Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Gear Forum :: Prefilter
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sammyN |
any suggestions on what I can do? Or where I can get something? Thanks! |
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OldFingers57 |
Also my MSR bag has a small fine mesh screen where the outlet hose is to collect large pieces of stuff. |
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Northwoodsman |
Amazon.com has a wide variety of Nut Milk Filter Bags. |
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SunCatcher |
It is a cloth and comes in various micron sizes. I would put it on the inside of the bag, where the water runs into the tube before the filter. Here is a Link: diesel filter material |
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butthead |
The bulkhead fitting has a 90 degree barb so I just used a hobby aquarium filter sponge (poked a hole in the filter and stuck on the barb). Easy to remove, rinse, and replace. Lots of possibilities in hardware and hobby stores. butthead |
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A1t2o |
quote butthead: "Just made a gravity filter set myself. I also have a bunch or aquarium supplies from my reef tank and can get sponges cheap, but I would not use one as a pre-filter. They are hard to clean out and crap mostly just decays in there. Since it is finer crud, it will decay quickly and you will be pushing that ammonia and other toxins into your filtered water. Ammonia, nitrates and phosphates will not filter out and will go directly into the drinking water. The worst part is that you will not be able to get the crap out without a cleaning solution to break it down, so that means that rinsing it out while camping will not be effective. Just use a mesh filter of some sort. A coffee filter, bandana, or something else that you can back flush or scrub clean. I prefer a 2 container system where you run it through a pre-filter before it goes into the bag for the main filter. Even a bandana over the top would do. |
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A1t2o |
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BnD |
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butthead |
Ebay It's the soft surgical silicone rubber type, I source many hobby things thru Ebay. The tubing and bulkhead fittings were left overs from other projects. butthead |
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Savage Voyageur |
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HighnDry |
quote butthead: "Just made a gravity filter set myself. Where did you purchase the tubing? |
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Grandma L |
quote butthead: "HighnDry, I am looking for the tube closure/slide to shut off the flow - Any source? |
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butthead |
butthead |
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gsfisher13 |
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Saberboys |
quote Ragged: "I have never used a prefilter on my gravity kits, I just let them buck. I do however run a custom pickup on my large 5 gal setup. I've noticed that you often have two types of crud, stuff that floats and stuff that settles. Very little in terms of percentage is able to suspend in the water, mostly inset larva but even those tend to settle more than suspend. My pickup actually uses a small float to suspend the line about 3" from the top of the water level, it also keeps it about 3" off the bottom, picture a whiffle ball with holes in it. Not advocating this for smaller 2-4liter set ups as it would drastically reduce the water per bag full but it works wonders on the big dawg. I've run at least 750 gallons through my Sawyer filter, maybe even over 1000. 20-30 gallons a day is normal for my camping trips when I bring the big kit, we use filtered water for everything ,washing hands, cleaning fish, you name it. It is still fully functional and I have never used a pre-filter and have never bothered to get clean water away from shore. I always take the lazy route and grab it from shore. The more I use these filters the more I take short cuts. I'm 100% certain most slow filters are caused by trapped air. Once I started being mindful of airlocks and keeping it wetted I've almost eliminated my need for back flushing in the field. I might do it every 2-3 days now depending on use. Do you have a photo of your set-up Ragged? |
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walllee |
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butthead |
As it will only see lake-water and not recirculate water and pet fish waste I wonder if your concerns apply. I figured it is just a sponge and will be easily cleaned or at the worst the clogged sections cut off to expose fresh. I looked more at the sponges easy fitting to the barb and it's ability to be removed for cleaning. I'm not stuck on the sponge at all and appreciate you imput, thanks. butthead PS: Need to admit I was not looking for a prefilter, just picking odd supplies up at the local hardware and notices the term "Filter" walking around, so it seemed useful and found it's way into my basket-O-stuff. bh |
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Loony_canoe |
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Grandma L |
quote butthead: "I used Camelback connectors and valves I had on hand, but home brewing supplies work well. thanks - exactly what I am look for. |
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HighnDry |
quote butthead: "HighnDry, Thanks! Just picked up some. |
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Ragged |
I have thought about adding a pre-filter, I mean what can it hurt, but my experience tells me they are certainly not 100% necessary in all situations, these filters seem to be able to take a good lickin. As mentioned above the MSR and Platypus are nice as they put the pick-up port a ways up the side, seems to help a bunch. Also I should note everything above is assuming you are using a quality filter like a Cascade Designs (MSR/Platypus) or Sawyer. Nothing applies if you are using the garbage Katadyn has put out, I bet you could get one of those to clog feeding it distilled water. |