.

I had some concern about the unit's ability to penetrate debris contaminated water.  The manufacturer's reply is that sub 0.5 mm (0.02 in) debris is well penetrated and that silt can actually improve the cycle.  This is because of UV refraction off the silt/quartz dust.  Large debris needs filtered out, by passing the water through a bandanna or equivalent.  In common terms, 0.5 mm (0.02 in) is more than twice the thickness of course black human hair at 0.181 mm (0.007 in) or 6 times that of average human hair.

Disinfecting of contaminated water is through subjecting those little nasty contaminates to UV light.  Those same UV rays are also harmful to the human body, especially the eyes.  Polycarbonate material, as per the bottle's construction, blocks UV and keeps the rays from exiting the bottle.  Bearing this in mind, the UV unit should not be operated outside the bottle.  This also means that any contaminated water residing outside the bottle or trapped in the bottle's threaded top is not disinfected.  Although the amount of trapped water is minimal, the possibility of contamination is present.  This being the case, I recommend drying the bottle threads or flushing with disinfected water to error on the safe side.

Summary

Pros:

• Lightweight

• Simplicity

• Battery life

Cons:

• None at this time

Test Plan

Several fall backpacking trips into the east Idaho Frank Church Wilderness, Idaho Pioneer Mountains, and Oregon Eagle Cap Wilderness.  Elevations will be from 4500 ft (1400 m) to 9000 ft (2800 m) and temperatures from slightly below freezing to 60F (15C).   I may also be accompanying my brother on weekend hunting trips into central Idaho from mid October into muzzle loading season in late November.  As this is another opportunity to get into the back country and shoot pictures.

Spring backpacking will begin in late February with low canyon trips, and destinations are yet to be determined.

Testing of the unit during a three-week Mexican trip in January is scheduled.  Past visits to Mexico have been in a residence equipped with an under the counter UV purifier.  This year the residence does not have a water purification system, thus a perfect opportunity to try the AquaStar.

Tester Information & Background

Name: Andy Rad

Gender: Male

Age: 48

Height: 6 ft (1.83 m)

Weight: 165 lb (75 kg)

Email: aisrad@cableone.net

I started backpacking 21 years ago, most were short three-day trips, but are now generally five-day.  By backpacking, I’m referring to summer, winter camping, and fall hunting.  About half my trips are lightweight solo and the other half with my family.  I used to own a llama, thus allowing me to continue backpacking with my small children.  In recent years I’ve substituted a collie for the llama. When I’m not with the family I tend to take less-traveled trails or bushwhack the hard mountainous terrain in and around Idaho.  The majority of my trips are in central Idaho, with a few into northern Idaho, eastern Idaho, and eastern Oregon.