Sawyer Merchandise SP128 Mini Water Filtration System, Single, Blue

Performs well, intuitive, lightweight, reasonable.
I’m far from an experienced long range hiker or backpacker. I’m fairly comfortable out in the woods, do about 8-9 miles a day in about 2 hours, and have common sense, but I am not a backwoodswoman (unfortunately). A conveniently-sized filter has been on my “that’d be cool” list for years, and while planning a mountain day hike with my sister I went for it with the Sawyer Mini. This was a 2,500′ elevation gain hike that was expected to clock in around 9 miles round-trip, trail reports said the average run time was about 4h 45m. No problem.I’m one of those who needs to hydrate excessively- I routinely go through about 2 liters of fluid on a 9 mile route. My hydration pack takes 2 liters, so I figured I probably wouldn’t even need the filter but the trip made a good excuse. I even tossed in a lightweight disposable 28 oz bottled water before leaving our car, thinking “No way is that filter getting used!”Man am I glad I had the Sawyer. My hiking partner is not anywhere near as active as I am, which resulted in hours longer on the trail than expected, and surprise, the route clocked in closer to 15 miles than 9. So we were out there, including a break at the spectacular turn around location, for about 10 hours. The Sawyer performed beautifully. I didn’t have to stress about trying to conserve water, which was a real relief on the way back, now knowing how long the route actually was and how fast my partner and I were likely to move. The available watersources were mountain streams on a *heavily* trafficked trail (it was like a traffic jam in sections), so the water looked, smelled, and felt clean and cold already, but I sure wouldn’t have risked drinking it unfiltered (as we saw several other groups doing- just say no to unfiltered water folks, seriously, not worth it).Okay, the actual review stuff: I’m ashamed to admit I’d never actually used a filter before, though I’ve seen other people do so. I’m also *not* kinesthetically intelligent. But the Sawyer mini is super easy to understand and use, lightweight, and doesn’t have a lot of tiny parts or really much you can do to screw up. I did a test run when it was delivered, found it easy and obvious, and left the flushing syringe in the cabin because we were on a day hike. On the trail it was 100% slick. The included 16 oz bag for untreated water is a little small, and can be challenging to fill in still water, but performed well despite those limitations. As mentioned, the water was already very clear- no visible particulates, and I was able to filter about 1.5 liters in around 8 minutes, including the water-gathering. I assume that dirtier water with more particulates would filter slower- for the water I was filtering, the flow rate was just as fast as my tap water test run, and it was easy to speed up with some gentle pressure on the bag. I should note that I found an actual water bottle *much* easier to filter into than my hydration pack bladder with its floppy body and wide mouth (the last minute extra tossed-in bottled water was useful on two fronts!), so I’d highly recommend carrying a lightweight bottle for filtering into even if you intend to eventually drink it out of an in-line system. The filter, straw, and backflow syringe fit easily into a clean ipsy-type zip case and were light and easy to pack and carry. I will invest in some screw covers or other capping solution so as to avoid water leakage in the future after use, but this wasn’t a big deal for me. I’ll likely also toss in some alcohol wipes for future trips to ensure clean surfaces after the parts have been jumbled together. Overall, while I imagine that folks who actually are backwoodspeople have better, higher-volume/higher-flow filtering systems and solutions, I’m 100% satisfied with my little Sawyer mini and its totally accessible price point and feel confident it will perform when needed.

Filter works great, but the squeeze system is for the birds. I built a lightweight DIY pump.
I got the Sawyer Mini and a set of 32-ounce squeeze bags for the trusted brand, light weight, and excellent performance. It’s a popular filter for good reason. However, I found using the squeeze bags a major pain in the hands. I’m a climber and have plenty of grip strength, but the rolling method to prolong the life of the bags is still quite a workout. I also found that filling the bags in slow moving and medium-speed creeks to be kind of tricky.With some common materials, I was able to build a lightweight pump (116g) to make using the the Mini WAY easier.Supplies:* Sawyer Mini water filter* Heinz Easy Pump* 6 feet of silicone tubing. Specifically 5/16″ inner diameter, 7/16″ outer diameter. This size creates a watertight seal between the pump and the filter. The larger inner diameter has better flow than 1/4″ tubing.* Sealant. I used some leftover liquid silicone sealant from another home project. Two part epoxy would work and so would a waterproof tape.* Optional prefilter. A prefilter prolongs the life of your Sawyer Mini by keeping out larger particulate. Mine is a stainless steel inline fuel filter for small engines. Look for a 5/16″ outlet to match the tubing.Build instructions:1. Disassemble the pump and recycle/discard the spring. Near the top on the outer tube, there are two small openings to let in air. Seal these up with the sealant of your choice and ensure there’s no seep-out on the inside of the pump. Allow the sealant to cure.2. Remove the angled tip to the pump handle using a sharp knife or ratcheting PVC pipe cutter.3. Cut the silicone tubing to size. I eyeballed when I cut mine, but the pieces measure 46 inches on the inlet, 2.25 inches on the coupler, and 16.5 inches on the outlet. I marked my inlet hose on each end, just as a visual reminder that it’s the dirty water hose so I don’t mix the clean and dirty sides up.4. Assemble as pictured. Everything press-fits together and should be easy to take apart by hand.You have to pump it pretty slowly at first to get the pump primed with clean water, but once the system is full of water, it runs like a champ. This is because air is compressible and water isn’t. This setup can filter a liter of water in about 30 pumps. The pump can also be used to backflush the filter. Just connect the Sawyer mini output to the output of the pump and use the shorter clean water hose on the pump inlet.

المنتج ممتاز وينفع للاوت دورز والهايكنق لكن الباكجنق سيئ كان احد جلس عليه وحاطه عالشمس

I am very happy with my purchase!