Mini-Squeeze Sawyer filtration review

Anyone who's hiked with me knows I've been toying with the idea of building a lightweight gravity filter system for 5 years. The problem up and to this point was finding a filter that didn't require a heavy pump system, wasn't bulky, could be integrated into my current water management system, and was less than 3oz wet in order for me to consider giving up my fast and light system of drop and go multi-bottle purification.

The newly released 2oz inline Sawyer Mini-Squeeze kit fit the bill. (released ~October, 2013) is a lot less bulky than the previous Sawyer Squeeze. I still retain my 2 bottle system, allowing me to add a chlorine-dioxide purification treatment when needed in conjunction with filtration. On long distance hikes, the compact size will actually fit in my compact 9oz frameless pack.  Carrying a 8 to 14oz pump was not likely to ever happen. The benefit of this system for me was that I was retaining both 1L primary bladders, and it screwed onto my current platypus setup with no modification or added hoses were necessary. Reducing any added weight, complexity, or forcing me to switch away from my collapsible water carrying system.

Filter with supplied 16oz dirty bag.

Filter paired down for carrying

Measured Weights:
Filter dry weight:                 1.35oz
Filter wet weight:                 2.00oz
(shaken out)
60mL Back flush Syringe:    1.20oz
(supplied)
20mL Back flush Syringe:   0.5oz
16oz dirty bag:                     0.8oz
1L platypus dirty bag:         0.9oz
(already carried)
Stuff Sack:                           0.25oz

Operation:
The function of this system is basically fill the dirty bag, screw the filter on, and squeeze the water into the clean bladder. Flow rate with a clean filter was excellent. The dirty bladder can still be used to carry water for dry sections of trail where carrying water is necessary. The system comes with a measly 16oz dirty bag, that can be swapped out for one of the 1L bladders you are already carrying. With a 1L dirty bladder, I was getting just a little over 0.9L of return water. A little is left in the bag, and in the filter after filtering.

Parts laid out, ready to be attached.

Filtering in progress.

Backflush:
The operation of the back flush/field servicing is one of the simplest I've seen while kicking around filters. A 60mL syringe is included that you fill with clean water, push up against the clean end, and press water through the filter in reverse flow. After using the filter for filtering 2 people's water last weekend's trip, with no slowing of the flow rate while using fairly clean mountain water... I'll likely leave the back flush system at home, unless I'm going on a long trip, or somewhere where I'll likely have to filter seriously dirty water (not as common in the NW). I'd also toy with the idea of carrying an emergency 20mL syringe to reduce the weight carried, and reduce the bulk of the 60mL syringe.

Basic back flush setup. The Syringe is bigger than the filter.

Supplies:
Included supplies are a 16oz dirty bag, 0.1 micron filter, straw, and 60mL backflush syringe. I added a small mesh stuff sack to hold the dirty bag, filter, and backflush syringe. As you see I also increased the size of the dirty bag.


Other possible options:
Frontier Pro Pre-filter mod, to help from clogging the filter when using dirty water. There's an excellent write up if you search the internet, and you will have to break off the nipple on the dirty side to screw it in.

NeoAir Mattress Repair Kit Overview

If you didn't read the blog about the tear in my new fangled NeoAir mattress from the PCT section hike. Than you probably would not have known that I tore nearly a 1" gash in the mattress. Luckily Duct-Tape holds the world together, and it sealed the mattress for the remainder of the trip. When I was down at the PCT day celebration at Cascade Locks in Oregon, I was fortunate enough to get a free repair kit from the Therm-a-rest booth. So here is the repair and a semi-review of the simplicity of the actual patch kit.

The patch kit next to the NeoAir with a Duct-Tape patched hole. The patch kit comes with some "glue dots" which are unneeded in the repair of a NeoAir mattress.
The damage that was done with the Duct-Tape residue surrounding the tear.
The first real step for the NeoAir was to clean the area for the patch with a provided alcohol swab. If you did a trail-side repair with Duct-Tape, be prepared to scrub a little to get the residue removed.
The next major step was to install the patch. I did it like any other sticker I ever put on, Line it up as best as possible and roll the backing off to slowly while installing the patch. Just a note, the backing was a little difficult to remove with your fingernail, a razor blade might ease the initial removal of the backing.
There was an optional step which required placing a pot with boiling water on top of the patch for 10 minutes to help increase the adhesion of the patch. It is not required, but since this patch was being done at home so I was not counting every gram of fuel I performed this optional step. Previously I had read a in BPL's Member Only article on the NeoAir that when they did this step the patch slightly stuck to the pan when they were trying to remove it. Trying to avoid damaging the seal of the edge of the patch I opted to try laying down a piece of parchment paper between the pot and the patch. Which worked excellent and prevented any sticking of the patch to the parchment paper or the pot.
The finished patch.
Overall this patch kit was very simple to use at home, and I could see it being used fairly easily in the field as well. The last 2 patches, 2 alcohol swabs, Ziploc and direction packet, with the glue dots removed from the kit weighs .30 oz. So it is up to you to decide if you want to carry a redundancy in your essentials kit. Right now I've already placed a .5 oz roll of Duct-Tape in my essentials kit and the Duct-Tape held fairly well for the majority of the 4 night trip. It did leak a little throughout the night, but it was an acceptable amount of leakage for an emergency repair kit for my taste. A couple breaths at 3am firmed the mattress back up and I was happy, it's still more comfortable than my worn out home mattress or a closed cell foam pad. I definitely plan on using this kit for permanent repairs at home or maybe on very long hikes I would carry it, but for everything else there is Duct-Tape.

FBC SUL Cozy Review

Company: Freezer Bag Cooking
Model: SUL Cozy
Web Site: Trailcooking.com
Dimensions: 6"x8"
Weight: 0.60 oz as tested, 0.80 oz in the standard UL size.
Materials: dual sided Insulbrite insulation and a rare Reflective sil-nylon shell
Manufactured: Washington, USA
Quality: Excellent stitching and a very clean look.


As the quest for quality lightweight gear continues, I was afforded the opportunity to test out the new FBC UL Cozy in a slightly shorter size than the present standard production. I do not have a standard style cozy at this moment to compare and contrast the results from the UL Style and the Standard style cozies. So a compare and contrast of the heat retention between the Standard and UL is a possiblity. Either way the UL style cozies are lighter than the standard cozy which comes in at 1.1 to 1.5oz depending on the fabric and size chosen.

Comparing size differences between my old homemade cozy (0.35 oz) to the FBC SUL style cozy (0.60 oz).

Field Testing:
Consisted of rehydrating a Lipton/Knorr Broccoli Cheddar Rice with a 1/2 cup of dehydrated turkey on a cool afternoon at Big Crow Basin in the Central Cascades. After about 15 minutes I took my first bite, and all the way to the last bite there was no crunchy instant rice in the bag. Generally I have a few spoonfuls that still have some crunchiness to them from the rice not completely rehydrating within the 15 minute rehydration period. Rice always seems to be my vice when it comes to cooking along the trail, there is either not enough water or heat retention to quickly hydrate the rice with my homemade cozy. The meal was still very hot after sitting over 15 minutes.

Home Testing:
Test Design:
The ambient temperature was 71^oF and the initial water was brought to 200^oF and transferred into a quart sized Ziplock bag that was placed in the Cozy. Temperature readings were then taken at 5 minute intervals including the initial temperature of the water within the cozy. The graph reflects from time 0 in the cozy.

Water starting to boil.

Taking Temperature Readings.

Time or Location	Temperature (oF)
Ambient Temperature	71
On the burner	200
0 minutes in bag	188
5 minutes	184
10 minutes	179
15 minutes	173.5
20 minutes	169

After running the test in the kitchen, I have determined that the heat retention of the cozy is excellent for the intended purposes of the cozy. The overall average temperature loss was 4.75^oF per 5 minute interval, still keeping the cozy in the high 160’s by the end of 20 minutes. This represents a really good heat retention for rehydrating hot meals.

Pros:
High Heat Retention for FBC style cooking
Quality stitching
A very clean and appealing to the eye design

Cons:
Hand wash only (understandably can not be gotten around with the lightweight insulation.)

Suggestions:
Offer the short version at a height of about 5.75" and trim the pointed corner to save a few more grams of weight for the gram weenie solo users.

Recommendation:
I strongly recommend the UL style FBC cozies for all your solo FBC cooking needs. They are lighter than the standard cozies and retain heat very well.