[pct-l] MSR water filter

[Scott Bryce]

Vic Hanson wrote:
> When he was down here, Smiley told me about the MSR Hyperflow
> Microfilter by MSR, it is a fairly new model, lightweight and
> expensive. Has anyone used one yet?

I have one. I only have 150 miles on it, so you may get a better
perspective from someone who has used it more than I have.

It is light, compact and easy to use. There is only one hose, so keeping
hoses separated is not a problem. There is a cap that clips into the
outlet to keep the outlet clean while in storage. If you keep the cap
clean and keep the outlet out of water sources, you don't have to worry
about contaminated water getting into the wrong end of the pump. This
makes it easy to work with and easy to store in your pack. Just clip the
cap on the outlet, wrap the hose around the pump and pack it up.

It is designed to be easy to maintain in the field.

It pumps a lot of water fast... for a while.

It needs to be back flushed a lot to maintain its flow. If you have a
hydration system with a hydration tube that fits over the outlet, back
flushing should be easy. If you are carrying a commercial water bottle
that fits the adapter, back flushing should be easy. If you only carry
soda bottles to haul water, back flushing will be difficult.

Practice back flushing at home. If air gets into the filter while you
are back flushing, it will be difficult to pump. That means that you
need to follow the correct procedure when reversing the check valves.
The check valves are easy to reverse. Doing so without drawing air into
the filter takes a small amount of practice. You also need to prevent
air from getting into the pump as you are back flushing. If you can
attach a hydration tube, this should be easy. If you can attach a water
bottle via the adapter, this should be easy. Otherwise you need to
figure out a way to keep the outlet under clean water while you are back
flushing. That is not so easy.

I don't know how long the filter lasts before it needs to be replaced.
The filter is easily replaced without tools.