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That $60 water filter I bought for the JMT in 2017 is still going strong
I dropped cash on a Katadyn BeFree right before the John Muir Trail trip and honestly thought it was overkill. Filtered 200+ gallons from that trip alone and it never clogged once. Meanwhile my buddy's cheap Sawyer mini froze on day 3 and cracked. Anyone else have gear that just refuses to die after years of abuse?
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rose_clark8111d ago
But honestly that's just how it goes with quality gear sometimes. I've noticed the same pattern with so many things in life where spending a little more upfront saves you from the headache of replacing cheap stuff over and over again. It's like my dad always said, you cry once when you buy the good thing or you cry every time the cheap thing breaks. That BeFree sounds like it paid for itself ten times over on reliability alone, which is more than I can say for the three different budget filters I watched my buddy go through in that same timeframe.
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black.oliver11d ago
Kind of makes you wonder if those cartridge filters are built to handle sediment better than the squeeze ones... maybe the design actually accounts for grime instead of just hoping it passes through.
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200 gallons is no joke, that thing earned its keep. But I gotta ask - how bad was the mouthpiece after that much use? I read some reviews saying the silicone gets funky and starts tasting like old socks after a while. Did you have to boil it or soak it in anything to keep the taste normal, or did you just say screw it and drink through the grossness?
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miaprice11d ago
Wait you're telling me that BeFree actually lasted that long? I always thought those things were marketing hype with the flow rate claims and the price tag. But 200+ gallons no clog is wild. I was a total cheapskate back then rocking the Sawyer Squeeze and it worked fine for a couple seasons but eventually the bags started leaking and I got sick of patching them up. My buddy had the Mini die on him too during a cold snap in the Sierras and he was so pissed he just boiled everything the rest of the trip. Honestly I avoided the BeFree for years because I figured anything that expensive with a mouthpiece like that would break or get disgusting fast. Now I'm kinda rethinking my whole gear setup after hearing this. Might have to give those cartridge filters a real shot next time I'm due for a replacement.
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