Collapsible Water Bottles – Nope

Don’t just dunk the bottle if the water isn’t running, like in a lake, ‘run’ the bottle along the surface with the mouth half in the water. Next pass you’ll be able to put the mouth almost fully in the water. Doesn’t take that many passes to fill the bottle.

Or bring a cut off the bottom of a small collapsable bottle, like a quart sized Sawyer bag, or maybe a Ziplok, to scoop water up and pour into the Platypus.

What Doug said. I use a Be Free and Platy bottles. Somehow I stay hydrated.

Again, what Doug said.  I’ve never had a problem.  Filling them from really small sources like puddle is a pain, though.

The skimming method can work sometimes, but it can be a pain especially with the Platypus due to the small opening.  On most lakes there’s sediment on the the bottom or near the sides and when you start swooshing multiple passes the sediment gets stirred up and into the bottle which then can plugged up your water filter.

The two easiest methods are use your pot to scoop and pour the water or use a thicker plastic boiling bag such as a PackitGourmet Cook-in-Bag.  These bags are somewhat rigid and retain they’re shape once filled with water and you can use one hand to scoop and pour water from them into a Platypus.

I usually puff air into the bag first to open it up.  I hold the bags edges to keep the bottle from collapsing too much and lower the bag gently into the water: width parallel to the water surface.  If you force the bag down to far (or fast) it will collapse. I can usually get about 1/3 of the bag full.  I puff air back into the bag and now rotate the bag so that the narrow edge enters the water first (still holding the edges of the bag).  You will be able to see the water level in the bag, lower the bag so that the water level is 1/2′ below the surface level.  The trick is to NOT try to fill it fast, you will only collapse the bag (hydrostatic pressure).  My 2 cents.

Agree with Doug and I do it exactly like Jon Fong. Sometimes I bring a colaspible 1 liter Nalgene canteen with the wide cap. At night I use the canteen to fill the Platy(s) and then I fill the Nalgene. I like being able to roll up the Platys when hiking and I don’t need to carry much water.

As mentioned above, I use the bottom 1/2 of an old platy, cut on a slight angle, as a scoop.  Works great and the minimal extra hassle of filling from a lake is worth having the bottle consume zero pack space when empty.

Mix and match –

I take a 1 liter bottle for drinking during the day, hand washing and bathing.  I take one or two Playts for “bulk carry”. They fold into nothing later.

I use the hard-side liter to fill the Platys, and later use the Platys to refill my bottle.

Lots of good tips already.

This type of package makes a really nice scoop for filling up a soft bottle because of the stiffness of the sides. It’s really quick.

I don’t like scooping with a floppy ziplock.

I’ll also use a cutoff platy, but usually only when I’m also using my Steripen, as I use the cutoff platy as my filtering vessel. Then I make it do double duty as a measuring cup for meals. And it’s a light blue, so it’s easier to tell when the light is on with the Steripen in brighter conditions. Double duty, weighs next to nothing. What’s not to like? :-)

I’ve used Jon’s method, too.  It works.  But I also usually have a cut-off platy with me for those little trickling creeks that you’d be hard-pressed to use any other way.

What Greg said – 1 liter soda bottle + collapsible bottle

1 liter bottle I use to squeeze water through Sawyer filter

I squeeze the bottle, put under water and release so water gets sucked into the bottle.  Repeat 10 times to fill bottle.  I can suck water out of a volume as small as maybe 3 inches cubed

The inferior methods others suggested will work too ; )

I use a cut off 32 oz Sawyer bag that developed a leak at the neck to scoop up my water.

My scoop is one of the useless 16 oz Sawyer bags with the top cut off. Similar to what many others above are suggesting. Nice thing is that after filling, when you hold it by the sides the middle will naturally shape into a pouring spout.

I’ve been trying to develop a light plastic frame for a platypus bag for just this reason. I haven’t done much lately, but my tinkerings are documented in the myog section

Greg, that’s what I’ve been doing.

I blow in my platys to inflate, never a problem

If water not deep enough, use cook pot