Sawyer Mini water filter

[edhank]

I just picked myself up a Sawyer Mini water filter. I chew snuff and get thirsty often. I need to quit, but I thought this filter would be better then carrying bottles of water. A buddy and I go fishing for gemmies the first day and we usually walk about a mile down stream and fish our way back up.

Do any of yinz use something like this Sawyer water filter? I plan on drinking from the stream or use the squeeze pouch that came with it. Is there anything I need to watch out for or is there any other advice you have to offer? I'm kind of nervous cause the last time I drank from a stream I was puking and blowing butt for two weeks.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[ryansheehan]

I have a hydration blatter that sits in my vest. Maybe I'm a whimp but no chance I would drink from one of those things unless it was life or death.

 

[steveo27]

lifestraw.com/products/lifestraw-go/

30$ of Amazon. Filters are replaceable. Fits my Orvis Guide sling perfect.

Goes with me every fishing trip. Its great not having to hoof around enough water to stay hydrated for 12 hours of hiking and fishing.

Ive filled it up in the stream countless times with no problems. Most of the streams I fish are high gradient gemmie streams so they are usually a little cleaner. I prefer to fill it up in a spring if I can find one only because the water is colder.

Ive been using mine for about a year and a half probably once a week or so and the filter is still good.

 

[Aducker]

I have the sawyer mini. It works fine for brookie stream type water.
The only problem I have with it is it is slow. I'm probably going to switch to the regular sawyer filter. It has a faster drain time.

 

[Swattie87]

I have a Katadyn Hiker Pro pump filter. Same concept, just bigger, heavier, and faster. Works well and I've never gotten sick from using it. I only use it on overnight backpacking trips. For day outings I just carry water. (It weighs about the same as a full bottle of water anyway.)

I only really use it on small back country Trout streams but I think I'd be confident to use it on less pristine water. Think about where people sometimes take water from on extended hikes like the AT, etc. That being said, use common sense. Take water from the most upstream source within reason. If you're on a big stream and there's a small trib coming in nearby, take the water from the trib. If you're on a small stream and there's a direct spring nearby, take from the spring, etc.

I think most of those filters impart a slightly off flavor to the water IMO. My Katadyn certainly does. Nothing overly offensive, but just enough to notice. I combat this by carrying those single serve calorie free vitamin water packets and dump just about 1/2 of one at a time into a full Nalgene.

 

[henrydavid]

It works! Label your water bags (dirty / filtered) so you don't get mixed up when you reuse them. Current helps fill the dirty water bag, it's tougher in slack water. You can rig up some sort of plastic "water scoop" so you can get the water in to the dirty bag in slack water. You may want to up size the bags, they are very reasonably priced.

With Sawyer they recommend using the filter once at home and backwash before the 1st use.

My friend has a homemade system he uses to hang the bags for drip filtering, there are many such set-ups you can view by doing a quick google search. I like to squeeze out the water I need then hang the bags and let it filter to have some for later.

This little filter is the cat's meow, mainly because it is cleanable by back washing and it takes up very little pack space. With the back washing filter it should really last forever, Sawyer only started adding the 100,000 gallon number when they got called out for saying the filter would last indefinitely.

1st time you take it out I would fill up a bag with water from home in case you have some difficulty purifying, my 1st time I couldn't get enough water in the dirty bag in the slow moving Susquehanna river.

 

[edhank]

Well, I used it today. Didn't see anything on Sawyers website about using it first at home then backwashing. First use was from the stream. I drank about 3 liters through it today. Now everytime my belly gurgles, I am fearful the explosions will soon commence.

 

[henrydavid]

I couldn't find that info. on their site now either, but I did find this from a post on backpacking forum " filter will need initial wetting and flow will increase after initial use, this is normal."

maybe there's some similar info. on the papers that came with it, can't seem to find mine at the moment.

 

[SteveG]

I'm with Ryan. Those filters don't remove enough contaminants for my liking. While I completely understand the usefulness for through-hikers, I just bring a small bottle of water along on the water, with more in my truck for my return.

 

[steveo27]

Outta curiosity, how far/long are you fishing where a small bottle of water is enough water to stay hydrated? I probably drink 6 or 7 22oz bottles worth of water out of my Lifestraw bottle on any given fishing trip. If I only carried water in, Id either have a half dozen water bottles with me or Id be pretty damn dehydrated.

 

[Swattie87]

Yeah, me personally, I need to drink more than I do on my day trip outings. I too often end up with a dehydration headache at the end of a long day fishing. I’m better about it on backpacking trips as I have my filter mentioned above, and essentially an unlimited supply of water.

For a day trip where I won’t be back to the vehicle, I’ll usually take two full 32 oz Nalgenes…so 64 oz. (My filter system is bigger and heavier, and would largely equate to about one full bottle anyway.) There may or may not sometimes be 12 additional ounces of fluid (most of which is water int: ) carried to have with lunch. I try to do my best to drink even when I’m not thirsty, but as we all know, you get to fishing and forget, then realize you’re thirsty and slug 32 oz at once. It’s also been my practice as of late to make sure to have an extra 32 oz of water back at the vehicle, along with a caffeinated soda of some kind for the drive home in case I’m tuckered out. Also, back to high school track...pre-hydrate. I try to drink a full bottle of water on the way to an all day hike/fish outing. Easier to carry it in you, than on you.

A typical all day small stream outing for me probably covers 8-10 miles round trip, maybe more sometimes. Outside of Summer, the 64 oz’s I carry for those is generally ok, but I still get headaches sometimes. Admittedly through in Summer, I probably either need to carry more, or carry my filter instead of water.

 

[MKern]

I have 3 water options when I fish.

First, is a camel-back bladder. It was a couple bucks as walmart. I just fill it up and it fits in my down's backpack.

Second, I have the lifestraw bottle as shown above.

Lastly, I have a backpacking filtrations straw. I don't like to use it and would rather go with one of the first two options.

Heck, I guess I use a 4th option: Just leave a bottle of water in the truck. A lot of times, I'm quite thirsty when I get back though.

 

[ryansheehan]

edhank wrote:
Well, I used it today. Didn't see anything on Sawyers website about using it first at home then backwashing. First use was from the stream. I drank about 3 liters through it today. Now everytime my belly gurgles, I am fearful the explosions will soon commence.

How are you feeling?

 

[edhank]

ryansheehan wrote:

edhank wrote:
Well, I used it today. Didn't see anything on Sawyers website about using it first at home then backwashing. First use was from the stream. I drank about 3 liters through it today. Now everytime my belly gurgles, I am fearful the explosions will soon commence.

How are you feeling?

No issues. So, I guess I am sold on it. I just need to remember to backwash it.

 

[SteveG]

If I drank a gallon of water on an outing, I wouldn't have any time left to fish.