A 3oz water filter..........

[oldsparkey]

In my quest for light weight camping items I found something that has peaked my interest.

A 3 oz water filter that is good for a million gallons of water. YEP.. Sawyer grantees it for a million gallons of filtered water.



The pouches are .5L , 1L and 2Liter pouches they along with the filter weight 3 oz total.
When you get to a water source and don't want to filter the water then you fill the pouches , put them in your pack and later in camp , filter the water into your water bottle of just drink directly from the filter when it is attached to one of the pouches.

One report about the filter I read the person figured out that this system would replace 20 normal filter replacements on the others where you eventually have to replace the filtering cartridge.

Here is there web site. ( It's the PointONE System. )
http://www.sawyer.com/water.html

[Kayak Jack]

Good eye (for an olde man). I ordered one to carry in my vest when I fly. Also handy for some city's water (yuch!)

[oldsparkey]

Yep.. I got one also. Well actually I don't have it quite yet , it is in the mail system somewhere between there and here at this time.
Figured it would be a good system for the backpack and camping. I especially like the weight and size of it and the different ways a person can use there system.
When using a boat just have it along and stop taking several gallons of water so it would even lighten the load when paddling. It's designed for fresh water , I'm sure it would be useless in salt water. The salt water is not a problem since the majority of my camping is on fresh water and all of my hiking is near fresh water.
At about 8 pounds per gallon you sure don't want to carry that much when you can refill along the way.

Chuck.

[Kayak Jack]

We can't fill the bag by dipping it. Has to have water pouring into it, as a waterfall or a cup or a spiggot.

[oldsparkey]

We can't fill the bag by dipping it. Has to have water pouring into it, as a waterfall or a cup or a spiggot.

One idea that would not increase the weight of the package a lot , a mere % of an ounce in weight.
For standing water .....How about using a Gallon Size Zip Lock bag , fill it and then fill the water bag using it. You know the same way one zip lock is used to make pancakes. The one corner cut off.
Just dip it in the water and then close it , hold the cut off portion till it is over the entrance for the water bag and then remove your fingers.
One advantage is that you could check the clarity of the water before filling the water bag for filtration. Plus the whole unit could be rolled up in the zip lock bag for storage.

Not sure about this since mine is not here to try it..................This would add 6.2 ounces to the total weight making the package 9.2 ounces.
Or just use an old Nalgene ( wide mouth 32 oz ) bottle and call it the camp water container so you don't drink from it. The thought is that that nalgene bottle might be able to hold the filter and bags in it for storage while out in the woods and on the water.

[Kayak Jack]

Dipping a soft-sided bag like a Ziploc can get water, but it's inefficient as all get out. Try it in your sink, and you'll learn some new techniques - and probably a few new words too.

[Kayak Jack]

Hey HEY HEY boys and girls! The filter came today, and the bags are fairly stiff. Holding one by the edges, you can lay it in the water and fill it nearly all the way up to the top. Veddy veddy good!

[Kayak Jack]

Chuck, you must have received yours by now. What are your thoughts?

[oldsparkey]

Mine got here a couple of days ago. So I have been checking it out and they really came up with a good idea on this filter.

For canoe trips...........
Been searching the web for there mesh bag so it can be used as a gravity filter on canoe trips. Figured it would be a lot simpler to fill the bag , hang it in camp and let the water flow without doing any work.
The up side is that I would only have to take a one gallon jug and as it was emptied then refill it in camp in place of carrying a gallon of water for each day on the water.

For backpacking , A lot of the back country areas the state has for hikers they have the old fashion pitcher pumps with signs on them that the water needs to be treated and this filter should do the job. Have the water from a couple of the Nalgene bottles to drink between camps and then in camp fill the bag and filter the water in to the Nalgene bottles.

After a trip the maintenance on the filter is really simple , Back flush the filter. Then put a cup of bleach in the bag that was used and top it off with water. Run some of this mix threw the filter , let it sit for an hour , empty it and let it dry. It could not be any simpler.

I plan on putting it and the bags in a gallon zip lock and roiling it to get a lot of the air out for when it is being packed on trips. If luck smiles on me I might be able to locate a small stuff sack for it , if not then I may break out a needle and some thread and make one. But still in the zip lock since I am not sure how much water will stay in the filter after it has been used a couple of times. I don't want anything leaking on the stuff in the back pack even with everything in waterproof stuff sacks.

Over all I really like it , it is simple to use , packs up nice and small , simple to clean and weighs next to nothing. Plus according to them it will furnish a lot of filtered water.

Chuck.

[Kayak Jack]

I make bags out of Levi legs. Sometimes, there's a struggle getting the darned things off of volunteers. but it's worked OK so far.

[oldsparkey]

I make bags out of Levi legs. Sometimes, there's a struggle getting the darned things off of volunteers. but it's worked OK so far.

Jack.......
Down here there isn't any problems gathering the lower leg sections of blue ( Levi ) jeans. When you have a prowler during the night hours and let the Pit Bulls Loose , they will gather all of the Blue Jean legs that a person would ever need. The guys that live near swamps have pet gators for the same thing since it is really hard to find a southern boy volunteering for anything except fishing , eating and enjoying a frosty beverage.

OK. All joking ( choke , sniffle , laughing ) set aside. I prefer the rip stop nylon since it tends to be a lot more on the water proof side and will not hold water as long as cotton of any of the plant fabrics from nature. Nothing can bet the natural fabric from the test tube for repelling water.

[islandpiper]

OK, how about if you OOOOOLLLLDDDD GUYS wise me up a little. I have a FIRST NEEDS PURIFIER. As i understand it, this unit you are talking about is a FILTER, not a PURIFIER. I think there is a difference there. Maybe a real purifier is overkill. Maybe not really needed, and a good filter will do the trick. But the last couple of years i've been dipping my water out of some really prehistoric looking swamps with crawly things attached to every twig that floats slowly by, and in a perfect temperature to make anything small and dangerous grow in toxic splendor.

I trust the FIRST NEEDS PURIFIER. Can i trust the Sawyer to do the same thing? Or should i update my will. (that means I'd put a clause in stating that if i died of some water borne disease Jack would not get my Pipes.)

Piper

[Kayak Jack]

At present, no filter I've seen will match a purifier in performance. All purifiers that I've seen start with a filter. Next step is to process the filtered water through some chemical matrix. Best ones, then pass the filtered and purified water through an activated charcoal filter to remove (A) bad tastes, (B) agricultural chemicals, and (C) industrial chemicals. REMAIN WITH YOUR FIRST NEEDS, Keith.

I carry a filter in my survival vest that I wear when flying and paddling; it is for emergency use only. This particular filter is much smaller than what I was carrying before. I hope the money spent for it is a total waste, cause if I use it, I'm in an emergency.

(Piper San, you may now go back to sleep and dream peaceful dreams of swimming in a single malt-filled pool.)

[islandpiper]

Jack, i think that swimming in single malt might prove to be a struggle, as the molecular weight of Glen Fiddich is lighter than most pond water. Helluva place to drown though. piper

[oldsparkey]

Piper........

I have the 1st need also , it is great for the backwater areas and in a canoe , especially in the tanic water areas. A Purifier you can count on it taking everything out of the water. Especially pesticides and other chemicals along with all of the nasty microscopic bugs.

For hiking and using water from pitcher pumps and other more or less clean water sources ( springs ) where the possibility of nasty chemicals is a low threat this Sawyer filter will do the trick for me.

If I have any worries about what might be in the water then I have the 32 oz Katadyn Purifier as a water jug which replaces one of the 32 oz Nalgene bottles. The Katadyn works as a 32 oz water jug and then when the insert is put in it , then it becomes a purifier to purifie the already filtered water. It is also a back up filter / purifier is the sawyer breaks down , which I don't expect it to do. Carrying two water bottles why not have one of them do double duty , if or when it is needed.


I know this sounds like overkill but this way everything covers a couple of different uses when hiking. A normal filter for the bugs that might be in the water and then a purifier to use ( if it is needed ) if I'm around where there might be a chemical intrusion. Either way I have 64 oz of safe , drinkable, water for my use. One nalgene bottle and the Katadyn.