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[–] OricaTonithos [S] ago 

Yeah, I'd be careful with that one, too.

Heat purifies by ensuring that none but the most remote "extremophiles" could survive. It's obviously calorie-intensive and time consuming, as a step in disinfecting water.

Some microbes are bad because of the chemicals in their shit. Some are bad because part of their life cycle involves a living host.

I've not heard of an extremophile being a danger for humans, just because you'd probably not try to drink the waters they inhabit in the first place. Crypto has a nice protective wrapper that doesn't release until the right conditions are met, so it's resistant to some chemical treatments like iodine tincture. When high heat comes into play, the protective case is destroyed, and so is the crypto.

Bleach has its own method of reactivity, causing damage while forming a 'salt' that usually falls out as a sediment in the water column. Ideally, there's just enough chlorine to react to roughly the same mass of foreign material (suspended solids and microbes) to balance and 'cancel', dropping down the column. This process takes a little agitation and some time to complete.

With both common chemical treatments, contact time is a must. With proper concentration, it should take about 30 minutes... Longer if the water is cold.

If you want to be sure that the scummiest pond water is properly safe to drink, first filter, then disinfect, then boil.

Lastly, Distillation. Distillation would serve to effectively remove the water from any solids by taking advantage of the state change. When the water enters its gaseous state, it can be recaptured as it rises by a surface that remains cooler than the water in the heated container. If the drippings are channeled away to a separate container, you'll have pure water. However, the distilled water will lack many of the minerals the body needs to work well, notably: salt. There is almost always trace sodium in a fresh water source, and its absence from a high quantity consumed could cause a harmful imbalance in a person.

Hope that helps.