Sawyer Squeeze Maintenance

[Al Brassell]

I Florida where I live tap water causes a buildup of some crusty type of a gray substance in pipes, around faucets etc. I have no idea what this stuff is but my feeling is that it would probably permanently clog up the filtering element in the Sawyer Squeeze if allowed to dry in the filter. Is there a way to ensure that the filter is dry when you back flush at home after you come off the trail? Also would back flushing with distilled water help in preventing this type of buildup?

[JCH]

As a 60 year resident of Florida I can tell you that what you are describing is calcium buildup which is dissolved limestone from caverns that are the Floridian aquifer.  As such it is easily removed from plumbing fixtures with products such as CLR.

However, I question the need to introduce any such chemical “cleaner” into the filter.  You will not be filtering nearly the amount of water that flows through your home’s pipes/faucets/showerhead/etc.  A simple backflush of the filter with distilled or RO water should be more than sufficient.

As for drying, post-trip I backflush with a VERY mild bleach solution, then again with clean water, suck all of the water out of the filter I can by mouth, then hang the filter for a week or two such that any trapped water has the opportunity to drain.  Pre-trip, I perform another backflush with a mild bleach solution and then hook up my gravity system and run 2L of water through the filter.  This is as much to test the filters function as to ensure nothing is living in there…one of the worst feelings in the world is to bust out the filter at the end of a long day and find it not functioning properly :)

[J R]

My foolproof step-by-step system:

• Use filter for one season.
• Carefully place filter in the trash bin.
• Place order from my favorite vendor for a new filter.
• Open when package arrives.
• Repeat.

[Monty Montana]

I’ve posted about this before, but once again: absolutely back flush with distilled water as soon as you get home, before the filter has time to dry.  The distilled water will wash away the mineral laden water; should your filter dry before back flushing the minerals (calcium, etc.) will crystallize and won’t easily go back into solution. Result: dead filter.  A spot of bleach is a good idea, too.

[JCH]

JR’s method is certainly fool-proof.

[Author]

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