Platypus Gravityworks Filter System Review

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Backpacking and Camping away from potable water can be a pain. You either end up packing in a heavy load of water or figuring out some way to purify lake or stream water. I’ve tried an array of these products and every one involved either battery power, which will inevitably fail when you forgot to bring back-up batteries, or manual power, which can give you fierce tennis elbow at work on Monday! The Platypus Gravityworks Filtration system uses gravity to pass dirty water through a compact filter. You can have a massive 4 liters of clean drinking water in just a few minutes (1.75L per minute according to Platypus).

The system is pretty simple. One of the water reservoirs, clearly labeled “DIRTY”, has a ziploc-type opening at the large end for easy scooping up of water from any nearby source, and handy carrying straps. At the other end, it easily detaches from the delivery hose and auto-seals. Once full, the dirty reservoir is simply re-connected to the delivery hose and hung on a tree by its straps above the filter and the other reservoir, again labeled clearly, “CLEAN”. Gravity simply pulls the water down from the dirty bag, through the filter (.2 microns) and into the clean bag. Once filtering is complete, you can detach the clean bag’s hose from the filter (and place the included cap on the filter’s clean end nozzle – nice touch!), hang it up, and use an included crimp-valve to dispense water quickly.

We tested the Gravityworks system on a 4-day backpacking trip and used it no fewer than 20 times to provide drinking and cooking water for 10 grown men. It performed beautifully and persuaded other friends to pack away their battery-powered and pump systems in favor of its ease. Every 2-3 uses, the filter did slow a bit, but as Platypus instructs, we simply filtered a liter or so of water, then inverted the system and ran some water back through the filter in reverse to clear it of any sediment.

Overall, we were very impressed with the Gravityworks Water Filter from Platypus. The system is fairly light at 10.75 oz., easy to clean and pack, but it isn’t as compact as some other filtration systems. However, when you’re able to filter a full 4 liters of water in less than 3 minutes, you’ll sacrifice a few other pieces of gear for the Gravityworks! For more info on the Gravityworks Filter and other Platypus products, visit www.platy.com or www.amazon.com/platy.

FROM PLATYPUS:

The GravityWorks Pump-Free Water Filtration System delivers the same fast, pump-free performance of the revolutionary CleanStream microfilter, yet with even less weight and more ease. Using advanced, Hollow Fiber technology and a little physics, it allows you to collect, transport, filter and dispense water, easier and faster than any other system available. An all new filter housing and streamlined Clean reservoir shave two ounces off an already wickedly light filtration system, and a straightforward, modular design presents customizable options for further trimming weight on ultralight journeys.

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