Blew $200 on a water filter that clogged after 3 days on the JMT

I bought the Katadyn BeFree 1-liter on a recommendation and took it on the John Muir Trail last August. Worked fine for the first couple creek crossings, but by day three the flow dropped to nothing. I tried backflushing it a few times, no luck. Anyone else ditch the BeFree and go back to a Sawyer Squeeze?

2 comments

2 Comments

river18218d ago

Wait, did you try backflushing it with the little syringe that comes with it? That thing works way better than just shaking it or whatever.

iris_green8418d ago

Oh the backflushing syringe is actually meant for cleaning the shower screen basket specifically, not the whole machine! You definitely shouldn't try to force it into the group head or anything like that. I made that mistake once and it just made a huge mess everywhere. The proper way to clean the group head is with a blind basket and some cafiza powder, which is super easy too. That little syringe is awesome for the basket though, just gotta use it right or it'll spray coffee grounds all over your counter.