Oh man! I wish so much I had seen this video earlier! But now that I know, I will DEFINITELY be doing this cleanout on my Sawyer! Had a trip with lots of muddy water and wanted to open and test it but didn't know how.
That's great! You wont be disappointed. Its a solid piece of kit. Hope you are subscribed; in upcoming vids I'll be explaining in greater detail about filter performance, comparisons and also off-season failure, something all filters of this type are susceptible too.
This is fantastic info. I wasn't aware that this filter was so serviceable! Have you played at all with the Sawyer MINI? It seems to be pretty monolithic.
The mini is glued as far as I can tell. No chance opening it. BUT...It still can be tested. Just that you'll see bubbles coming out of the spout rather than directly from the membrane pack. The same can be done for the PointOne if you dont want to take it apart.
@@BorealWilderness At some amount of air moving effort, air will definitely move through the filter, even if it is perfectly sound. Do you understand how we might quantify that? Is it something like: the filter is failed IF 1. If you see bubbles at pressure < Xpsi VS 2. If you apply pressure Xpsi and see bubbles in < X seconds. I presume that this all depends on the tendency of the hydrophilic pore of a given diameter to try to resist a force that is trying to de-wet it? This would make me lean towards the first condition? I admit its not my field of expertise but I definitely would like to understand this better. I think the community would be grateful for a DIY test that can be performed with < $20 of personal effort!
So, do any bubbles indicate compromise? I get about a dozen small bubbles, but mine has never frozen - just been in a closet for a few years. I’d already begun to question Sawyers, but am now convinced I need another solution. Thanks for the video.
Would love to hear what sawyer's response will be coz as far as they are concerned, their filter is not testable. But in the context of this video, If there are bubbles I'd be wary of it. The membranes can crack due to a fall/shock etc. (though rarely). I'd say give the cyno glue method a go but that's down to user discretion. Imho, if it does not bubble, it's technically safe (IMHO).
Would this method still work without taking anything apart? I cannot separate mine either but it does run clear for a few seconds before starting to bubble. I’m watching the top of the black nozzle for bubbling as I’d imagine all bubbles would still have to come through the top. The filter can only hold a small amount of water I imagine, so it would have to start bubbling at some point since it isn’t being supplied with water anymore. Right?
Yup, you are doing it right. Sounds like your filter is compromised. The the field that's what I'd do. At home, to be 100% sure, I'd submerge the filter facing upwards in a bucket, push water through it with a bottle or bag full of water to displace all the air, keep the filter under water, unscrew the bottle or bag, empty it, send it back down upside down to keep it full of air, screw it into the filter, then try and push air through it. If you are getting a steady stream of bubble coming through the filter, most likely it's compromised. Wouldn't do this in a stream or lake as the clean end would get contaminated.
As of December 3, 2023, this may not be possible. I tried but couldn’t get it to unscrew. The label has the new branding - Sawyer is in a serif font vs the old sans serif - so they may have adapted to prevent this.
Yup, ofcourse, best to replace. It's just that CA glues are relatively non-toxic once cured but they are not considered food-safe by the FDA. So while the CA glue method would work in a pinch, an eventual replacement would be best in the long run.
Thank you for your comment. I understand where you are coming from and the standpoint of liability. 💯%. However this is just something for when push comes to shove out in the field. It's better to know how to make an informed judgement from a technical aspect rather than outright guessing, in this case if one's filter is compromised or just hoping that it's ok. Understanding one's equipment, it's construction and how it works allows one to gauge how far it can be pushed in a pinch, or even repurposed it to something totally unrelated. This fundamental knowledge and understanding on occasion is what differentiates between surviving and not.
Hi @sawyerproducts, while I totally and completely understand about liability, I really think you need to develop a field test. While out hiking last week, I was using a compromised Sawyer filter. And I had no clue until leaves and mud started coming out the other end. I could have gotten a serious case of giardia and really lucked out that my friend's filter was brand new and working. Please consider developing a sort of test that hikers can do before leaving for a trip. Or even while out in the wilderness. This way we can stay safe and hydrated on the trail.
Shelby, totally agree. Confidence in reliability of filter can lend peace of mind and even brand loyalty. Katadyn has an official test for their be free - why not sawyer??
Oh man! I wish so much I had seen this video earlier! But now that I know, I will DEFINITELY be doing this cleanout on my Sawyer! Had a trip with lots of muddy water and wanted to open and test it but didn't know how.
Check out my latest vid on restoring a Sawyer flowrate. Its based on Sawyer advice. Worked wonders for mine.
Huh. Excellent video, I’ll have to give this a go.
Excellent
Thanks for the great tips. IM about to buy two of these.
That's great! You wont be disappointed. Its a solid piece of kit.
Hope you are subscribed; in upcoming vids I'll be explaining in greater detail about filter performance, comparisons and also off-season failure, something all filters of this type are susceptible too.
This is fantastic info. I wasn't aware that this filter was so serviceable! Have you played at all with the Sawyer MINI? It seems to be pretty monolithic.
The mini is glued as far as I can tell. No chance opening it. BUT...It still can be tested. Just that you'll see bubbles coming out of the spout rather than directly from the membrane pack. The same can be done for the PointOne if you dont want to take it apart.
@@BorealWilderness At some amount of air moving effort, air will definitely move through the filter, even if it is perfectly sound. Do you understand how we might quantify that? Is it something like: the filter is failed IF 1. If you see bubbles at pressure < Xpsi VS 2. If you apply pressure Xpsi and see bubbles in < X seconds. I presume that this all depends on the tendency of the hydrophilic pore of a given diameter to try to resist a force that is trying to de-wet it? This would make me lean towards the first condition? I admit its not my field of expertise but I definitely would like to understand this better. I think the community would be grateful for a DIY test that can be performed with < $20 of personal effort!
Great tips! Thanks for the video!
Glad it was helpful!
You must also be a scientist. Capillary action, cyano acrylate, nice video.
So, do any bubbles indicate compromise? I get about a dozen small bubbles, but mine has never frozen - just been in a closet for a few years.
I’d already begun to question Sawyers, but am now convinced I need another solution.
Thanks for the video.
Would love to hear what sawyer's response will be coz as far as they are concerned, their filter is not testable.
But in the context of this video, If there are bubbles I'd be wary of it. The membranes can crack due to a fall/shock etc. (though rarely). I'd say give the cyno glue method a go but that's down to user discretion. Imho, if it does not bubble, it's technically safe (IMHO).
Would this method still work without taking anything apart?
I cannot separate mine either but it does run clear for a few seconds before starting to bubble. I’m watching the top of the black nozzle for bubbling as I’d imagine all bubbles would still have to come through the top.
The filter can only hold a small amount of water I imagine, so it would have to start bubbling at some point since it isn’t being supplied with water anymore. Right?
Yup, you are doing it right. Sounds like your filter is compromised.
The the field that's what I'd do. At home, to be 100% sure, I'd submerge the filter facing upwards in a bucket, push water through it with a bottle or bag full of water to displace all the air, keep the filter under water, unscrew the bottle or bag, empty it, send it back down upside down to keep it full of air, screw it into the filter, then try and push air through it.
If you are getting a steady stream of bubble coming through the filter, most likely it's compromised.
Wouldn't do this in a stream or lake as the clean end would get contaminated.
As of December 3, 2023, this may not be possible. I tried but couldn’t get it to unscrew. The label has the new branding - Sawyer is in a serif font vs the old sans serif - so they may have adapted to prevent this.
Thanks for the update. This is disappointing.
Yeah, im going to go ahead and nix the glue method. The margin of error is not worth it not to mention water coming into contact with toxic glue.....
Yup, ofcourse, best to replace. It's just that CA glues are relatively non-toxic once cured but they are not considered food-safe by the FDA. So while the CA glue method would work in a pinch, an eventual replacement would be best in the long run.
FYI we do not recommend this nor do we support the field integrity test.
Thank you for your comment. I understand where you are coming from and the standpoint of liability. 💯%.
However this is just something for when push comes to shove out in the field. It's better to know how to make an informed judgement from a technical aspect rather than outright guessing, in this case if one's filter is compromised or just hoping that it's ok.
Understanding one's equipment, it's construction and how it works allows one to gauge how far it can be pushed in a pinch, or even repurposed it to something totally unrelated.
This fundamental knowledge and understanding on occasion is what differentiates between surviving and not.
Hi @sawyerproducts, while I totally and completely understand about liability, I really think you need to develop a field test. While out hiking last week, I was using a compromised Sawyer filter. And I had no clue until leaves and mud started coming out the other end. I could have gotten a serious case of giardia and really lucked out that my friend's filter was brand new and working. Please consider developing a sort of test that hikers can do before leaving for a trip. Or even while out in the wilderness. This way we can stay safe and hydrated on the trail.
Shelby, totally agree. Confidence in reliability of filter can lend peace of mind and even brand loyalty. Katadyn has an official test for their be free - why not sawyer??
I can't get my Sawyer Squeeze open by hand. I'm a wimp.
I wouldn't say that.... Maybe they started glueing em shut after I made the vid 😅