Deep Cleaning Your Backpacking Water Filter 

Much appreciated!!

I wish I would have remembered to tell you to heat the filter up in a pot of water. That may have helped ya. Can’t wait for your Thru hike series!!

Thanks Bradley! That just made me smile 😊

Glad it helped you out. Shoot me an email at miyagionthetrail@gmail with an address to ship and I’ll get ya a few stickers. Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

Much appreciated @marabula! Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

How do you store it the

It’s that time of year again buddy!!

Awesome!! Glad it worked for you.

Glad it helped. Cheers!

You know me….lots of bits and bobs of wisdom. 😂 😂 😂

@@MiyagiontheTrail Always appreciated dude!!!

Hope it helped!

@@MiyagiontheTrail It sure did and I'm ready for the next trip! Thanks

2-4 drops of Clorox in 1/2 a 750ml bottle should do the trick nicely prior to storage (and cheaper too!) You can use 2 drops of Clorox as a water additive in place of Aquamira to disinfect water out in the backcountry as well (as long as you don’t mind the taste of pool water 😉 😂). Most people aren’t mentally “ok” with using household bleach as a water treatment….but, it’s basically the same thing as the Aquamira. If used for long periods on trail it may affect your gut health. For those going this route I would suggest using a probiotic to keep your gut health in-balance. Thanks for watching and commenting Mark! Much appreciated! Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

Unfortunately Floyd you bought a Porsche in the Honda Civic world of water filters. The GRAYL is great at filtering out protozoa, chemicals and viruses. Unfortunately it’s no good at being back flushed as there is very little you can do in the way of restorative efforts for the filter medium. You are just gonna have to buy brand-new proprietary parts for your Porsche. 😂. I think a replacement filter is only 20 or $30. The biggest benefit I see for that particular filter is international travel where viruses in the water supply is a serious concern. The only problem is the increased pressure from air travel causes the bottle to leak all over if it’s been used prior. The filter cartridge itself stores quite a bit of water even though the internal water storage area is empty. Better seal it in a plastic bag in your checked luggage. Good luck my friend! Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

If you’re going to use the coupling as a gravity feed just don’t tighten the clean water bottle snug on the coupling. It needs to “breathe a bit” for the water to flow. Great method I’ve been using for years. It’s definitely slower than just squeezing a pouch into your water bottle, but if you are at camp and time isn’t really an issue I just let it hang from a tree to slowly fill. Thanks for tuning in & commenting Pete! Much appreciated.

@@MiyagiontheTrail And another great tip, thanks Miyagi!

😉

This is especially helpful for loosening and removing salt deposits from water softeners. Thanks for watching and commenting. Much appreciated! Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

I’m glad it helped. Take care! Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

I just keep it dirty for the next trip. Trail patina 😉

Lots and lots of bins! 😂 😂. Thanks for watching!

Thanks buddy!

When I’m done with my hiking session I back flush my sawyer with bleach and tap water water let it sit for hour. Then flush it out both ways with distilled water. I don’t let it dry out it then gets placed in a container filled with distilled water.

Give it a shot! The BeFree is a great filter out of the box. The flow rate is crazy fast! Its downside is it’s ability to be forcefully backflushed. Vigorous shaking certainly helps but I’ve never been able to get it flowing fast again after a week or so on trail. A good hot water soak and a light acid bath should help you out Garry. Good luck! 👍

Good luck Travis! I find the vinegar or citric acid to be the most helpful. The hot water treatment seems to help loosen everything up. Safe travels on the CDT!! Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

I figured it was a good reminder for all of us. It’s that time of year! 👍

@@MiyagiontheTrail I actually gave my water filter to a couple women Friday night when I was at YRSF. Their water filter was plugged up.

That was mighty nice of ya! 👍

Thank you my friend!

Thanks so much GT Racer347! Much appreciated.

Many times the water we think is “clean” is chocked full of minerals that only heat and a mild acid can battle once they crystallize on the filter membranes. Thanks so much for watching! Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

Much appreciated!

Thanks so much Spielberg! I appreciate the kind comments. Unfortunately no, I’m not on the AZT. Wish I was! It’s a beautiful trail! Somebody out there must be pretending to be me. 😉. 😂 😂

@@MiyagiontheTrail If I catch up with the imposter, I’ll give him a piece of my mind 😂. Hopefully in the future we’ll run into each other again on trail. Hope all is well with you and Tripps!

Ha! 😂. Same here my friend! Things are definitely good. Wishing you all the best out there!

Thanks much Matt! Just shoot me an email miyagionthetrail@gmail.com and let me know where to send. Good luck with that filter!

Fortunately for me it is fairly inexpensive. Vapor distillation can be done at home over the stove with some basic equipment but with it comes an outlay in addition expense and time. The distilled water really makes a big difference when it comes to storing the device.

Hey Shane! I usually shake the heck out of it first and then just leave it out on a shelf for a few weeks before it gets packed away in a bin. I’d love to join ya this coming weekend but I’ve got some family holiday plans. Never been to the Reno Unit. Thanks so much for watching & the invite! Stay in touch…fist bumps ~ Miyagi

Household vinegar will not harm the filter. This is directly from Sawyer’s FAQ from their website: Q: “I NOTICE WHITE ALL OVER MY FILTER OUTLET AND IT DOESN'T FLOW AS FAST AS IT USED TO, WHAT DO I DO?” Sawyer’s Answer: Sounds like you are getting calcium build up. Soak the filter in vinegar for a half hour and then back wash it. You may have to repeat this a few times to get it completely clean.Filters with a small pore size are susceptible to clogging due to hard water deposits. Additional Info: Most drinking water will have some divalent cations (Ca+2, Mg+2) that forms insoluble carbonate salts (from dissolved CO2) when it dries. The reason to rinse with vinegar is that the acid in vinegar (acetic acid) will dissolve the carbonates salts because carbonate is a base. It reacts with the acid to form soluble acetate salts and carbonic acid that decomposes to form CO2 again (mix baking soda and vinegar if you want to see the reaction). However the salts take some time to dissolve. So what I do is to run some vinegar through the filter, seal it, and let it set for a while (an hour or so), then flush that out and repeat until you get a good flow rate. Then run a large volume of tap water through it to get rid of all the vinegar. Then you can run a bleach solution if you want (I have never found this necessary if you have do a good job back flushing, vinegar washing, and rinsing). Finally you need to flush it well with DISTILLED water. Make sure it is distilled as this will be free of ions that will precipitate and re-clog the filter on drying. Reverse osmosis purified water might work, but I only trust distilled water. After the distilled water rinse, you can dry.

Completely OCD! 😂 😂 😂. When we hiking together again??

@@MiyagiontheTrail soon I hope.

Sawyer recommends it. I’ve been using these methods with the same filter for 8 consecutive years without issue. I’ve filtered some NASTY water. Good luck out there & be safe. Fist bumps ~ Miyagi

@@MiyagiontheTrail oh wow, that's a real testament to the brand and product!

Yep…before is always best. 😂

Thanks much Randy! Much appreciated. Just shoot me an email where to send it and I’ll get it off in the mail for ya. Fist bumps ~ Miyagi. Miyagionthetrail@gmail.com

I’m still working on my first cup myself. Agreed though…between cups 3-4 is where the rubber meets the pavement and I’m off and running 🏃‍♂️. 😂 😂. Thanks Floyd!