Reddit reviews SHTFandGO Ceramic Dome Water Filter Element with Silver for Anti-Bacterial Purification (1)

So, water is extremely heavy and hard to lift and load and because it's a solvent it isn't a great idea to store it in any container for a long period of time. Other people have mentioned this.

Honestly, for the budget you are talking about, I would look into a single water can you keep empty and look into going "modular" with a filtration setup and some food grade buckets. You can buy a dome filter off amazon that is silver impregnated for $11. You can easily pack one or two into the footprint of a bucket along with fittings, tubing, tools and other things that would be useful in other situations.

When things get bad, you stop and scoop some water to filter through your rig and keep trucking. You also have extra hose around in case you need to make repairs or have a makeshift tourniquet. Etc.

More useful water containers than that Jerry can are going to be personal nalgene or similar bottles for everyone with you (which are also good for keeping supplies dry) and possibly some of those new fangled stainless vacuum flasks if you want to try and backpacker cook in them (I have some of the ozark mountain ones and have been so busy with work I haven't had a chance to do oatmeal or red wheat in em yet).

There are several options to consider for water.

I personally have two setups that I think works for my family. As always, I try to get the most bang for my buck.

The first is using a simple ceramic filter, and then buying a couple of cheap buckets (with lids) from Lowes or Home Depot. You drill a hole in the bottom of one bucket, and a hole in the lid of the second bucket. You insert the filter in the hole. When you are ready to use it, you pour your water into the top bucket, and let it drain to the bottom bucket, ready to drink. You might also drill a second hole in the bottom bucket for a faucet. Start to finish, this system will cost you about $25-30, but is capable of filtering thousands of gallons of water.

A second option is a little simpler. Something like the HydroBlue is a little more expensive, but doesn't require any tool work.

Most water filters will get bacteria and parasites. Filters with carbon will also get heavy metals, though for really bad situations where I'm in strict survival mode, I'm not worried about trace amounts of lead that might be in the water, that will affect me only after a few years of consumption.

Most filters will NOT get viruses, but those that do are a LOT more expensive. I would still argue that viruses aren't nearly as much of a concern as bacteria and parasites, but if your still worried about viruses, a cheap way to deal with them is to use bleach or pool shock. (Bleach doesn't have a very long shelf life, but pool shock does.) You can also use a UV light to neutralize viruses, though this option is somewhat more expensive.

The gold standard for water filters would be a Berkey, though these are very pricey.

All in all, I'm condensing this to keep from overwhelming you. I've done lots of research on this, so if you have any more questions, I'd be happy to elaborate further on anything.