Katadyn Base Camp Water Filtration: Opinions

[titelines]

Hi All,

Picked one up yesterday and was wondering if anyone has one and how you like it.

Looks like a great set-up and good way to get a lot of filtered water in your camp at a time. Looking forward to putting it to the test in a week or so.

[Duffman]

After using a Sawyer gravity type filter last fall, I was so impressed I picked one up this spring. The Katadyn looks simular in operation, let us know how it works out. Anything is better than pumping, especially if it's a lot of water.

[Buckhunt]

You and your friends will be so happy with your decision, you will have them all wanting to borrow yours on their trips (trust me!) It was one of the best purchases for our BWCAW group.

My 2 bits of advice:

1. Buy an extra filter right away - even though you probably wont need it on your first couple trips, we always bring 2. If they get clogged (try not to fill the bag right next to shore when you can see pollen in the water) it works well to let it dry and blow it off for re-use. When there is a ton of pollen in the water, we usually rotate filters. They are extremely expensive so we try to get every last drop out.

2. Don't forget to pay attention - My guess is at least 3 times on your first trip you will forget about it and come back to an overflowing bottle and an empty bag. It may sound funny, but no joke, at least 3 times on every one of our trips. It doens't hurt, just runs the filter unnecessarily.

My two cents.....

[titelines]

Thanks for your input - I appreciate it!

We'll be putting it to the field test next week, so I'll let you know how it goes.

Thanks again!

[bobbymalone]

+ 1 for buckhunt's suggestions.

Also:

1. Be sure and check to see if your filter needs any sort of pretreatment before use. I have the hiker model and the filter needs to soak for a while in clean water before taking it out in the field. Also doesn't hurt to run a gallon or two through it to help get rid of any unpleasant flavors that come out from a new filter.

2. Kind of obvious but somebody should mention it, if you can find clean looking running water use that. If you can't, take your water from further out in the lake. Obviously avoid stagnant pools.

3. Pick up some purification tablets. They take up about as much size and space as an aspirin bottle and will come in handy when you tear a hole in that bag or your filter carps out, or whatever sort of unforeseen scenario you might run into.

[Quetico]

My 2 cents? Forget all the pre-treatment bullstuff. I did the giardea thing once, would prefer not to do it again. So I don't mess around with my water.

I ponied up the big bucks and went straight to the .1 micron filter and bough a First Need. It takes your nastiest water and purifies it to crystal clear water with no scent. Yeah, its more expensive but water isn't something to mess around with.

Water born illnesses can be fatal.

A smart idea to be save- when in remote wilderness areas fresh clean water is a life saver. Carry emergency water purification tablets in your first aid kit in case your purifier is compromised.

[Powerstroke]

I've had my BaseCamp for 4 years and LOVE IT! I hear some of the newer models are faster at filtering but I've never tried them. It also makes me wary about how fast is too fast when you're trying to filter.

I've only used 2 filters in my 4 years. Its easily cleaned. ALso I wrap a coffee filter around the outside of the filter to extend the life. Always draw water away from shore to avoid pollen,algae etc clogging up your filter.

Its easy to get complacent with it and find an overflowing bottle or you filter too much into a platypus bag and don't use it. This just shortens the life of the filter. Use it as you need it and it does a great job.

ALso, my bag has had only one pinhole it it over 4years and that's cause it got hung against a tree trunk with a sharp point. A quick repair with a bike inner-tube patch and it's like new. It still filtered water just fine, it just leaked a tiny bit out that was unfiltered. Hang the bag a few inches away from the tree and no problems.

[deadeye]

Glad to hear that they work good. I have been waffleing about getting one of these myself. I got one of those pump type filters from REI, I think its a MSR and it works good but I can think of a million other things I would rather do than be pumping water. I like the set it and forget it idea so much better.

[Redlantern]

I've used a filter for a few years now and think I'm going back to the iodine. If I bring them for a back up in case the filter gives me trouble, why not just skip the filter altogether? So I got to wait twwenty minutes to use the water, big deal?

[titelines]

Well, we just got back from the BWCA and here's my opinion: FANTASTIC!!

It was just the two of us, so we don't use a ton of water, but Man, did this thing work well. Filled it twice each day and it gave us more than enough water. Took about 30 minutes for a full bladder to filter, but considering how much water we got, it was well worth it. We'd be doing other things and our water jug would be full before we knew it. We'd fill our jug, then fill the bladder at night, with the clamp closed, and the newly filtered water would be nice and cool in the morning.

More surprising to me was that the water didn't have a chemical taste, or mineral taste at all. It was the best tasting water I've had in a long time while camping. For a 5 day trip, we filled it about 10 times. Checked the filter when we got back and it looks brand new.

I give it two thumbs up and would recommend this to anyone.