So I got a pretty good dividend this year at REI and was thinking of applying it to a water filter, and I'm looking for recommendations.This will be used while hiking/camping in Pennsylvania. I already have a Sawyer Mini but it strikes me as more for emergencies than routine use.I was looking at the pump-type filters since you can use them to fill a container from a stream or pond, rather than a gravity type that you need to find somewhere to hang.

Units I was looking at include:

1. MSR Sweetwater filter https://www.rei.com/product/617913/msr-sweetwater-water-filter

2. Katadyn Hiker Pro filter https://www.rei.com/product/830745/katadyn-hiker-pro-water-filter

What do you recommend?

TIA.

(Fixed some FUBAR formatting.)

Edit: I got the Sawyer Squeeze per my post below.

all three you listed work well. personally i prefer the sawyers, just save some fresh water to back flush.
don't sell the mini short, you can use it solo, in line, or to fill containers.

plus it weighs nothing and takes up little room.

Let gravity do the work


My experience

I have the Sweetwater. I like it.

I should add that a reason I want something other than the Sawyer Mini is that sometimes my daughter accompanies me. I'm looking for something with higher output.

Thanks guys.

My wife and I both have the Katadyn , they work well and fairly quick to fill containers.
that MSR one looks like it would be odd to pack, if that lever remains in that location.

It doesn't.  It folds down nice and neat.

I have the katadyn pump, the gravity bag and Sawyer mini. I've settled on smartwater bottles for my reservoir with the Sawyer mini over the camelbak and pump. For base camp the gravity bag is amazing!

I wound up buying a Sawyer Squeeze filter, which came with 2 32 oz. bags, along with a 2-pack of 64 oz. Sawyer bags. This came out a buck cheaper than the Sawyer Squeeze Plus, which is the same filter but with a single 16 oz. bag and 2 32 oz. bags.

Before I started the thread I was familiar with the Sawyer Mini but not the Squeeze, which is larger with a higher flow rate.

I like the simplicity of the system and that you can filter either via squeezing the bag or letting gravity do the work. One thing I added to the mesh storage pouch was a cord lock, because it didn’t look like it would support a full 64 oz. bag without tying a knot in the drawcord. I might add a longer tube for when I use it as a gravity filter.

Hopefully I’ll get it out in the field in the next couple of months if we get some decent weather.

A quick bit of advice that I learned from a water and sanitation guy in Haiti about the sawyers.  We gave out hundreds or perhaps thousands of they Sawyer bucket kits.   He was taught by the sawyer rep to quickly backflush the filter when you are done using it long enough that you think it will dry out.  The rep told him that it will backflush easily when wet, but when it dries then whatever sediment is left behind becomes harder to flush away.

Thanks, I will keep that in mind.

Msr guardian

This

This is good advice.  What we've learned as well is that before we head out on a trip, I always rig up the filters and let the membranes soak up water.  It adds a couple ounces, but makes filtering much faster when you need it.  As juslearnin mentioned, we have just made it a routine habit to backflush our filters every night.  After all our water is collected and prepared for the next day, we backflush and store the filters.  The output is much better with the "Squeeze", but if maintained properly the Mini will do quite well for one or two hikers.  My wife and I carry our own, but if it was just one filter, the Squeeze can filter water fast enough for a few people.

ROCK6

I use the Sawyer Squeeze (the bigger of the Sawyer filters) because the flow rate is better. I use an Evernew 2 liter bladder as the dirty side and Smart water bottles as the clean side.  I use a cheap screw on adapter that allows the water bottle to screw onto the outflow side of the filter, that way any spills from the dirty side do not contaminate the clean side. I have a cut-off water bottle squashed down that I use as a scoop when necessary.

The Evernew bladder threads seem to fit the filter better than Platypus bladders.

The threaded coupler means the Smart water bottle can be used to back flush without needing the syringe, or the cap from a 750 ml Smart water bottle.

In the past I carried Aqua Mira drops as a backup, or in case of contamination (which happened with the wonky threads of the Platypus and trying to direct the clean water into the bottle with the Sawyer nozzle). This year I'll ditch the drops.

The Sawyer mini is more compact, but clogs quicker, and takes more bladder squeezing.  Get the big one.

I have a Katydyn (spelling?) water filter...too heavy, too many flimsy moving parts.

Thanks guys!