Katadyn Befree

I use the Katadyn BeFree as my main water treatment. Love it, works great when it works great… problem is that once it starts to clog sometimes there’s not a damn thing you can do to fix it. I typically replace the cartridge once or twice a year and it’s no big deal. Went on a trip last week and it started crapping out on me the first day.

I bought this in 2019 for my Colorado Trail trip (of which I hiked 300 miles, about 4 liters filtered per day over 21 days). It worked leaps and bounds faster than any filter on the trail. I could easily just scoop and drink while every one else waited for their gravity filters or Sawyers to work. B...

2020 - Katadyn Befree. Significantly faster flow rate than a Sawyer squeeze, can filter water almost as fast as I can drink it. However, it uses proprietary threading/ bags, and it is not backflushable, limiting its lifespan and offering few options to restore flow if the filter becomes clogged in the field.

Well, I wish I could give the Katadyn BeFree a higher rating. I was excited to have purchased one after seeing a couple of friends use the BeFree on backpacking and day hiking trips. Unfortunately, on my first trip the seam - directly below the threads - on the soft bottle split around ~1/5th of its...

As stated: "The Katadyn BeFree filter is a 0.1 micron absolute hollow-fiber water filter that is 99.99% effective for removing protozoa, including Giardia and Cryptosporidium, and 99.9999% effective for removing bacteria. It is rated for 1000 liters of use which might sound limited, but is the equivalent of 200 days of use at 5 liters per day.".

This filter is awesome in that it is light weight and filters really fast. This is probably twice as fast as my Sawyer squeeze. BUT..... after filtering over a dozen liters, it continues to leave a strong plastic taste in my water. I filter clear running mountain stream water directly into smart wat...

Katadyn BeFree is great. Nothing to cobble together to save $3, no pumping, no squeezing. Fill up the bag, hang it from a tree, and come back to clean water. At camp it makes for a great place to wash hands and other stuff.

filter flow slowed often due to minerals or microscopic debris in water. Even after shaking or using other cleaning techniques the flow rate never recovered to original rate. I used the filter exclusively for 55 days on Appalachian Trail and water sources were relatively clean. At times I had to use...

I’ve owned all of the Sawyer iterations, Hydroblu Versa Flow, Katadyn BeFree, Grayl Ultralight, and now the QuickDraw. BeFree - Finicky, prone to clogging/slowing exponentially, especially if you don’t pre-soak properly before your trip. You can restore some filters with vinegar and distilled water. But compact the scoop and pour function definitely makes them worth it for short trips.

I used both the 1 & 3 liter models on my John Muir Trail hike. Small one developed pinhole leaks, big one developed leak on a seam. Flow rate on both decreased noticeably, even w regular "cleaning." They're so convenient I might buy again, even knowing they're essentially disposable. Given all the c...