New katadyn "befree" filter bottle?

I finally took the bait and bought one of these little BeFree guys, and it is great!  Just returned from a multi-day backpack trip in CO, and the BeFree allowed me to not carry the usual 1-2 liters of water that I am accustomed to hiking with.  The trail crossed enough small side creeks that it was easy to just stop and dip when thirsty, filling the small squeezy bottle for a few sips in between fill-ups.  For me this is a game-changer when hiking in areas where water is plentiful.  (Still carried a Platypus gravity setup for use in camp.)

I did notice a slight off-taste in the first couple of containers-full, but that seems to have gone away.  (Uh, I also did not wash the container prior to use.)  Flow seems fine after running approximately 12-15 liters of water through.

I think this is a great little product that helps lighten my load considerably!

Regarding the taste that the REI reviewer and at least one other BPLer noted from the Seeker bottle: I noticed this, too, but I was able to get rid of it.

I washed the bottle by putting a small amount of soap and water in it. I squeezed out the air, then scrubbed the bottle by rubbing the sides together. I did a thorough job of this, then rinsed the bottle several times to get all the soap out.

Finally, I tested the effectiveness of this by filling the Seeker about halfway with water (from my refrigerator filter), and left the water overnight. In the morning, it was taste test time: much better! I think all traces of unwelcome taste are gone.

Scrubbing it in this way is pretty easy, because you can run the sides together and there’s no baffle like on some hydration bladders. I’ll make this process part of my post trip cleanup.

Incidentally, before this more thorough cleaning, I first just swished some soapy water around and rinsed well, but a taste remained.

It is a little concerning that there is a plastic or chemical taste, but it’s fairly easy to get rid of. I haven’t grown any extra limbs yet.

.First Look: Katadyn BeFree Water Filter .

.Katadyn BeFree filter on Hydrapak Seeker bladder .

Pinhole Leaks in 0.6L Bottle + decreased flow rate after 11 days of use.  I’ve now used my original BeFree filter for a total of 11 field days for one person (about 180 trail miles) in the sierra with relatively clean water sources (lakes and streams).  The 0.6L bottle developed two pin-hole leaks.  The leaks are on two of the four folded pointy corners at the bottom.  The leaks are obvious when squeezing the bottle when drinking – the water slowly drips out or emits as a very thin stream (see photo).  I hiked two days after I noticed the leaks and while in my pack side pocket the bottle does not lose appreciable amounts so I didn’t attempt to repair it in the field.  I have not been particularly rough with my bottle, though I haven’t tried to baby it either.  Maybe the corners rubbed on the sierra granite too much?  The leaks are in opposite corners.

I have also noticed decreased flow.  I performed an unscientific test at home filtering about 0.5L of water using moderate pressure (similar to I use when drinking).  Even after some moderate shaking and rinsing with tap water, the older unit (used 11 field days) takes about 18-20 secs.  With a newer unit, that has only been used 4 person-days in the field, I could filter that same amount of water in about 10-12 secs. Even with the 40% or so decrease in the flow rate the flow is still acceptable and far better then I recall from my sawyers in prior seasons.

Good to know. Thank you, Bill!

I just spent a couple nights out using a a 1L Seeker and the filter and I love it. The bladder is so much easier to fill compared to the Sawyer bladders. The large mouth fills much faster and the lash points provide a great spot to stick a finger through. I’m very pleased with the results so far.

+1.

I used the 3L Seeker and BeFree filter for a two day trip last week and I’m totally converted. Super easy to fill and the welded points were great to hold onto and hanging from a tree. No worries about them pulling off, they’re sturdy.

I also glued two bottle caps together and drilled a whole in the middle (homemade Tornado Tube) so I can fill my two 1.5L Evernew soft bottles. It’s nice that the total volumes match up. I don’t even squeeze it, just screw them together, invert, and come back in <2min.

I used the filter with the 3L Seeker for 8 days of canoeing and camping. It worked flawlessly.  I just hung the Seeker upside down from a clip on a branch and just opened the lid and out flowed the water.  I did notice a bit of slowing down around day 7, but it was still way better than the Sawyer.  I found the 3L hard to fill after 2 L but I was dunking and dragging it in the lake.  Once home, I cleaned it according to directions and the flow seemed to improve, so it may be that I had some particles in the filter at camp.  As far as I am concerned, this is a keeper for me.  I just wish it could fit on regular water bottles.  I am not very fond of floppy fabric.  The Seeker’s interior did dry pretty quickly at home.  I just hung it upside down and it was dry within the day.

I copied the Sawyer SP140 water bottle filter setup and cobbled together a Katadyn BeFree version using a Gatorade bottle and parts from the Source Hydration Convertube Water Bottle Adapter Kit.  Have only tested at home but so far it seems to work perfectly.

I have it set up with quick disconnects to use with a hydration tube and the Seeker 3L for gravity mode.  You can also just use the included sport bottle flip cap and eliminate the hydration tube altogether if you prefer drinking right from the bottle.  Will be doing a 5 day trip to Rae Lakes in a few weeks so that will be the true test.  I’ll report back after I return.  Total weight for everything is 11.8 oz (includes 3L Seeker with stuff sack).

I tried my Befree filter on a couple Ultimate Direction Body Flasks and it works fine. No leaks. It also works on the Ultraspire Ultra Flask which has more form to it than the Body Flasks.

I bought one of these filters plus a 3L Seeker at REI today. I was looking forward to using them on an upcoming 5-Day trip, but sad to say I had an epic failure just playing with it in my kitchen sink at home. I was squeezing cold tap water through the filter to see what the flow was like when the soft material separated from the hard plastic collar. I wasn’t squeezing hard or anything, and had only pushed maybe 2 bottles worth of water through when this happened. Sounds like other folks have had good luck with the BeFree, but this could be an early indicator of Quality Control problems. I will return it and give the product another shot, but I will be sure to pack a 1L Seeker as a backup.

Just another data point for folks considering this system.

Gordon

Yikes, that is concerning. Thanks for sharing your experience. I hope the replacement does better.

I carry Aquamira tablets as a backup as I am sure many here do.

Wow that is catastrophic! BTW, I emailed Katadyn support when I had the pin-hole leaks develop in my bottle and they sent me a new bottle (and filter) right away.

Has anyone been able to set this up as an inline system (ie hose drinking on the go)?

It does look like the bottle would need to be inverted – just wondering if someone has figured out how to do this in a side pocket?

Apologies if I missed a post about it….still waking up…..

Jen, wake up, and scroll up to David K’s post.

I just finished hiking thru hiking the JMT in 13 days. I used the Befree with a 1L Seeker. For the first 4 days the flow was incredibly fast. All of my friends were quite jealous and they were all talking about getting the same set up. By day 5 I noticed a considerable decrease in the flow rate. By day 7 it didn’t seem much faster than a Mini Sawyer. Although it is still slightly faster than a mini Sawyer, it’s still a little frustrating. I cleaned the filter 2x per day but it did nothing to restore the flow rate. I’m still debating whether or not to return it.

But Ken!  that’s for gravity feed, NOT inline drinking……………….

Of course, I’m still waking up now, too…so I might have totally misunderstood……..

Don Burton wrote:

“I cleaned the filter 2x per day but it did nothing to restore the flow rate.”

How were you cleaning the BeFree? Did you find a way to properly backflush it, or were you swishing it as Katadyn recommends?

Thanks

Jen – pics 1 and 2 in my post above show myu setup for inline use with a drinking tube.  :)

Gordon:

No, but I didn’t try though. Maybe I’ll try back flushing it with my Sawyer syringe. I used the “swishing” method.

I’ve now used the BeFree on a 5-day trip, so I thought I’d update my experience with it. After the initial catastrophic failure (see my post and photo 10 posts back) I returned the unit to REI and received a new one. Being a bit paranoid, I decided to use the Hydrapak SF750 Soft Flask in place of the .6L flask that comes with the filter, and carry a second SF750 as a backup. The area I was in had few water sources, so I also carried a 700ml SmartWater bottle for clean water. I also carried a 3L Seeker soft bottle for water in camp. This system worked well. I didn’t notice any significant reduction in flow rate after the 5 days. The 3L Seeker was handy for carrying water 3 miles to a dry camp, and also for filtering in camp. The SF750s held up OK, no failures. You really have to tighten down the BeFree on the 750s to keep from having leaks though, which increases the chance of damaging the flask and the filter. The BeFree filter itself could use some grippy texture as it is difficult to tighten with cold, wet hands. I’m not in love with the soft flasks either. They work OK, but are tricky to pour from or into, and can roll away if you’re not careful. I’d really like to see some kind of semi-hard sided bottle option for this filter, something like a SmartWater bottle. That would be ideal. Or at least an adapter that allows you to use a SmartWater. All-in-all I like the system, the scoop and go aspect is awesome, but I feel it really needs improved container options.

Just echoing Gordon’s findings on the threading.  Though I would recommend against using the softflask 750’s.

I bought one of the softflask 750’s to try with my befree and had no luck with it at all.  No matter how hard i tightened it, I still got leakage.  So, you had better luck than I did with the softflasks.

I have a 2L seeker that is much better.  The softflask has a soft pliable plastic on its threads, while the seeker has much harder plastic which mates better with the befree.  I have had no leakage on the seeker threading.

I kiss came back from a long weekend using this filter with a 1 Liter Seeker and was happy with the performance in the field. I rinsed it horizontally under the faucet when I got home yesterday and for some reason went to the first page of this thread and so the photo of the instructions which warn specifically against cleaning the filter in this manner. I just did the blow test and I can blow through the filter now.

I’m slightly nervous that the filter got compromised before this weekend but I have a vague recollection of testing the filter before I left. Hopefully I breached the fibers yesterday in the sink…

Follow-up question: what are likely contaminants in northeastern AZ (Mogollon Rim) in an area with lots of elk? I did filter from a very slow, lazy creek with lots of silica silt a mile or two from the spring that feeds the creek. I’m interested in googling symptoms. If I was going to get sick, what would it likely be from?

Responding to Mike Whitesell, my SF750 also leaked excessively when I first got it. There is a little finger loop on the SF750 which attaches to the neck of the bottle with a flat collar. That collar prevents the BeFree filter from seating properly on the SF750, so I removed it. Once that was gone I found the filter could function on this bottle without leaks if it is screwed down fairly tight. Not ideal, but it works, and the 750 does afford a little more capacity than the BeFree bottle. I haven’t tried this, but it may be possible to improve the fit on the 750 by carefully removing some material from the BeFree cap, allowing it to seal with less effort.