FAQ's

When the Activated Carbon Filter is no longer effectively removing contaminants, water can still pass through. Try to keep track of roughly how many litres have been purified through your product. Other than keeping track of usage, you may find that water from your LifeSaver product is less palatable after time. This is a sign that you should replace or at least remove your Activated Carbon Filter.

The Activated Carbon Filters vary in size among each of our products. As such, they each have a different claim for how many litres they are effective up to: LifeSaver Wayfarer - 100 Litres LifeSaver Liberty - 100 Litres LifeSaver Cube - 100 Litres LifeSaver Bottle - 250 Litres LifeSaver Jerrycan - 500 Litres

We recommend storing unused Activated Carbon Filters in an air tight container, until you are ready to use them.

Yes. We would recommend removing the Activated Carbon Filter if you have exceeded the number of litres stated for your product or the water being produced is starting to noticeably taste or smell worse. Additionally, if you are putting your LifeSaver product into long term storage we suggest discarding your Activated Carbon Filter at this point. When the time comes that you will use your product again, you can fit a new Activated Carbon Filter or use without one.

The Activated Carbon Filters improve taste and odour and have been tested to show excellent and consistent heavy metal and chemical reduction for their stated life, over a range of sample contaminants such as chlorine, lead, nickel and cadmium.

Yes. The Activated Carbon Filter is an optional extra. The LifeSaver® water filter will continue to remove all microbiological contamination with or without the activated carbon filter in place. It is the UF Cartridge which protects the user from microbiological contaminants.

LifeSaver products have two stages of filtration. The water first passes through the Ultrafiltration (UF) Cartridge and then through an optional Activated Carbon Filter. These filters perform different jobs. Please read the following UF Cartridge and Activated Carbon Filter sections to learn what each is responsible for removing. In short, the UF Cartridge removes physical (insoluble) contaminants above approximately 15 nanometres (0.015 microns) in size. This includes sand, dirt, microplastics and all waterborne microbiological contaminants i.e viruses, bacteria and cysts/protozoa. The Activated Carbon Filters absorb chemicals and metals such as chlorine, lead, nickel and cadmium.

• Sea Water
• Coffee or Wine
• Grey Water
• Microcystin
• Urine (due to salt levels)

While it is possible to store dirty water in your LifeSaver product, this may reduce the life of your UF Cartridge. If you plan to store your product in the medium to long term, we recommend cleaning your product as detailed in the relevant Product Manual and then storing with just a small amount of clean water inside. Change this water every couple of months. This water keeps the membranes hydrated. If the membranes dry out, the UF Cartridge will need replacing. Even in normal use, we would recommend only using the cleanest water available. If the only available source is very dirty, try to pre-filter the water by any means before putting it through your product. Protecting your purifier in this way will help preserve both the flow rate and the life of your UF Cartridge.

Our products do not use Graphene or any 2D materials to purify water. LifeSaver do have an exclusive partnership with researchers at Manchester University's National Graphene Institute. LifeSaver have always been at the forefront of the portable water purification industry and this work is a continuation of this. We hope to utilise these new technologies to make our products even more effective for our customers. Watch this space.

For LifeSaver products to purify water, the water must pass through our UF Cartridges. Because the pores in our UF Cartridges are so small, pressure is required to force the water through. Most of our products utilise a built-in hand pump to generate the required pressure. While our larger LifeSaver C1 or LifeSaver C2 use either the force of gravity to generate the required pressure, by connecting to a water tank stored at least 2 metres above it, or a pressurised municipal water supply.

Before your first use, you must prime the product, following the instructions in the Product Manual. Once primed, there are no wait times involved. Simply FILL - PUMP - DRINK

FailSafe technology is what we call the fact that our products protect their users from ever drinking microbiologically contaminated water, when operated correctly. They do this in 3 ways:

1. Purifying the water (removing viruses, bacteria and cysts/protozoa)
2. Consistent efficacy from first to last drop
3. When the service life of the UF Cartridge has been fulfilled, the pores will be fully blocked by contaminants and the UF Cartridge will completely stop passing water

Membrane manufacturers cannot specify an exact, uniform pore size across all of their membranes, due to variance which occurs in membrane production. It is for this reason that LifeSaver can only suggest an approximate size, one that we can safely assume based on the size of the contaminants we effectively remove, demonstrated in independent testing. LifeSaver can guarantee that the membranes used in our products have a spread of pore sizes that ensure LifeSaver products exceed the microbiological reduction requirements of NSF P231 & EPA guidelines. LifeSaver believe this to be the most important measurement of water purification effectiveness. As such, we believe all our membranes have a pore size of approximately 15 nanometres (0.015 microns).

We have a detailed explanation of this on our blog, which you can read here. However, to put it simply; A water filter removes bacteria and cysts/protozoa. A water purifier removes bacteria, cysts/protozoa AND viruses.

Please read the relevant Product Manuals, under each listing. Most importantly, don't let your cartridge membranes dry out, always keep a little clean water in your product between uses, and regularly clean it, as per the Product Manual.

3 years for our standard products, but at least 10 years if foil sealed. The shelf life is quoted as minimum 3 years on all our products from the point of purchase, from an Approved Reseller. For all products this is based on the product being stored in cool and dry conditions. In good storage conditions the life of an unused product will be far more. Good storage conditions means, most importantly, that the pump has been screwed up tight and the outlet closed off. The filter has therefore been sealed inside the vessel. The products should be kept out of direct sunlight and away from extremes of temperature. It is impossible to give a finite life in perfect conditions, but we would say up to 5 years is quite feasible. The only way to know, is to prime the cartridge and perform a membrane integrity check (see relevant Product Manual). The Activated Carbon Filters are an absorbent, so even in their plastic film they are absorbing molecules from the air. Therefore we would not suggest that their useful shelf life will ever be much more than quoted. Again, it is dependent on their storage conditions. This guarantee is given from the point the customer purchases from an Approved Reseller, not from the date of manufacture. Purchases outside of Approved Resellers cannot be warranted, as their storage conditions will not have been approved by LifeSaver and their product stocking turnaround not monitored.

Unless stated otherwise, orders are processed daily and despatched from the UK within 5-7 days. (Orders received 8:00am - 4:30pm UTC Monday - Friday) Delivery will then take 3-5 days worldwide from despatch.

Any applicable duties, taxes and shipping will be calculated and charged at checkout, we will then dispatch your order using Delivered Duty Paid ‘DDP’ delivery terms (Subject to Incoterms 2020).  

Clean your LifeSaver product before re-use, refer to the relevant Product Manual for cleaning instructions. We would recommend fitting a new Activated Carbon Filter before re-use, but this is optional.

If you’ve already primed and used your product but now won’t be using it for one month or more, we recommend discarding the Activated Carbon Filter. Then clean your LifeSaver product as per the cleaning instructions, detailed in the relevant Product Manual. Put a little clean water back in and store in a cool and dry environment away from direct sunlight. Replace the clean water every couple of months.

We test our products at independent labs using the protocols created by NSF (National Sanitation Foundation). NSF P231 – Microbiological Water Purifiers & NSF P248 Military Operation Microbiological Water Purifiers. It is important that you check that your purifier has been tested to the full protocol of NSF P231. This is a 10.5 day test that uses multiple sources of water (including imitated sewage), to stress the purifier and check it will work for you in all scenarios. All our test results are displayed on our website for the consumer to view, read them here. Please be aware that products that claim to “Meet the microbiological reduction requirements of NSF P231 or EPA guide” have likely not done the full test, but claim to meet the standards required after just one day. They need to meet the standards after 10 days of the test in order to be claimed safe for use in the back country.

This means the Dome Valve (rubber bung at the bottom of the pump tube) is not sealing correctly. It normally means it is fouled with some algae or debris and just needs cleaning. In the worst case scenario, the valve may be damaged and might need replacing. To remove the Dome Valve, simply pry underneath the outer edge of the valve and pull directly out of the end of the pump. Now rinse under clean water and scrub clean. Also clean the end of the pump. Check both components for any splits, cracks or sign of wear. To reassemble, simply align the Dome Valve with the centre of the pump and push until fully seated and flat in the bottom of the pump tube.

As a minimum you should fit a 50-micron sediment filter. You can also fit wound PP cartridges, which are effective but will require regular maintenance & replacement. You could also fit a carbon filter. This will serve as a pre-filter and remove chemicals / metals and improve taste and odour. This is a system with a cleanable element. It means spares on-site are not required and it can be easily cleaned and re-installed: www.twistiiclean.com

It is actually a design intention and forms part of the patent claim for how the Jerrycan is formed to deal with high pressure. Due to the way the Jerrycan is moulded it needs a release angle enabling it to be removed from the tool. Therefore, it is like a very shallow V form meeting in the middle when the can is viewed end on. If it wasn’t like this, the Jerrycans wouldn’t be able to be moulded in the way they are and would not be robust enough. Therefore it has some shallow block-like feet on the bottom to help it stand upright out-of-the-box, which it does in normal use. These are kept to a minimum size to allow moulding. However when a can is highly pressurised and left like this for a period of time, the Jerrycan will start to expand and the v-form straightens, this is more prevalent when pumped hard in warm environments and when left for extended periods (which is advised against in the Manual). Therefore, this deformation is quite normal and avoidable if always de-pressurised.

If you pass high turbidity water through your product, you could block a filter very quickly. Conversely, if your feed water is predominantly clean, it will last beyond the filter life projections we state. Remember, clear looking water is not necessarily safe water, as bacteria and virus are not visible to the naked eye. So it would be possible for even a clear water feed to actually be blocking your filter significantly. However, if the filter does block, that is a sign that it is doing the job you bought it for. We recommend only using the cleanest water available. If the only available source is very dirty, try to pre-filter the water by any means before putting it through your product. Protecting your purifier in this way will help preserve both the flow rate and the life of your UF Cartridge. It is also possible that you have inadvertently let the membranes in your filter dry out. If this is the case, your UF Cartridge will need replacing. You must always keep a small amount of clean water inside your product. This water will keep the membranes hydrated, preventing them from drying out.

If the water is coming out green this does not mean that it is not being effectively purified. Our purifiers use hollow fibre membranes with a pore size of approximately 15 nanometres (0.015 microns). The colour you are seeing coming through is probably just dye in the water. Most likely from algae or detritus breaking down. This dye is in solution of the fluid and will be around 1-5 nanometres in size. Therefore, our UF Cartridge could not remove it. It is not dangerous, but may result in bad taste or smell in the water.

There are two types of contaminants in aqueous solutions, dissolved and suspended. 1. Suspended contaminants, are things like sticks, leaves, virus, bacteria and cysts (all microbiological contaminants fall into this category). 2. Dissolved contaminants are things like minerals, heavy metals, chemicals and salts. TDS meters measure 'Total dissolved solids' in the solution. So it's measuring (fairly roughly) the amount of minerals, salts chlorine etc. in your water. LifeSaver filters only remove contaminants in suspension of the solution. Hence 99.9999% Bacteria, 99.99% Virus and cyst removal. This is important, as LifeSaver filters do not de-mineralise the water. You need minerals in your water for your body to remain healthy. Otherwise you will leech minerals from other parts of your body to make up for it. You should not drink de-mineralised water on a regular basis! Importantly, that TDS meter does not measure microbiological contamination. So even if there were viruses or bacteria in the samples, you could still get a 0 TDS reading, while the water would actually be microbiologically unsafe. As for the reason the reading is actually higher out of the LifeSaver product. Presumably the LifeSaver UF Cartridge is quite new and therefore recently primed. When LifeSaver products leave the factory, they are glycerine infused (this is a mix of sugar and water). The glycerine holds the tiny pores open and sticks in there to give the product a shelf-life. When you prime the filter you wash ≈90% of this out, to give you the flow rate. However over the first few 100 litres, traces of glycerine (≈10%) will still be being dissolved by the water flowing through. Therefore you may see small increases in TDS during this period.

The UF Cartridge uses hollow fibre membrane technology to purify water. These membranes contain microscopic pores which are large enough for water to pass through, but tiny enough to trap contaminants over 15 nanometres (0.015 microns) in size. As you use your LifeSaver product, the pores will gradually block up with contaminants. This means over time the water molecules have fewer and fewer pores available to pass through. This results in a reduction in flow rate. We recommend cleaning your product thoroughly, following the instructions in the Product Manual. This may restore the flow rate for a while. Eventually nearly all the pores will be blocked and the flow rate will slow down to a rate which is  unacceptable to you. At this point you should change your UF Cartridge. The beauty of this technology is that the water which passes through the UF Cartridge is equally safe from the first litre to the last. The fact that water will no longer pass through the product when it's no longer effective is a feature we refer to as FailSafe.

The UF Cartridges vary in size among each of our products. They each have a different claim for how many litres they will purify up to. These claims are based on 'best case' scenarios, as everyone will use their products in different ways, using varied types of source water: LifeSaver Wayfarer - 5,000 Litres LifeSaver Liberty - 2,000 Litres LifeSaver Cube - 5,000 Litres LifeSaver Bottle - 6,000 Litres LifeSaver Jerrycan - 20,000 Litres

The UF Cartridges remove all contaminants larger than approximately 15 nanometres such as sand, mud and microplastics, as well as, most importantly, all waterborne microbiological organisms (viruses, bacteria and cysts/protozoa), including:

• Covid
• Rotavirus
• Giardia
• Norovirus
• E-coli
• Listeria
• Cryptosporidium
• Salmonella
• Hepatitis A
• Tuberculosis
• Polio
• Campylobacter
• Flukes
• Cholera
• SARS
• Roundworms
• Typhoid
• Ebola
• Flatworms
• Leptospirosis
• Microsporidia
• Entamoeba histolytica
• Shigella
• Legionellosis

No, a UF Cartridge must be fitted whenever a LifeSaver product is used. It is the UF Cartridge which protects the user from microbiological contaminants and purifies the water.

Cheap products, specifically our LifeSaver Bottles, that are appearing online (eBay and Amazon mainly) are ex-NATO stock that is up to 10 years old. These have been bought at auction by wholesalers. Our advice is always to replace the main filter and carbon (if required). They are notoriously badly stored and well-travelled so should not be trusted.

All our products come with a 2 years manufacturer warranty from new, when purchased from us or an Approved Reseller, for manufacturing defects.

If you purchased your LifeSaver product through Amazon or any other 3rd party seller, your enquiry should be directly through them. If you have exhausted these channels, you can contact us on info@iconlifesaver.com and we will try to help if possible.