So I like the idea of the squeeze a lot. Unfortunately, REI doesn't sell the squeeze, and I need to use up some REI credit. I'm looking at the 3-way, and it looks like it's basically the same filter. I don't really love drinking from bladders, I'd rather use this thing to fill my plattys. So my questions are, how long does the gravity filter take to filter a liter, or can I use a clean bag/dirty bag setup like the squeeze and just use it like a squeeze, just push it through? Or will it not be effective?

Depending on water quality it can take as little as just under two minutes. You can also help it along by squeezing water through.

Don't quote me on this, but I think it's ok to squeeze this type of filter because of its glass tube construction. You can't change te pore size by squeezing. However, some of the membrane/fabric filters like Katydin can be affected by squeezing. Again, don't quote me on that. I was wrong once before. Once.

Ben,

It is okay to squeeze the inline sawyer filter.

I did that on my JMT trip last August and did not have any problems.

Given that you can attach a faucet to the inline filter to back flush it, that means that it can take a lot of water pressure without damaging the hollow plastic tubes inside of it.

I have been using the same older "black" Sawyer inline filter for about 4 or more years now and mine is still going strong.

Other than cracking the case/housing and allowing the filter to freeze, it should last forever with regular back flushing.

I find that I use mine in camp as a gravity filter and a sqeeze bag on the trail to speed things up if I don't want to pull out my setup for a gravity filter.

Tip: If you are using two platypus bags for a clean and dirty bag, a really easy way to maintain your filter in the field is to simply squeeze the clean bag when you are done to forced some clean water back through the filter after every use. This will help keep the rate of flow at max. and later avoid having to use a lot of force and pressure to backflush the filter in the field.

Hope this helps.

-Tony

On trail i use the 3 way filter inline from the dirty bag through the filter to a hydration hose and just suck, at camp, i use it as a gravity filter. By far the most incredible filter system i have ever used. Every person I have been on a trip with buys one after using mine.

Thanks for the insight guys. It sounds like it's the right filter for me, anyway.
Do you know if there are threads on the 3-way that would allow it to be used with these http://www.rei.com/product/820769/platypus-platy-bottle-70-fl-oz or if I should just resign myself to using a reservoir?

Seems like there is an underlying question here that hasn't been answered: is there, functionally, a difference between these two filters?

The only difference I'm seeing is that the Squeeze has threads built in instead of using an adapter. Anybody have insight?

I have both, and the filter is the same. It's the connectors that are different.

So the "squeeze" can be used as a gravity filter, and the "gravity" can be used as a squeeze filter.

FYI this http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sawyer-Inline-Water-Filter-with-34-Ounce-Bottle/8283710 is the same filter without the color coding for $36 at WAlMart.

Ty,

Great buy....did not know they still had these in stock.

I bought an extra one last year from Walmart as a back up, in case I managed to break the casing on mine.

This looks like the same one as mine and is the older 1st generation filter without the quick disconnects, which is better for the setup that I use.

The only thing about this older filter to be careful about is that you don't want to be too rough with the input and output nipples or you could break one of them off.

My friend, who is very rough with his gear, managed to do this.

If you check out the User Gear Review section on BPL, I have detailed photos of the 1st generation Sawyer filter that you can look at and see how my setup is.

I will note: my setup is not ideal....I should have more tubing between the dirty bag and the filter to generate more pressure, but save on the weight of tubing, I don't have much tubing there.

-Tony

Their filters are all essentially the same mechanism with some slight variations in the bag systems it's designed for.

Thanks guys, it's clear now they're all basically the same thing.

Called and went to Wally World looking for one and had no luck. Out of stock online and a 'find it a store' search on their site suggests these are out of stock everywhere. Anybody seen one lately?

One other thing, does anyone know what these way 'wet'? my understanding is that you have to pre-flush to use it and naturally it'll remain wet on the trail.

Depends....if you are using the Sawyer filter that is NOT designed to remove viruses, then you can carry it dry.

The Sawyer model that removes viruses may need to be wet because of the force/pressure that is needed to get it wet/primed is more than you might easily generate in the field.

I basically suck mine dry after using it and store it as dry as possible, which makes it light as possible.

-Tony

The Sawyer inline filter weighs 3.5 ounce wet. Give or take a few grams depending on how much water you can shake/suck out of it.

Every time I look at the light weight of the Sawyer Filter (2 ounces?) I get excited. Then I look at the weight of the system and get discouraged.

Total weight of the system doesn't seem to be any better than a traditional pump filter and a gator aid bottle or two. Plus I prefer gator aid bottles over bladder type bottles and prefer to guzzle water rather than suck from a tube.

I bet one of you have modified this system to use gator aid bottles and to reduce the weight of things. Am I right?

The weight isn't bad. I ordered 3-way (2oz) and a big zip for a total weight of 7.5 oz. Could have been 5.5oz if I ordered a Platy Hoser instead. That's all you really need if you're fine with sipping from a reservoir. That's a hell of a lot better than the 1 pound pump filter my dad carries, along with multiple nalgenes, putting him somewhere in the 2lb range.

Ben,

That sounds a lot better.

Is the Sawyer filter compatable with the big zip or did you have to buy some extra fittings to make everyting fit together.

Daryl

I'm pretty sure it comes with all the fittings you need, but that you'll need to cut the hose yourself. The first video shows how it's set up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmHeOB6ecHg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2sGJQmyGZQ

Ben,

You've just converted me.

I'm placing an order for the big zip + Sawyer as soon as I post this thank you.

The two videos did it for me.

Daryl

Sorry, did not realize it was out of stock online. Last time I looked at them online they were available. Wal-Mart will do that though, things come and go pretty fast.

Ben,

The 3 way plus big zip arrived. Looks good.

Question:

What would be the easiest way to back flush in the field? With two bags it looks like you just lift the clean bag higher than the dirty bag. Without the 2nd bag, however, I'm not sure how to go about it.

The fellow in the 2nd video said he would just blow bacwards on the bite valve.

Daryl

Daryl,

I called Sawyer and they said the syringe they sell would be the best way to back flush it in the field. They also said that back flushing in the field for trips of several days in length would be rare if you back flush at home each time.

Your Other Brother Daryl

Daryl,

I've used one of these on my Camleback since late December. Since I've yet to purchase a second bladder for separate use with clean water, I've just been using the one with the filter attached for my bike rides (maybe 130 to 170 miles a week; about 3-4 gallons). There has yet to be a noticeable slowdown in flow rate with the filter.

So, if you're using fairly clean water sources, it should work just fine for normal weeklong+ trips without backflushing. If your water sources are consistently silty, that's an whole 'nother animal, of course.

But, how often are you out of contact with civilization? Most folks don't often go for more than a week or so between resupply either way, what with the weight penalty of carrying that much food. The backflush faucet adapter weighs just under two ounces by my scale; I'd be willing to pay that weight penalty on a long-distance hike to ensure ease of use.

Your mileage may vary, as always.

John,

Just thinking ahead to the possibility that the filter gets plugged up without a lot of warning and shortens my trip.

One example would be if I was filtering water with glacial silt in it and my pre filter efforts were unable to prevent the main filter from clogging. I'd sure want to back flush it in the field rather than go home early. Carrying the faucet back flusher wouldn't help me in the field.

In one of the Sawyer videos it showed a person backflushing the filter with a blue rubber bulbous looking thing that, I believe, is usally used or cleaning out ears.

I have various other syringes at home, however, that would generate more pressure so I think one of those might work. Best way to backflush in the field, per my telephone conversation with Sawyer, is to use the syringe they sell for the job.

Daryl

I think you could probably just blow back into the filter, right? Mouth on the blue end and blow. Oh god that sounded bad.

Daryl,

Fair enough. Goodness knows, "Florida Tea" can slow down a filter in no time flat. The water is rich with tannin and floating junk most places down here.

Please let us know what you finally decide on.

Thanks,
John

I'm still considering various Sawyer options.

The filter and big zip arrived. The filter is running about 2.9 ounces on my scale and the big zip says it weighs 5.7 ounces. That's 8.6 ounces total which is only a couple ounces less than my current system (pump filter plus a 2 ounce dirty water bucket). Not a lot of difference.

Here's another Sawyer option that appeals to me.

here

I called Sawyer and they said this filter weighs about 4 ounces. If I connect it to my 2 ounce bucket then I'm up to about 7 ounces total (2 ounce bucket, 4 ounce filter and, say, 1 ounce for hose).

When I backpack on the Olympic Park Wilderness Beach in Washington I already carry a 5 gallon bucket for bear food hanging. (it is allowed there) So, in that case I could mount the filter on the bear bucket.

Does anyone have experience with this bucket mounted Sawyer(or other brand) filter?

The 2 ounce Sawyer filter referred to in the posts doesn't seem to be available anymore. Perhaps the quick release fittings added to the newer filter accounts for the weight difference?

Edited by lyrad1 on 02/25/2012 14:38:39 MST.

John,


"Please let us know what you finally decide on"


I think I've decided on the Squeeze. Just odered one here:

here

Daryl

Edited by lyrad1 on 02/25/2012 17:11:34 MST.

I had a couple 3 way inlines and both of them eventually became very hard to get water through, which is a bummer when getting water through your platy water tube is labored ...... This occurred even with backwashing using very clean water, not muddy or silty water .... eventually I gave up on them, but they seem to be working for others ....

Edited by tracedef on 02/26/2012 11:00:03 MST.

Not sure if any of you are still thinking of possibilities, but here's one I've concocted for when I want to carry a filter on shorter trips, especially if with a group, and if I've decided to take my Platypus soft bottle with hose. This one is just a gravity filter; I haven't tried to use it in-line for sucking water through. It just happened to work with the resources I had readily available.

Take a look at the Platypus "Gravityworks" filter system.
http://cascadedesigns.com/platypus/filtration-and-storage/gravityworks-filter/product
It uses heavy Platy bags and it's expensive.

But, the filter itself is the same basic weight as all the others discussed here: mine weighs in at a bit under 2oz dry, a bit under 4oz wet. Good to .2 microns. Where I live in Canada, the MEC store has it for just over $40, which is about what we'd pay here to have one of the other slightly cheaper ones shipped, and have to wait forever for it to arrive in the mail. Perhaps one could use the platypus Cleanstream filter cartridge as well, if that's all that's available. Many of the others are not always readily available here.

I had an extra Platy tube + connectors laying around that I'd found at a discount store.
For the "dirty" bag, I substituted a large-size Ziploc, which weighs 13 grams and holds up to 4 liters. I snipped off a tiny piece of one of the lower corners.
I cut off the top of a water/soda bottle compatible with the Platypus screwcaps, put it into the bag, with the bottle neck gently pushed into the corner that was cut off, so that the open neck corresponds with the hole. (it should not go through the hole, however.)
I took my spare platy hose that screws onto a platy bottle, and cut the hose about 6 inches below the screw-on assemblage. This piece weighs about 11 grams.
I then screw on that bit of hose to the bottle neck, with the bag in the middle of them, held secure by them, if that makes sense. The water in the bag goes through the hole, down the hose. I can further secure the bottle-neck inside the bag by putting a rubber band or two around narrower parts of the neck where it will hold pretty well without cutting through the bag.

The Ziploc assemblage now functions as the "dirty" bag: You can (carefully) scoop up water with it and then close it, just like with the zip opening of the "dirty" bag. I can stop and start water flow with the little piece already used for that on my platypus that I'm already bringing.

I then stick the "dirty" end of the Gravityworks filter cartridge into the open end of the bit of tube, just as you'd stick it into the bit of tube coming out of the original "dirty" bag in the actual Gravityworks system.

Onto the "clean" end of the filter, I stick the end of my own platy hose with the mouthpiece temporarily removed. (Taking the mouthpiece/filter on and off is easy enough with my newer, "squishy" platy hose, but a bit more cumbersome with the older, firmer style.) The water would now go through the filter and into my platypus, or into the platypus or compatible water bottle of others in my group.

To get the "dirty" bag higher than the clean one for the gravity effect, gently wrap it in bandanna/clothing or something protective, and place it securely on a rock or soft log, etc. Or, bring a plastic grocery bag with a tiny hole in the bottom of it, and place the filled ziploc "dirty" bag in this bag with the hose sticking through the hole, then hang it with the grocery bag handles. You can multi-use the grocery bag(s) to store/organize something else in your pack if you want.

This system can work fine for a group, and filters much faster than those fancy pump filters my hiking buddies lug around.

If I'm already bringing my platypus and hose (or if someone else is), the rest of the assemblage weighs a bit over 3oz dry, and around 5oz when the filter is wet. If I'm hiking with someone whose a quick-disconnect style platypus, I may bring another snipped-off bit of hose with quick-disconnect end, weighing around .5oz, so they can filter directly to their platy without fussing with taking their mouthpiece off. And if sharing the weight of this filter system with one or two other people, you're each carrying only a couple ounces.

I specified "shorter trips" above, because obviously, the ziploc dirty bag setup is not as durable as the full-on Gravityworks system. You can tinker with ways to make it more durable. Sometimes I'm already carrying some food in another same-size Ziploc, and this would be my spare if the first one gets punctured. Or, I can just bring a spare Ziploc at a half-ounce penalty and use it to store clean water around camp. I bring some purification tabs as well, just in case.

Trace,

Do you have a rough idea of how many gallons were filtered before the filter became hard to use?

Daryl

Daryl,

"...I think I've decided on the Squeeze. Just odered one here:..."

Thanks! I've seen several folks with this over the last year, and they all seemed very happy with it. The only downside I've heard of is that the rubber o-ring on the inside of the filter where it screws onto the dirty bag is slightly too small and sometimes falls out, so it might be worth keeping an eye on that.

Otherwise, I think you'll be happy with that one.

--John

REI just posted the Squeeze days after getting my 3-Way. Trying to decide what to do. I wanted the squeeze all along, but the 3-way is pretty cool.

Daryl: Great question .... hard to remember, both were probably about 10 to 20 liters, so not much ... I'm not seeing others with the same issue, so unless a bunch of people popped up with the same issue, I would probably give it a shot, if the roles were reversed .... who knows, could have been a fluke .... also, one other consideration to keep in mind is that these are summer filters, due to how they filter using tubular filaments of some sort, they can't go below freezing or the little tube / filament things can crack .... the instructions mention this as well, so just one consideration I haven't heard anyone else mention to keep in mind ....

No experience whatsoever, but just reading your posts... Am I right in my understanding that the Sawyer filter will do the following:

o treat bacteria
o treat protozoa
o clarify water

But NOT the following:

o treat viruses
o improve water taste

And sucking can quickly become difficult? I am especially curious about this last point. Is it a common experience with other actual users? Is the sucking difficult because priming is required? Or is sucking difficult because the filter clogs easily?

Ben: I seem to be the only person reporting issues with water flow so far, but this is not related to priming. I believe the manual instructs you to prime before you go out, but I tested to be sure I could prime if necessary in the field and didn't have any issues .... it just takes a bit more effort to get water moving unprimed and then once it is primed you're good to go .... I believe your other points are correct ...

Thanks, Trace. Good to know one can prime in the field -- where the force of a faucet is often unattainable. The altogether different product -- the Sawyer purifier -- suffers from this great defect -- where priming with a faucet prior to each trip is a must.

Trace,

Good reminder on the freezing problem. I typically leave my filter out at night when camping. Must change that habit as it is often freezing at night when I'm backpacking.

Daryl

Ben,

Thanks for the REI tip. I cancelled my Bass Pro order and ordered the Squeeze from REI. The REI package includes a larger bag, which I prefer.

Daryl

Ben,

Here's what Sawyer says on their website:

"Biological Filtration: removes 7 log (99.99999%) of all bacteria like salmonella, cholera, and E. coli. And 6 log (99.9999%) of all Protozoa such as Giardia and Cryptosporidium. You will find these removal rates to equal or exceed competitive options. EPA guidelines allow ten times more Protozoa left in the water than we allow."

Daryl

Ben,

Here are some more words from Sawyer website:

"This Filter Removes:

Bacteria, Which Cause:

I.E.: Cholera, Botulism (Clostridum botulinum), Typhoid (Salmonella typhi), Amoebic Dysentery, E. Coli, Coliform Bacteria, Streptococcus, Salmonella

Protozoan (Cyst):

I.E.: Giardia, Cryptosporidium, Cyclospora"

For me, hiking in the mountains of the Pacifc Northwest, I think this covers everything. If I recall correctly, you say that you typically chemically treat, wait a half hour and then filter. If using this filter would you skip the chemical treatment step given these claims?

Daryl

Ben is covering for viruses with the chemical treatment first.

Daryl:

John took the words right out of my mouth! There's a lot of subjectivity here. Remember, some folks never treat their water and never get sick either. OTOH, for me, I just don't want to "guess" whether a water source has only bacteria, or both bacteria and protozoa, or viruses might be present too. So, for me, I'd rather just find the simplest, lightest, most compact system that will "treat them all".

In the case of the Sawyer 3-Way -- as John replied -- it does NOT protect from viruses. Also, it does NOT do anything to improve water taste (no carbon/charcoal core). If neither is a concern, then the Sawyer can be a great option. But for those who want these two potential issues taken care of as well should look elsewhere.

Edited by ben2world on 02/27/2012 12:21:42 MST.

John and Ben,

Thanks for the clarification.

Daryl

The Sawyer bottle is back in stock at Walmart, if anyone is looking to pick up a filter for a MYOG system.