Gravity water filtration

[Nightwalker]

Howdy gang. So after years of being afoot in the backcountry and competing with horse hunters, I’ll be happily in the saddle this year. With horses in the equation, I can afford a wee bit of extra weight and comfort. I’ve used Aqua Mira for a long time, but I’m thinking about a gravity filtration system for ease in camp. We will be hunting above 10,000’, so hydration is key. Additionally and unfortunately, this zone is full of grizzlies, and I’d rather not spend time by the water source screwing around with a pump. Specifically, I’m looking at the Katadyn BeFree 10L, the MSR Autoflow XL 10L, and the Platypus Gravity Works. I can’t find reliable comparisons on the web, so any info would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Tenstrike]

The Katadyn Base camp has always been reliable, don't let it freeze thou.

 

[Bl704]

I've been running the platypus for years, no issues with it, but a few things that may apply with all the filters you're looking at :
*Don't let them freeze - I spin after filtering using the hose (centripetal force will get some moisture out), cold nights in the foot of my bag.
*Silty water will clog filters - pre filter if needed through material or coffee filter
*Burp out any air

These are all probably mentioned in each filters instructions...

Ymmv

 

[ODB]

If you don’t want to spend a lot of time at the source, you will probably end up with dirtier-than-normal water. I would use a separate dromedary bag, fill it, and let it hang overnight to let particles settle. Then filter the next day from the cleaner top water. This will help keep your filter clear.

 

[MallardSX2]

Bucket filter setup. Worked great for me. But I was camped at my 4 wheeler so I could have the luxury of a bucket.

 

[VernAK]

We use both of the bag filters extensively and the suggestions above are all good.
If water is dirty, pre-filter through coffee filter. Do not let filter freeze.

 

[Marble]

I use the MSR 10L bag system listed above. I do not have any complaints. The bag seems pretty durable. This is my 4th year with it.

The filter juat snaps out easily and you can blow water out for night time storage.

I have left the lanyard/buckle attached to a tree after breaking camp a few times.

It flows at a good rate and is easy to clean out and store.

I think the cost was around $100

I would buy another if I needed one

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[Dos Perros]

My partner has the MSR, and it's the fastest of all the filters I've used.

 

[cornfedkiller]

Been looking into one of the systems as well.. do all of them hook into a hydration bladder hose to back-fill your bladder while it's still in your pack? (specifically a platypus bladder).

 

[Burnsie]

Been Using the Platypus for several years - still works good with no issues.
I haven't got sick yet, so I'll stick with it. As stated, don't let filter cartridge freeze.

 

[Nightwalker]

If you don’t want to spend a lot of time at the source, you will probably end up with dirtier-than-normal water. I would use a separate dromedary bag, fill it, and let it hang overnight to let particles settle. Then filter the next day from the cleaner top water. This will help keep your filter clear.

I appreciate that suggestion. Most years the creeks near camp are flowing pretty good in the fall, so I'm pretty sure we can make a mostly clean quick fill happen. This year could be different, seeing that we are currently at 17% of snowpack in the middle of March.

 

[sILlogger]

I’ve had good luck the the platypus gravityworks.

As said, don’t let it freeze. I’d recommend a small, silicone, collapsing cup in your kit. That way you can dip water out of small spots to fill the unfiltered bladder. A lot of times can’t get the bladder in the water enough to fill it.

After that, you can connect filter into a larger bladder as well as filling camelback style.

Based on what you are saying, I’d have a large collapsible bladder. Fill it at water source, haul it back with horse, filter at camp. One of those 5 gallon ones.

 

[AKDoc]

Katadyn Base Camp for me for the past ten years. For two-week remote camps, I always bring two extra filters (just in case), and I always have to change-out once. The water in the lakes where we hunt is not silty, but has lots of micro's that shorten the filters life...and that doesn't bother me because the filter is doing it's job well!

Like others, I'm careful about not letting the filter freeze at night. A couple years ago I did ask Katadyn directly about the Base Camp filter freezing and possible filter failure. Here is what Katadyn responded: As long as you didn’t have a lot of excess water in the bag and don’t try to force water through until it has thawed out, you should be just fine. If it was a hollow fiber filter, it would be different.

That said, I'm still very cautious...I had giardia once about thirty years ago, and never want that again!

 

[Burnsie]

This is our typical set-up with a Platypus system. We have a clear running creek directly behind our camp - every time I leave camp or return I fill the bag and let it filter into a used Arnold Palmer Tea jug that I bring in. It weighs basically nothing and dangles off the back on one of my pack straps going in. We always have filtered water on hand from the jug - we fill our Nalgeen bottles before we leave and also carry a Life Straw in case we blow through our water and need to refill from another source on the mountain.

 

[Nightwalker]

Katadyn Base Camp for me for the past ten years. For two-week remote camps, I always bring two extra filters (just in case), and I always have to change-out once. The water in the lakes where we hunt is not silty, but has lots of micro's that shorten the filters life...and that doesn't bother me because the filter is doing it's job well!

Like others, I'm careful about not letting the filter freeze at night. A couple years ago I did ask Katadyn directly about the Base Camp filter freezing and possible filter failure. Here is what Katadyn responded: As long as you didn’t have a lot of excess water in the bag and don’t try to force water through until it has thawed out, you should be just fine. If it was a hollow fiber filter, it would be different.

That said, I'm still very cautious...I had giardia once about thirty years ago, and never want that again!

Thanks AKDoc! It seems like a lot of the guys are using the Platypus system, but that's only a four liter bag. I'm drawn to the MSR and the Katadyn for their volume. From what I can see, it seems a though the Katadyn filter is actually in the bag. Is this accurate, and if so, how much of a headache is it to pull it out on cold nights?

The first time I had giardia was also 30 years ago. I was a hunting guide in Montana and had to finish my stint with my clients. No friggin bueno. Tagged them both out, but thought I was going to die! If I'm up real high and near at the source, I'll still drink from mountain streams, but other than that, I filter or treat every last drop.

 

[AKDoc]

Thanks AKDoc! It seems like a lot of the guys are using the Platypus system, but that's only a four liter bag. I'm drawn to the MSR and the Katadyn for their volume. From what I can see, it seems a though the Katadyn filter is actually in the bag. Is this accurate, and if so, how much of a headache is it to pull it out on cold nights?

The first time I had giardia was also 30 years ago. I was a hunting guide in Montana and had to finish my stint with my clients. No friggin bueno. Tagged them both out, but thought I was going to die! If I'm up real high and near at the source, I'll still drink from mountain streams, but other than that, I filter or treat every last drop.

You are correct, the Katadyn Base Camp filter is in the bag, which is just fine...I never remove the filter unless I'm changing it.

I do what probably most others do...I fill-up the bag, hang it from a branch, and insert the drain hose into a 10L MSR Dromedary Bag that is propped-up to not spill as it fills...then I go do something else and check back later. We always have several of the 10L MSR bags with us, so I fill them all when filtering. I personally don't have the filter bag just hanging with water in it unless it is being used to filter.

When all done with that filtration cycle, I take down the empty bag, bring it back to camp, and reverse the bag so the filter dries for the rest of the day. If it's a cold and likely freezing nite, I'll just roll the empty bag up with the dry filter in-place, and bring it into the tent so that it is close by and I can put it in my sleeping bag if necessary...honestly, I've never had to do that because the filter is pretty well dry from being reversed for the day and the tent temps are a wee-bit warmer than outside (my water bottle in the tent has very seldom had an ice layer, while water in the pot outside may have one.

One last suggestion...when changing that filter, lube-up the O-ring real well, and DON'T over-tighten the plastic retaining ring. Tighter is not better, which is counter-intuitive. Best to you for your future adventures!

 

[pfred8]

I've been using the gravity works. It does work pretty well, just make sure to back flush as much as possible. This definitely helps with the clogging and slow filling.

 

[sasquatch]

The best way I’ve seen is get a gravity bag but a long hose, put a Sawer inline with the hose

Longer the hose the better. Allows you to raise the bag way up and get some head pressure to push the water through


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[jhm2023]

I really like the 4 ltr MSR trail base setup. I like that the hose connection on the dirty bag is a little bit up from the bottom so it gives junk and silt a place to settle and not go into the hose and filter cartridge. I typically fill the dirty bag and let it settle for a bit before I open the hose up. The bags are durable enough that they can be used to pack extra water around if needed, but the setup also gives you the option to leave the bags at camp and take just the filter portion for light and quick. The actual filter portion can be squeezed to get the system primed which is helpful at times.

I've tried Sawyer filters with different bags and it worked decent but the trail base is much better IMO. I've also used the platypus gravity setup and the fact that the hose comes out of the very bottom of the dirty bag allowing sediment to enter the filter drove me crazy. Plus the platypus is kind of an all or nothing system where the trail base allows you to go without the bags.

 

[Travis907]

Another vote for the platypus gravityworks! It has worked great for me for years!