Can pond water become potable after filtering with charcoal?

Answer 1

You'd also want colloidal silver as well. I read about this potter guy who was working with CMU to develop these cheap water filter systems for third world countries, he got pottery, mixed it with sawdust, fired it (so the sawdust would turn to charcoal) and used some colloidal silver to paint the insides with (this gets rid of some bacteria and stuff).

Answer 2

If I'm not mistaken, charcoal only filters out particles -- harmful substances like mercury, lead, pcbs, copper, etc. etc. It's basically for minerals and other toxins that are not microscopic. The pond water would still need to be boiled for at least five minutes in order to kill any microscopic bacteria and diseases. For example, pretend an animal walked into the pond and then walked, leaving behind manure. You could scoop out the manure, and even filter it through the charcoal. But the charcoal wouldn't do a thing against the possible e. coli contamination. You'd have to boil the water in order to kill that.

Answer 3

You'll get rid of most visible cloudiness, but bacteria, protozoans and viruses do not get adsorbed by charcoal (activated carbon).
You need to use a chemical additive, to desinfect the water, or you're risking getting very sick.

Answer 4

You'll need filters, disinfectants, ect.......not just charcoal. You should see where we get our water from in Baghdad......