Which Sawyer (or something else)?

Stuart

Section Hiker
I need to replace my old filter and wondered what you would recommend?

Mini? Micro? Or something else?

Likely to be mostly used in the UK for short trips in warmish weather or a very occasional walk in the (non snowy) Pyrenees.
 

Balagan

Thru Hiker
I really like my micro. So far, it pretty much the same thing as the Squeeze in a smaller package.

HydroBlu and Befree fans will be along shortly. ;)
 
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dovidola

Thru Hiker
I had the Mini, which was OK, then I got the Micro, which I think is better.
With the Micro you get a 'coupling' which enables you to backflush the filter (vital) in the field without having to take the heavier provided syringe. It's also a bit faster than the Mini.
 

craige

Thru Hiker
I really like the BeFree, before I had the sawyer squeeze and micro. The flow rate on the micro was appalling (imo) so I gave it away on the PIF thread. The BeFree doesn't last as long (1000L?) but flow rate is soooooo much better and it's lighter. Makes me more likely to filter from sources I'm not 100% sure about instead of taking a risk.
 

Stuart

Section Hiker
Interesting.

I've never paid much attention to filtering options so this is really useful. So far I've used a filter solely for drinking water and have made hot drinks and cooked (usually rehydrating in a cozy) with untreated water. I've never had a problem with this but have been thinking I'd like to filter my hot drinks and cooking water. Maybe I'm paying too much attention to YouTube diarrhoea and vomiting horror stories. I seem to have a "strong stomach" but increasingly we may be preparing drinks and food for the whole family whose resistance to bacteria may be different.

I've seen some videos but in your experience how do the Sawyers and the BeFree compare in being able to produce a quantity of clean water for making hot drinks or cooking? It seems that the Be Free is so fast that there's no need for the palava of hooking up pipes for a gravity feed and that it's feasible to just squeeze water through the filter for cooking, especially using the larger 1l or even 3l versions.
 
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Clare

Thru Hiker
Thé befree is fast enough for that. That’s how I use it. For a whole family it may be worth getting a bigger Cnoc bag whose mouth fits the befree so that you can hang it upside down and do something else but if solo, I don’t see the need. There is much discussion of what other bottle mouth fits the befree which I don’t understand because it’s so fast that I just squirt the water into my water bottles, stuff the befree back in a pocket and carry on.
 

Nigelp

Thru Hiker
The newer Sawyer Mini squeeze has an acceptable flow rate. Easy to back flush with attachments.
 

craige

Thru Hiker
Interesting.

I've never paid much attention to filtering options so this is really useful. So far I've used a filter solely for drinking water and have made hot drinks and cooked (usually rehydrating in a cozy) with untreated water. I've never had a problem with this but have been thinking I'd like to filter my hot drinks and cooking water. Maybe I'm paying too much attention to YouTube diarrhoea and vomiting horror stories. I seem to have a "strong stomach" but increasingly we may be preparing drinks and food for the whole family whose resistance to bacteria may be different.

I've seen some videos but in your experience how do the Sawyers and the BeFree compare in being able to produce a quantity of clean water for making hot drinks or cooking? It seems that the Be Free is so fast that there's no need for the palava of hooking up pipes for a gravity feed and that it's feasible to just squeeze water through the filter for cooking, especially using the larger 1l or even 3l versions.
Definitely fast enough to not need a gravity system. I'll probably get a 2L cnoc bag to up the volume of mine (1L) but that's just to save filling the bag and for simplicity at night.
 

MyHatGandhi

Trail Blazer
The newer Sawyer Mini squeeze has an acceptable flow rate. Easy to back flush with attachments.

Interesting. How much faster? I was fine with the flow rate my old mini (although it was slowish, thus not easy on the hands), but switching to the BeFree makes it difficult to go back. I barely have to break my stride and I'm stocked back up with water.

My only concern is that the BeFree seems too fast...
 

WilliamC

Thru Hiker
Those of you who have the BeFree, what do you do with it when not in use? They don't seem to recommend bleaching it and I've read that vinegar can damage it. So what do you do to sterilise it for storage?
 

Whiteburn

Thru Hiker
Those of you who have the BeFree, what do you do with it when not in use? They don't seem to recommend bleaching it and I've read that vinegar can damage it. So what do you do to sterilise it for storage?
I always use Milton's fluid for sterilising the Sawyer.....can't see why the BeFree would need anything different.
 

craige

Thru Hiker
I've just been putting lightly bleached water through it (maybe a teaspoon in 1L).

Something to note. When new the BeFree flow rate is insane, like almost as much as a sports top will let out. It does slow down, but I've had maybe 200L through mine over the past year and a half and it's at least twice as fast as a sawyer and doesn't seem to slow any more if you shake it in dirty water regularly when out.
 

EM - paul

Thru Hiker
Those of you who have the BeFree, what do you do with it when not in use? They don't seem to recommend bleaching it and I've read that vinegar can damage it. So what do you do to sterilise it for storage?

I put a katadyn tablet in 1l and flush it then let it dry.
 

Nigelp

Thru Hiker
Interesting. How much faster? I was fine with the flow rate my old mini (although it was slowish, thus not easy on the hands), but switching to the BeFree makes it difficult to go back. I barely have to break my stride and I'm stocked back up with water.

My only concern is that the BeFree seems too fast...
As fast as the older full size one. Perfectly fine to drink through and it’s not a chore to process a few litres for cooking and drinking at camp. I use one or two of the larger Sawyer squeeze bags to collect and store water. Usually pour into those with my mug because I don’t have a fancy wide opening bottom bag.
 

dovidola

Thru Hiker
I've not tried the BeFree - by all reports it's the bee's knees and knocks Sawyer out of the park.

I'm still at the stage when I'm perfectly happy to spend 5-10 minutes once or twice a day with my Sawyer Micro at a water source, marvelling over how much lighter my average pack weight is now that I seldom have to carry much water on my back.

It might be an issue if you're a fell runner or have another reason for being in a hurry, but I'm content.
 

EM-Chiseller

Thru Hiker
@dovidola not many 'fell runners' carry water and the ones I've met are more than happy to scoop a couple of handfuls of water if they feel the need.
Fell/sky runners doing more than a couple of hours carry some water...
For fastpacking I've switched over to the befree for trail efficiency but am still happy with the hydroblu.
I might get the Cnoc bag to go with the befree for trips when I'm with the wife.

The hydroblu seems to capture more of the tannins from peaty water than any other filter I've used.
 

Foxster

Section Hiker
I've been using BeFree almost since they came out and wouldn't now switch to anything else that is currently available.

The current setup to reduce the number of bottles carried is to have just one 2l bottle for it. I roughly half fill this whilst walking, a bit more or less depending on water availability. Then when at the camp spot I fill it fully for cooking, drinks etc. The squeezed flow is more than enough to fill a cookpot in a few seconds.
 
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