That $60 water filter I skimped on nearly ruined a 3-day trip

Bought a cheap brand off Amazon for the Lost Coast Trail last summer, and it clogged up by day two. Had to ration water from a questionable stream and ended up with a bad stomach. Anyone else regret going budget on water treatment?

3 comments

3 Comments

harperg767d agoTop Commenter

Ngl @susan_wright34 you made the right call. I learned the hard way too with a cheap squeeze filter that failed on day two of a trip. Giardia is no joke and the medical bills for that would be way more than what you saved on the filter. Your health comes first and a $120 filter is cheap insurance compared to what that bacteria can do to you. Better to pay upfront than suffer out on the trail with a bad stomach and no clean water.

susan_wright347d ago

Honestly I used to think any filter would do the job but after hearing stories like yours I dropped real money on a Katadyn BeFree. No way am I risking giardia to save fifty bucks.

phoenixb347d ago

Spending big on a fancy filter is smart marketing getting to you, not smart money management. A basic Sawyer Squeeze has been tested to the same NSF standards as the BeFree and costs half as much (or less). Plenty of folks have used cheap filters for years without a single sick day, so maybe the extra cash is just paying for a brand name.