Finally got a Sawyer water filter

[Stairman]

Ive been looking at these for a while and finally got one. There are a few to choose from and I picked the all in one at .1 microns. They do make one thats .02 microns, but Im taking my chances that viruses wont be present in the water, which is very rare in this country unless septic tanks are compromised due to flooding and I scoop up some of that water. At 4 ounces its pretty lightweight and no plastic pump parts to break. I got the all in one kit with filter, backflushing syringe, 2 squeeze pouches, faucet adaptor for urban fills, and the hardware to make a gravity feed out of a plastic bucket. Im gonna use it on one of my 50 gallon stored water kegs, and the filter can easily screw on and off on the outside till needed. The inlet fits standard disposable water and 2 liter soda bottles or the 32 and 12 ounce squeeze pouches included. One drawback is it must be protected from freezing but otherwise a good product that Id recommend getting at only $69.95 shipped free from REI. I got the 181.https://www.sawyersafetravel2.com/checkout.asp

[hunter63]

So, have you tried it out yet, or plan on it just to see if it works as advertized?

[finallyME]

I have the sawyer squeeze, which is the same filter, just not as versatile as the all-in-one. It comes in at 3 oz. I have used it a bunch while backpacking. I used it exclusively on a week long trip, with 3 others (we shared it), and I used it on my recent trip with the family. I pulled water from a couple lakes, and from mountain streams. The water sources could have all been clean, but who knows, I just know I haven't gotten sick while using it. It is a pretty amazing filter element. It is easy to back flush, and can be used over and over without needing to replace the filter.

If you look at backpacking forums, this filter is really taking off in popularity. And why wouldn't it, with the price, weight, and small pore size. Sawyer is going to make a lot of money initially. But, eventually everyone will have one, and no one will buy more, because the filter lasts forever. I kinda feel sorry for all the other filter companies. You can buy an entire sawyer filter for the price of the other guys replacement filters. And, the sawyer is lighter and has a smaller pore size, and doesn't need replacing.

[Stairman]

I have used the faucet adaptor but thats about it. I can fill 4 SS water bottles up at night, stick em in the fridge, and have water for the day. Im gonna set up the gravity fittings to a 55 gallon, foodgrade barrel slightly elevated and might even set it up as a rain barrel. The filter connects and disconnects for storing in seconds. Ill have it in my kit the next time I hit the woods for sure.