Wasted $180 on a portable water filter that clogged on day two of the PCT

I finally saved up for that fancy squeeze filter everyone raves about. First stream I used it on in the Sierras, it clogged so bad I couldn't even get a liter out before the flow dropped to a trickle. Backflushing did nothing, the sediment was too fine. I ended up using iodine tablets the rest of that trip and they tasted awful. Has anyone else had a high-end filter fail on them right when it mattered?

3 comments

3 Comments

flores.mark10d ago

Yeah that same thing happened to me with a name brand squeeze filter in the Sierras. The super fine glacial silt just plugs them up no matter how much you backflush. I switched to a gravity setup with a prefilter bandana and it's been way more reliable for that kind of water.

henry15010d ago

That bandana prefilter trick really does save a lot of heartache with a gravity system.

parker_webb10d ago

The glacier silt is brutal. Bandana prefilter is a lifesaver on those trips.