Hydration system questions

I carry my Platypus bottle in the side mesh pockets of my backpack and I find that a great improvement over carrying them inside my backpack. In the side pockets they are much easier to get to and they do not make everything wet inside the pack. (Even if the bottle does not leak it is usually wet from filling up.)
If I carry just one liter the weight does not bring my pack out of balance. If I have to carry more water I use the second bottle in the other side pocket to counterbalance. The balance problem has turned out to not be a problem for me. I would never want to go back to carry water inside my pack now.

Luke:

In lieu of one big bladder inside the pack, I too carry two smaller bladders (1L size) in my pack's two side pockets. It's much easier to refill and tell how much water you have left.

Some people cite "weight imbalance" when one bottle is near empty… but all the years I've been doing this, I find the imbalance 'academic' — meaning it doesn't translate into any noticeable discomfort at all.

You could still use the squeeze filter with your current set up. Just need to bring another "dirty" water bladder/bottle. Fill it with water, attach the squeeze filter, then filter/squeeze it into your regular hydration bladder.

I too just moved to a Sawyer squeeze filter. I used to use a single water bladder too, but I'm thinking of going with two 1 liter platypus bottles on either side. One will be a dedicated "dirty" bladder, with the filter attached to it. The other will have a hydration hose in it. When the clean one gets empty, I'll just refill it with the other bladder. If that makes sense.

For some reason, I cannot access bottles from side pockets without a LOT of effort, so that's why I'm going with the hydration tube. I don't know how people contort themselves in order to get bottles out of side pockets. I THOUGHT I was a flexible guy, guess not…

Nick, that is the system I'm thinking about switching to as well. I didn't think of using a hydration tube with it though. That's a good idea. The easier access I have to water the more hydrated I'll be. Which Platypus bottles will work for this set up?