• The brightest flashlight is now the Imalent M18 which shines at 100,000 lumens. It costs about $670.
• Another very bright flashlight is the Acebeam X70 shines at 60,000 lumens. It costs around $550.

The Brightest Compact Flashlights and Headlamps

• The Acebeam X80-GT is the brightest compact flashlight — it shines with an impressive 32500 lumens. It costs around $280.
• The brightest headlamp is the Lupine Betty Rx14 — it shines with 5000 lumens and costs around $1095.
• The brightest flashlight that uses AA cells is the Nitecore EA81. It shines at 2150 lumens. It takes eight AA batteries and costs about $120.
• The brightest headlamp that uses AA cells is the Fenix 15-U — the maximum output is 900 lumens. See a full review.
• The brightest headlamp that uses 16580 cells is ThruNite TH30 — maximum output is 3350 lumens
• Surefire has released the Titan Plus, a new keychain flashlight that produces 300 lumens at the highest light mode. It costs about $81. See the full review.

Brightest Compact Light: Acebeam X-80-GT

The Acebeam X8-GT0 shines at 32500 lumens — impressive for such a compact light!

It runs on six 18650 rechargeable batteries and has a beam range of 525 meters.

It is waterproof and impact resistant to 1.2 meters.

Home page: Acebeam

Another Bright Compact Flashlight: Thrunite TN36 UT

The Thrunite TN36 UT6 is a compact flashlight that outputs an impressive 7300 lumens. It runs on four 18650 rechargeable batteries. It’s waterproof to IPX-8 Standard (1.5 meters) and impact resistant to 2 meters.

The Thrunite TN36 UT6 is available on Amazon for about $230

The Brightest LED Flashlight That Uses AA Batteries: Nitecore EA81

The brightest flashlight with AA batteries is the Nitecore EA81, which shines at 2000 lumens. It takes eight AA batteries and costs about $200.

It’s waterproof to IPX-8 Standard (1.5 meters) and impact resistant to 1.5 meters.

The Nitecore EA81 is available on Amazon for about $280.

The Brightest Keychain Flashlight: Titan Plus

Surefire has released the Titan Plus, a keychain flashlight that produces 300 lumens in its highest light mode. Before this release, the brightest keychain light produced about 80-120 lumens, so this threefold increase is significant.

I’ve purchased this light and will be testing it soon. The 300-lumen mode lasts about 1 hour using a AAA Ni-MH battery.

All Surefire flashlights are designed and built in the USA, although some components are still sourced outside the US. Surefire says:

We do import a few components – most notably, the finest light emitting diodes (LEDs) from top-notch manufacturers outside the country – to incorporate into our products. All of that said, we do rely on as many American-made parts and components as possible, and the assembly of these components is done under our watchful eye in the U.S. to ensure optimal quality.

The Titan Plus is available from Amazon for about $81.

The post The Brightest LED Flashlights appeared first on Reactual.

Jeans Made In The U.S.

• AG Jeans — Los Angeles, California — jeans (only selected products)
• Jean Shop — New York, New York —  jeans
• Levi Strauss & Co. — San Francisco, California —  jeans (only selected products)
• Rag & Bone — New York, New York —  jeans (only selected products)
• Raleigh Denim — Raleigh, North Carolina —  jeans
• Tellason — San Francisco, California —  jeans
• The Stronghold — Los Angeles, California —  jeans
• True Religion — jeans

Accessories Made In The U.S.

• American Optical — sunglasses, eyeglasses
• Bollman Hats — Adamstown, Pennsylvania — hats
• Buffalo Gold – Goodnight, Texas – Bison wool clothing
• David Hart & Co. — New York, New York — neckties
• Dodo Case — San Francisco, California — iPad / iPhone cases
• Edgar Leather — Tallahassee, Florida — leather goods
• Faribault Woolen Mills — Faribault, Minnesota — blankets
• Geier Glove Co. — Centralia, Washington — leather gloves
• The General Knot Co. — Bedford, New York — neckties
• Gfeller Casemakers — Meridian, Idaho — leather goods
• Noble Buffalo — St. Louis, Missouri — leather belts
• Leather Man Limited — Essex, Connecticut — belts, accessories
• Optimo Hats —Chicago, Illinois — hats
• Pierrepont Hicks — Minneapolis, Minnesota — ties, accessories
• Randolph Engineering — Randolph, Massachusetts — glasses, sunglasses
• Shuron — Greeneville, South Carolina — glasses, eyeglasses
• Solesu — Belleville, Illinois — leather belts
• Tanner Goods — Portland, Oregon — leather goods
• Wiley Belts — Charlottesville, Virginia — belts, leather goods

Luggage Made In The U.S.

• Accessories Unlimited — Portland, Maine — bags
• Acorn Bags — California — cycling bags
• Artifact Bags — Omaha, Nebraska — bags
• Bailey Works — Portsmouth, New Hampshire — bicycle bags
• Billykirk — Pennsylvania — bags, leather goods
• Beckel Canvas — Portland, Oregon — bags, tents, etc.
• Buzzline — Fort Pierce, Flordia — bags
• Dandux — Ellicott City, Maryland — bags
• Domke — Hauppauge, New York — camera bags, accessories
• Duluth Pack — Duluth, Minnesota — luggage
• Emil Erwin — Nashville, Tennessee — luggage, accessories
• Estex Mfg. Co. — Fairburn, Georgia — bags
• Equinox — Williamsport, Pennsylvania — bags, outdoor gear
• Frost River — Duluth, Minnesota — bags, tents
• Ghurka — New York, NY — bags, leather goods, accessories
• Goruck — Bozeman, Montana — bags, hats
• Johnson Woolen Mills — Johnson, Vermont — bags, clothing, accessories
• Joshu+Vela — San Francisco, California — bags
• J. W. Hulme Co. — St. Paul, Minnesota — briefcases, bags, accessories
• Klein Tools — Lincolnshire, Illinois — bags, accessories
• LL Bean — Freeport, Maine — luggage (only selected products)
• Makr — Orlando, Florida — luggage, accessories, leather goods
• Mer — Brooklyn, New York — luggage
• Moop — Pittsburg, Pennsylvania —bags
• Port Canvas — Kennebunkport, Maine — canvas bags
• Red Oxx — Billings, Montana—  adventure luggage
• Topo Designs — Denver, Colorado — bags
• Tough Traveler — Schenectady, New York — bags
• Triple Aught Design — San Francisco, California — bags, accessories
• Utility Canvas — Gardiner, New York — bags, accessories
• Wm. J. Mills & Co. — Greenport, New York — bags
• Wood&Faulk — Portland, Oregon — bags, accessories

Clothing Made In The U.S.

• Anderson-Little — Tamarac, Flordia — navy blazerslected products)
• Berle Manufacturing — Charleston, South Carolina — trousers
• Beyond Clothing — Seattle, Washington — outdoors clothing
• Bill’s Khakis — Reading, Pennsylvania — khaki pants, clothing
• Brooks Brothers — New York, New York — clothing, sportswear, footwear, accessories (only selected products)
• Bemidji Woolen Mills — Bemidji, Minnesota — clothing, blankets
• Camber — Norristown, Pennsylvania — tee shirts, sweatshirts
• Carhartt — Dearborn, Michigan — workwear, outerwear (only selected products)
• CC Filson — Seattle, Washington — outwear, bags, accessories (only selected products)
• CEGO — New York, New York — custom shirts
• Commonwealth Proper — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — shirts
• Centralia Knitting Mills — Centralia, Washington — outerwear
• Crescent Down Works — Seattle, Washington — outerwear
• Ebbets Field Flannels — Seattle, Washington — jackets, jerseys, accessories
• Engineered Garments — New York, New York — clothing, bags, accessories
• Epaulet — Brooklyn, New York — shirts, ties
• Gitman Brothers — Ashland, Pennsylvania — woven shirts
• Hamilton Shirts — Houston, Texas — custom shirts
• Hart Schaffner Marx — Chicago, Illinois — tailored clothing
• Hertling Trousers — Brooklyn, New York — pants
• Homage — Columbus, Ohio — tee shirts, sweatshirts, accessories
• Individualized — Perth Amboy, New Jersey — woven shirts
• Langlitz Leathers — Portland, Oregon — motorcycle jackets
• New England Shirt Company — Fall River, Massachusetts — shirts
• Oxxford Clothing — Chicago, Illinois — tailored clothing
• Pendleton Woolen Mills — Portland, Oregon — sportswear, blankets (only selected products)
• Pointer Brand — Bristol, Tennessee — clothing, denim, workwear
• Post Overalls — New York, NY — clothing
• Ramblers Way — Kennebunk, Maine — wool clothing
• REI — Kent, Washington — outdoor clothing  (only selected products – see their “Made In USA” section)
• Rogue Territory — Los Angeles, California — clothing, accessories
• Round House — Shawnee, Oklahoma — denim, workwear
• Self Edge — San Francisco, California — clothing
• Schott NYC — New York, New York — outerwear
• Spiewak — New York, New York — outerwear
• Sterlingwear — Boston, Massachusetts — outerwear
• Steven Alan — New York, New York — sportswear, accessories (only selected products)
• Stormy Kromer — Ironwood, Michigan — hats, clothing, outerwear
• Taylor Stitch — San Francisco, California — shirts
• Thom Browne — New York, New York — tailored clothing, sportswear
• Vanson Leathers — Fall River, Massachusetts — leather jackets
• Western Mountaineering — San Jose, California — down jackets, sleeping bags
• Wrath Arcane — Cleveland, Ohio — sportswear

Footware Made In The U.S.

• Allen-Edmonds — Port Washington, Wisconsin — shoes (only selected products)
• Altama — Atlanta, Georgia — boots
• Arrow Moccasin Company — Hudson, Massachusetts — footwear
• Chippewa Boots — Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin — footwear (only selected products)
• Danner — Portland, Oregon — footwear
• Darn Tough — Northfield, Vermont — socks
• E. Vogel — New York, New York — boots, shoes
• Fox River Mills — Osage, Iowa — socks
• Keen – Portland, Oregon – footwear — (only selected products)
• Limmer Boots — Intervale, New Hampshire — boots
• LL Bean — Freeport, Maine — boots
• New Balance — Boston, Massachusetts — athletic shoes (only selected products)
• Oak Street Bootmakers — Chicago, Illinois — shoes, boots
• Oliver Moore — New York, New York — custom shoes
• Perry Ercolino — Doylestown, Pennsylvania — custom shoes
• Quoddy — Perry, Maine — footwear
• Rancourt & Co. — Lewiston, Maine — footwear
• Red Wing — Red Wing, Minnesota — footwear (only selected products)
• Russell Moccasin Co. — Berlin, Wisconsin — footwear
• Townview Leather — Dexter, Maine — footwear
• Vincent & Edgar — New York, New York — bespoke shoes
• Weinbrenner — Merrill, Wisconsin — footwear
• Wesco Boots — Scappoose, Oregon — footwear
• White’s Boots — Spokane, Washington — footwear
• Wigwam — Sheboygan, Wisconsin — socks
• Wolverine – boots (only selected products)
• Yuketen — Hermosa Beach, California — boots, shoes

Tools Made In The U.S.

• All American Pressure Cooker — Wisconsin — Pressure Cookers
• Ambruster Tent Company — Springfield, Illinois — Canvas Tents
• Annin & Company — Roseland, New Jersey — Flags
• Baxter of California — Los Angeles, California — Men’s Grooming Products (only selected products)
• Benchmade — Oregon City, Oregon — Knives (only selected products)
• Buck Knives — Post Falls, Idaho — Knives
• Estwing — Rockford, Illinois — Axes / Wood Splitting
• Field Notes — Portland, Oregon — Notepads, Writing Instruments
• Fisher Space Pen — Boulder City, Nevada — Writing Instruments
• Klhip — Ketchum, Idaho — Nail Clippers
• The Good Flock — Portland, Oregon — Technology Cases
• Jacob Bromwell — Tempe, Arizona — pots, pans, accessories
• Klein Tools – only selected products
• Leatherman — Portland, Oregon — Multi-Tools
• Luma Labs — Portland, Oregon — Camera Straps
• PortaBrace — North Bennington, Vermont — Camera Bags
• Pocket Pin High Pro – Knoxville, Tennessee — Golf training equipment
• Rada Cutlery — Iowa — Kitchen Utensils
• School House Electric — Portland, Oregon — light fixtures, home accessories
• Scout Books — Portland, Oregon — Notebooks
• Springbar Tents — Salt Lake City, Utah — Canvas Tents
• Snap On Tools – only selected products
• Steelcase —  Grand Rapids, Michigan — Chairs
• Streamlight — Eagleville, Pennsylvania — Flashlights
• Surefire — Fountain Valley, California — Flashlights
• The United States Playing Card Company — Cincinnati, Ohio — Playing Cards
• Vornado Fans — Andover, Kansas — Fans
• Wiggy’s — Grand Junction, Colorado — Sleeping Bags, Outerwear
• Wilson Bohannan Co. — Marion, Ohio — Padlocks
• Woodman’s Pal — Boyertown, Pennsylvania — Machetes
• W.R. Case & Sons — Bradford, Pennsylvania — Knives
• Zeroll — Fort Pierce, Flordia — Ice Cream Scoops
• Zippo — Bradford, Pennsylvania — Lighters

Audio Gear Made In The U.S.

• Audio by Van Alstine — Woodbury, MN — preamplifiers, amplifiers, digital-to-analog converters, and phase inverters
• Ayre Acoustics, Inc. — Boulder, CO — full line of audio and video components
• Audeze — Headphones
• Car Audio Factory — Richmond, TX — subwoofer enclosers
• Carr Amplifiers — Pittsboro, NC — guitar amplifiers, made by guitarists for guitarists.
• CI Audio — Port Hueneme, CA — headphone amplifiers, monoblock amplifiers, and power supplies.
• Fargen Amps — Sacramento, CA — all tube (not solid-state) guitar and bass amplifiers
• Grado Labs — Brooklyn, NY — high-quality headphones and phono cartridges (their SR80-i is one of the best headphones under $100)
• KCS Loudspeakers — Sun Prairie, WI — custom horn loudspeakers
• Klipsch –  Hope, AR – audio gear
• Koss Headphones – Milwaukee, WI – headphones
• Manley Labs — Chino, CA — Hi-Fi and professional recording gear
• McIntosh Labs — Binghamton, NY: fine audio and home theater sound systems
• Mohu, Inc. — Raleigh, NC — makers of the LeafTM, a USA-made indoor HDTV antenna
• Moog Music — Ashville, NC — miniMoog Voyager analog monosynth, MoogerFooger guitar pedals, and Etherwave theremin
• Ohm Acoustics — Brooklyn, NY — high-end speakers for audio and home theater applications
• Orb Audio — Sherman Oaks, CA — Mod1 and Mod2 satellite speakers for flat screen and home theater applications, handmade in the USA. “Small Speakers for Smart People”
• Schitt Audio – Audio Gear
• Synthesizers.com — Tyler, TX — modular analog music synthesizers, assembled in USA with domestic and imported components
• SVS — Ohio — speakers and subwoofers for music and home theater
• Wavefront Technologies — Los Angeles, CA — theremin musical instruments and accessories
• Westone — Colorado — Earphones
• Woo Audio — New York — amps
• Zinky Electronics — Flagstaff, AZ — electric guitar amplifiers & accessories

Camping Equipment Made In The U.S.

• American Outdoors — coolers, boat totes, camp chairs, etc.
• Arc Flashlight —Phoenix, AZ — LED pocket flashlights that run on a single AAA battery
• Awl for All —Arlington Hts., IL — indispensable wooden-handled awl for repairing leather, canvas, and vinyl outdoor gear
• Butler Bags —Cedar City, UT — sleeping bags, bedrolls, and gear bags
• Cascade Designs —Seattle, WA — manufacturer of camping gear of all sorts (including Therm-a-rest self-inflating camping mattresses, MSR camping stoves)
• Equinox. —Williamsport, PA — makers of ultralight backpacking gear, including sleeping bags, tarps, ponchos packs, and totes
• EZ-Sales and Mfg. —Gardena, CA— American-made hammocks, folding aluminum camp chairs, cots, and canteens (only selected products)
• Feathered Friends —Seattle, WA — sleeping bags, outwear, and comforters
• Fuerte Cases —La Mesa, CA — waterproof protective cases for laptops, PDAs, firearms
• Kirkham’s Outdoor Products —Salt Lake City, UT — manufacturer of Springbar and AAA canvas wall tents
• Nalgene —Rochester, NY — water bottles, bike bottles, travel mugs, and other “hydration necessities” (only selected products)
• Northern Lites —Wausau, WI — high-tech, lightweight snowshoes for all uses, from racing to hiking
• Open Country Campware — aluminum camp ware kits, plates, pots, and canteens made by Metal Ware Corp. (Two Rivers, WI)
• Outdoor Research —Seattle, WA — shelter systems, headwear, gaiters/footwear, and storage systems/stuff sacks (only selected products)
• Princeton Tec — headlamps, outdoor gear, bikes lights
• Purcell Trench Mfg — Addy, WA —ultra-lightweight camping grills and tarp shelters
• REI — Kent, Washington — outdoor equipment  (only selected products – see their “Made In USA” section)
• TarpTent —Redwood City, CA —ultralight, mobile shelters made with US materials in Seattle, WA
• Tektite —Trenton,NJ — LED flashlights and lanterns, divelights, and marker lights

Bikes Made In The U.S.

• Ahearne — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• A.N.T. Bicycles — Holliston, Massachusetts — bicycles, bicycle accessories
• Bilenky Cycle Works — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — bicycles
• Brooklyn Machine Works — Brooklyn, New York — bicycles
• Calfee Design — La Selva Beach, California — bicycles
• Courage Bicycle MFG Co. — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• Cygolite  — bike lights
• Davidson — Seattle, Washington — bicycles
• Fast Boy Cycles — New York, New York — bicycles
• Gunnar Cycles — Waterford, Wisconsin — bicycle frames
• Hufnagel — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• Independent Fabrication — Somerville, Massachusetts — bicycles
• Ira Ryan Cycles — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• J.P. Weigle — Lyme, Connecticut — bicycles
• Lightspeed — Chattanooga, Tennessee — bicycles
• MAP — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• Metrofiets — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• Moots Cycles — Steamboat Springs, Colorado — bicycles
• NiteRider  — bike lights
• Outlier — Brooklyn, New York — cycling clothing
• Pereira — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• Phil Wood —San Jose, California — bicycle components
• Princeton Tec — bikes lights
• Richard Sachs Cycles — Chester, Connecticut — bicycles
• Seven Cycles — Watertown, Massachusetts — bicycles
• Signal Cycles — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• Six-Eleven Bicycle Co. — Roanoke, Virginia — Bicycles
• Steelman Cycles — Redwood City, California — bicycles
• Strawberry — Portland, Oregon — bicycles
• Tet Cycles — West Branch, Iowa — bicycles
• Townsend Bicycles — Monrovia, California — bicycles
• Waterford Precision Bicycles — Waterford, Wisconsin — bicycle frames
• Worksmen Bicycles — Queens, New York — bicycles

The post A List Of Goods Still Made In The USA appeared first on Reactual.

Schott Zwiesel Glassware

Schott Zwiesel is a German company known for glassware innovation since 1872. They create break-resistant, chip-resistant, and scratch-resistant stemware. The crystal glass has added titanium for strength and zirconium for crystal clarity, making it dishwasher safe.

I have their glassware at home — the pieces are versatile and can be used daily, yet they are elegant enough to use on special occasions. They are slightly expensive, but the investment is worth it.

Schott Zwiesel is available on Amazon.

Duralex Picardie Tumblers

Duralex has been manufacturing tempered glassware in France since 1929. Their Picardie Tumblers are known for lasting decades — they will bounce several times when dropped on the floor and survive without a crack. The tumblers can also withstand a sudden thermal shock — the temperate glass can go from -4° F to 212° F without breaking. This means they can be used to drink hot beverages. Duralex glasses are also lighter and more elegant than similar tempered glass products.

Duralex went into court-ordered liquidation bankruptcy in 2006 but has since partnered with Emile Henry, an old French manufacturer of cooking ware, to return to production.

Duralex doesn’t offer any product warranty beyond a 21-day return policy. However, we found no tempered glass tumblers with an extended warranty.

Durlaex Tumblers are available from Amazon for about $18 for a set of six.

Fortessa Fortaluxe Vitrified Dinnerware

Fortessa is a dinnerware company line created by the German company Schott Zwiesel. Fortessa specializes in vitrified china dinnerware. The china is reinforced with alumina or magnesium oxide for durability and thermal shock resistance. The dinnerware is called Fortaluxe SuperWhite, and it is used in many restaurants around the world and is reasonably priced.

You can find Fortessa dinnerware on Amazon.

Pyrex Bowls

Pyrex is another brand of tempered glass products renowned for their durability. The Pyrex brand was introduced by Corning Incorporated in 1915. Today, Pyrex is owned by World Kitchen and Pyrex glass products are manufactured in Charleroi, Pennsylvania. Recently, there have been rumors circulating about Pyrex products. The rumors suggest that Pyrex products are made with inferior materials, prone to breakage, and manufactured in China. However, this lengthy article on the myth-busting website Snopes.Com, concludes that the rumors are false. Here is an excerpt from the article:

While it is literally true that the material used in manufacturing Pyrex brand glass bakeware has changed from borosilicate glass to soda lime glass, the brand’s current owner, World Kitchen, claims that changeover began back in the 1940s and long antedates Corning’s 1998 sale of the brand, stating that “The Charleroi [Pennsylvania] plant has produced PYREX glass products out of a heat-strengthened (tempered) soda lime glass for about 60 years, first by our predecessor Corning Incorporated, and since 1998 by World Kitchen. In fact, since the 1980’s, most, if not all consumer glass bakeware manufactured in the U.S. for consumers has been made of soda lime glass. Consumers should know that soda lime glass, such as that used to make PYREX glass bakeware, is significantly more resistant to breaking on impact than borosilicate glass and comparably resistant to breakage caused by severe temperature changes.”

World Kitchen itself states that it has received complaints from only “a very small number of consumers” about unexpected breakage. It notes that the Consumer Safety Product Commission has found no safety issue with Pyrex glass bakeware.

Pyrex Bowls are available from Amazon.

Le Creuset French Ovens

Le Creuset has been producing handcrafted French Ovens in their foundry in Northern France since 1925. Their cookware is made with enameled cast iron and is known for lasting decades. The Le Creuset foundry uses standard sand-casting methods to produce its cookware. After hand finishing, items are sprayed with two coats of enamel, and each is fired at 800 °C. The enamel becomes resistant to damage during regular use.

Le Creuset cookware has a lifetime warranty that the products are free from defects in material and workmanship.

If you want an equivalent American-made product, see Lodge Dutch Ovens. We choose to feature the Le Creuset French ovens because, based on our research, they have an edge in quality.

Le Creuset French Ovens are available from Amazon for about $235.

The post A List Of Break-Resistent Glassware and Dinnerware appeared first on Reactual.

• For well water or other problematic water, I recommend Big Berkey drip filters. These filters use a combination of ceramic and carbon block filtration. Overall, they are the least expensive type of filters to maintain.
• If you are only interest in a pitcher filter — this BWT filter will remove most contaminants
• If you are able to spend $1500 to $3000, “whole house” filters are the an inexpensive long terms option. These filters are installed at the pipe where the municipal water pipes enters your home. I recommend the whole house filter by Pure Effect.

The Contaminants You Want To Remove

Typically, you want to remove these contaminants from your water:

• Toxic metals (Lead, Mercury, Aluminium, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, etc.)
• Additives (Chlorine, Chloramines, Fluoride)
• Chlorination By-Products (Trihalomethanes or THMs)
• VOCs and other Organic Compounds (Pesticides, Herbicides, Pharmaceuticals, Fuels)
• Bacteria and viruses (Giardia, Cryptosporidium, etc.)
• Radioactive substances (Radon and Uranium, etc.)

If you use municipal water, you will usually find these contaminants:

• Chlorine
• Chloramines
• Fluoride
• THMs (Trihalomethanes)
• VOCs (volatile organic compounds)

If you use well water, these are the most common contaminants you’ll find:

• Particulate matter (dirt, bits of leaves, etc.)
• Bacteria and viruses
• VOCs (volatile organic compounds)
• Radioactive substances

The Effectiveness Of Different Types Of Water Filters

Pitcher Filters

Pitcher-style filters such as Brita filters are inexpensive units, making them very popular with consumers. However, in the long term, they are actually one of the most expensive option. The filters cartridges require frequent replacement — the cost for 40 gallons is $7-10 each, or $130-$190 for 750 gallons.

Almost all pitcher-style filters use GAC or “granulated activated carbon” as the filtration medium. Typically, GAC is coconut husks that have been heated to a high temperature in the absence of oxygen and then granulated. These filters do remove some chlorine and hydrogen sulfide (rotten eggs odor) — but are not effective at removing VOCs, metals, pesticides or fluoride. Overall, they are not very effective water filters.

Faucet Filters

Filters that attach to your kitchen faucet are very similar to Pitcher Filters, but they do filter a little better than the pitcher-style filters. However, they have the same drawbacks — they are expensive to maintain and they do not remove many contaminants. You must replace filters every 100 gallons at $20-$40 each or $140-$180 for 700 gallons.

Colin Ingram, author of the The Drinking Water Book rates all faucet filters no higher than “Acceptable”.

Gravity-Fed Drip Filters

In my opinion, the best water filters are gravity-fed drip water filters. These filters are excellent at removing chlorine, chlorination by-products, fluoride, VOCs, pesticides, particulates and pharmaceuticals. These filters use “candle” type filters, which are widely available and can be customized to your specific filtration needs.

Gravity-fed filters require no electricity to operate — water is filtered as it drips from the upper chamber to the lower chamber. Because the water is filtered slowly, the filtration is much more effective than a faucet-mounted filter. Generally, slow filtration methods tend to be best.

Berkey is best-known drip filter manufacturer. They make good quality filters. You might also consider ProPur filters. Their latest filter, the ProOne G 2.0, will remove fluoride — including hydrofluorosilicic acid (few filters remove this contaminant).

These filters use carbon block filtration, which works by the process of adsorption (different than absorption). In this process, the carbon attracts certain contaminants at the molecular level, and the contaminants become attached to the surface of the carbon. Once the surface of the carbon is full, the filter must be thrown out and replaced. However, the ProPur filters can be periodically scrubbed, and thus reused for years.

These filter are certified to NSF/ANSI standards #42 (test for chlorine, taste, odor and particulates), NSF Standard #53 (tests for Cryptosporidium, Giardia, lead, VOCs and MTBE) and NSF Standard #61 (tests that toxins aren’t leached into water). They are manufactured in England.

Berkey filter are available from Amazon for about $300.

Overall Rating: Excellent

Reverse Osmosis Filters

Reverse Osmosis filters use a membrane which removes many contaminants from water. They are usually paired with a Granulated Activated Charcoal filter to remove chlorine. Most reverse osmosis filters are installed under the sink and have a holding tank. The semipermeable membrane separates many contaminates (which usually have a larger particle size that water) from the water and rejects a large amount of water in the process. The result is a waste of several gallons of water for every gallon filtered and many naturally occurring minerals (including calcium and magnesium) are also removed from the water.

However, they are quite effective filters, in terms of removing contaminants. However, they do not reduce VOCs or pesticides (unless a Carbon Block filter is included). They can take up to an hour to filter one gallon of water and the filters need to be replaced regularly.

If you want to go this route, I recommend the iSpring Reverse Osmosis System, which is quite reliable.

Overall Rating: Very Good

Countertop Distillers

Countertop distillers are effective water purifiers, but they take some time to distill water (for example 5 hours to distill 1 gallon). They also require electricity to run, and they give off some heat and the integrated fans make some noise. Also, most distillers do not remove VOCs (like benzene) because they have a lower boiling point that water. So they will vaporize together with the stream, resulting in a contaminated distillate.

Countertop distiller that get a rating of “Excellent” from Colin Ingram in the The Drinking Water Book are: Megahome Countertop Distiller, Waterwise 4000 and Waterwise 8800, Kenmore 34480 and Pure Water Mini-Classic.

Megahome Countertop Water Distiller

This distiller is sold under many brand names — it’s the most widely distributed distiller in the world. It has many quality components despite being inexpensive. It produces 1 gallon of water in 5 hours. The water is passed through a small granular carbon filter. There’s a sealed connections from the distiller to the water collection container, so there is minimal risk of contamination by air. The unit has a stainless steel boiling chamber that is easily accessible for cleaning.

The Megahome Countertop Distiller is available from Amazon for about $150.

Waterwise 4000 Countertop Distiller

This is a more powerful version of the distiller listed above. It has the same features but produces 1 gallon of distilled water in 4 hours. Also received an “Excellent” rating from Colin Ingram in the The Drinking Water Book.

The Waterwise 4000 is available from Amazon for about $320.

Overall Rating: Excellent

The post The Best Water Filters appeared first on Reactual.

If you want to remove both chloramines and chlorine from your shower, I recommend a vitamin-C based shower filter, like the Sonaki In-Line Filter

This combination filter is also available — it incorporates a sediment filter and a Vitamin C filter into one unit.

The Details

Almost all popular shower filters available today only remove 20% – 80% of free chlorine (not total combined chlorine) from your shower. This includes shower filters that are certified by the NSF #177 Standard — unfortunately this standard only indicates that a filter will remove 50% of free chlorine in the water.

Also, many cities now treat water with chloramines instead of chlorine. There are no conventional shower filters that will remove more than a small amount of chloramines from your shower. The only way to remove chloramines is to use a Vitamin-C based shower filter which are only made in Korea and Japan.

Why Filter Your Shower?

Because your skin absorbs substances while showering. Typically, 60% of the chlorine that most people absorb daily comes from showering in chlorinated water. Chlorine damages your hair and skin.

Shower water also contains things like heavy metals and VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Ideally, all these things should all be filtered out, but filtering water at the showerhead is problematic, because the water is typically hot and under high pressure, making filtration difficult. Carbon filters, which are normally excellent at remove chlorine, cannot handle the volume and heat of shower water.

Because of these problems, most shower filter makers rely on a metallic medium called KDF. Shower filter vendors typically show impressive charts to demonstrate long-term removal of chlorine. However, if you read the tests carefully, you’ll see that they apply to “free chorine” (chlorine that has not combined with other constituents in water), and the reality is that KDF-filters have little effect on “total chlorine” (combined chlorine). In fact, chlorine is often added at the water plant as a blend with ammonia called “chloramine.” KDF is not effective at removing chloramine or combined chlorine.

Here are the details on my recommended shower filters:

Vitamin C Shower Filters

Vitamin C shower filters are very effective in removing chlorine and chloramines from shower water. Chloramine or NH₂Cl  (a combination of chlorine and ammonia) is now commonly being used in place of chlorine for disinfection, but chloramines are not easily removed from water. Carbon filters are virtually useless in showers, because they do not work when the water is warm, and they also get clogged fairly quickly. KDF filters also don’t perform well in hot water, and they don’t remove chloramines. However, Vitamin C filters can remove chloramines effectively from water. To back this up, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission now states on their website that only Vitamin C can be used to remove chlormaines from municipal water. Here is the quote from the Commission:

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) has recently been included in AWWA Standard (AWWA, 2005b) as one of the methods for dechlorination of disinfected water mains. SFPUC and other utilities have used Vitamin C for dechlorination prior to environmental discharges of chlorinated and chloraminated water. Since ascorbic acid is weakly acidic, the pH of water may decrease slightly (Tikkanen et al., 2001). Ascorbic acid has been used for a long time as one of the dechlorinating agents for preservation of chlorinated or chloraminated water samples for laboratory analysis.

The full document can be found here.

Vitamin C filters are simple in design — they contain a solid block of Vitamin C (ascorbic acid), and water runs through the filter and comes into contact with the Vitamin C. The Vitamin C neutralizes about 99% of the chlorine and chloramines in the water, and their effectiveness does not diminish until the Vitamin C is completely used up.

My recommendation for a Vitamin C showerhead is the Sonaki In-Line Filter

The filters last about 2-4 months before they need replacing, depending on how many showers you take. The filter is transparent, so you can see when the Vitamin C has run out.

Refills for the Sonaki filters are priced at $37 for 5 filters.

Sprite HOB-CM Brass Shower Filter

If you are just interested in removing free chlorine and sediment from your water, my recommendation is to use a Sprite Shower Filter. This filter is NSF Certified to standard #177 for shower filtration. It removes most free chlorine and some combined chlorine, sediment, hydrogen sulfide, iron oxide. Besides the fact that it does not remove chloramines, this is pretty good filter, and it is constructed with brass instead of the usual plastic.

The filter comes with a one year warranty, it is rated to filter 20,000 gallons or last 12 months, which ever comes first. It should be flipped half-way through the year. If the O-ring on the filter breaks, Sprite will replace it for free.

You can get the Sprite Shower Filter on Amazon for around $48.

See also my review of low-flow shower heads — these shower heads can be used in conjunction with these filters.

The post The Best Shower Filter appeared first on Reactual.

• ZTS MBT-1 can test more than 30 different battery types and gives meaningful, accurate readings.
• The ZTS Mini is an affordable and portable alternative. It tests 15 battery types.

The Details

Musicians, professional photographers, hobbyists, parents, and anyone else who is a frequent battery user should invest in a quality professional-grade battery tester. Be cautious of the slew of cheap Chinese battery testers available for sale on the internet. These products do not give an accurate reading, and instead will do little more than tell you whether or not your battery is dead.

Consider the Amprobe, the best selling battery tester on Amazon. It is available for $7, which sounds too good to be true because it is. As expected, it is flimsily constructed and gives iffy reports on rechargeable batteries. As many reviewers noted, it is only good at identifying dead batteries. Worse, it gives inaccurate battery readings and gives artificially high “good” readings on batteries that are on the precipice of death. That can cause unfortunate mix ups, like taking a battery “good” on charge to an important photo-shoot, only for the flash to die after a few snaps.

Luckily, ZTS makes a quality tester that gives a dependable reading. This battery tester is manufactured here in the United States and gives an accurate measurement in a very short period of time. Just place the battery on the nickel-plated brass contact and wait for the bar at the top to show what percentage charge the battery holds.

It tests almost every battery type, including NiMH, Lithium-Ion, Alkaline Lithium, Coin Cells, CR1620 Cells. It has a row of six LED testers that gives percentage reading of how much life the battery has left.

This is not a portable tester — it weighs over a pound and is 8 inches tall.

A Portable Option

If you want a professional quality battery tester that can fit in a purse or glove box, ZTS has the MINIMBT. The Mini is exactly half the MBT: half the size, it can test half the number of batteries (15), and is half the price.

The Mini tests 1.5v alkaline (AA, AAA, C, D, N), 1.2v NiMH/NiCd, 3v photo lithium, and 9v alkaline batteries.

The post The Best Battery Tester appeared first on Reactual.

Panasonic’s Eneloop Pro AA Batteries.

These are made with Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH) chemistry and have low standard discharge, meaning they can hold a charge for years.

AmazonBasics AA High-Capacity Rechargeable Batteries are a reliable low-cost alternative. They are about 30% cheaper than Panasonic cells, but last only 75% as long per charge.

The Details

Panasonic eneloop pro batteries are high-capacity lower-cycle AA battery popular with electronics reviewers and photography enthusiasts. First launched back in 2006, Sanyo eneloop batteries (since acquired by Panasonic) use eco-friendly NiMH cells designed for use with a wide-variety of products, ranging from flashlights to cameras. Up until the eneloop’s debut, rechargeable batteries were prohibitively expensive and couldn’t hold a charge for anywhere near the length of their alkaline competitors.

Eneloop changed that, but still lacked a little when compared to alkaline batteries or newer competitors. Panasonic’s upgraded option, eneloop pro, can maintain a charge for an extended period of time, with a capacity of 2,550 mAh and Low Self Discharge (LSD) technology. LSD tech is thanks to a highly-durable super lattice alloy that prolongs battery life with increased hydrogen stability that leads a stable voltage output and reduced self-discharge. Expect an eneloop pro to still have 85% of its charge after a year and 70% of its charge for ten years.

What really sets eneloop pro apart is the increased performance in high drain devices, such as DSLR cameras and ultra-bright flashlights. Eneloop pro lasts longer and omits more power in these high power consumption devices when compared to similar NiMH rechargeable batteries on the market. Simply put, these are the best choice for photographers and survivalists.

The added power comes at a payoff, however. Eneloop Pro batteries are among the most expensive NiMH batteries on the market, and last for fewer lifetime charges. Panasonic estimates that an eneloop pro can be recharged 500 times, but number is even lower in reality. Compare that to Powerex’s Imedion AA, which boast 1000 recharges.

Another Option

AmazonBasics offers pre-charged high-capacity NiMH batteries for an affordable price. They are rated at 2400mAh, giving them a longer run-time than similarly priced competitors. They are ideal for everyday uses in low drain devices, like TV remotes and electronic alarm clocks.

Wirecutter found that AmazonBasics did not perform as well in high power devices, such as flashlights and digital cameras.

The post The Best Rechargeable AA Batteries appeared first on Reactual.

Yaks are primarily raised by nomadic Tibetan and Mongolian families. Their wool is combed (not shorn) once per year in the springtime when the animals shed their winter coat.

Some advantages of yak wool:

• Yak wool is 66% more breathable and 40% warmer than merino, weight for weight
• Wicks moisture efficiently and allows sweat vapor to escape from your skin, so you won’t overheat or feel clammy
• Naturally anti-bacterial fabric smells fresher longer
• Feels soft like cashmere – and there’s no itch

The major producers of yak wool clothing are: Kora, Khunu and Handcombed.

The post Underrated Fiber Series: Yak Wool appeared first on Reactual.