Hydration bladder recommendations?

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I have a mutt, Camelbak military-issue MULE pack with bladder, tube, insulator, dust cap and thumb valve, but a Platypus bite valve. Platypus bite valves are better in every way than the standard camelbak bite valve, they're stronger, and can be disassembled for cleaning.

Before this, it was an MSR 4 liter dromm bag adapted to a platypus hose with a camelbak thumb valve and platypus bite valve, Pretty much the best system ever, and I'd love to figure out a way to mod my dromm to fit onto my new line. This setup went everywhere with me, two trips to Catalina Island, an Angel Island trip, kyacking and ocean canoeing trips, nearly all of my backpacking trips and day hikes, snowshoeing, everything. Got to the point that the freebie Low Alpine pack I had for it just crapped out. the new hydration system came with the new pack... and well, when in Rome. I really miss the extra liter of water, too.
 
Wow, I had not seen the sixbak before... I have a hard enough time finding room for a completely full Unbottle with what I normally carry... but tempting.

Anyway, I will throw in a vote for the 3L Unbottle. It is the most versatile Camelback I have owned (which have been many over the years). I hang it in the LC while driving (only one mishap when I knocked off the bite valve), I hang it on the outside of my kidpack carrier, I slip inside other packs as needed, etc.

Also, given problems friends have had with others failing on the trail vs my 0 fails, and that I like the overall design of CB, I have only owned CBs. Oh, and there was a great test done on adpacker.com where they drove a new Tacoma over a full CB bladder... the bladder was fine with no leaks.

edit: and I have never had a problem with slime building in the bladder, but I only use water and I let it hang 'till it's dry (or throw it in the freezer).
 
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Soft bottles with squirt tops are easier to fill, clean, and monitor. They are more durable. You can keep extras (full) in your vehicle, bike, etc. If one leaks, you'll have the other in reserve. They are cheap and easily replaced. I use two 1.5 litre bottles, with extras in the truck.

Just sayin'
 
re_guderian said:
found the Camelbak Sixbak... 6L of goodness. Can't decide if that's be overkill or not. I guess you don't always have to carry it full... I'm putting this in a Kelty Redwing 3100. I'll probably go the Unbottle route since 3L should be sufficient, I guess. Thanks for the input guys. :cheers:
Click to expand...

Update - got the unbottle, 3L. 3L is not enough...:crybaby: :lol: Especially in AZ summers. Otherwise, love it. I carry 1-2 extra qts in nalgene bottles to top it off.
 
Other good thing for cleaning, which is dead cheap, is Bicarbonate of Soda. I put a teaspoon in the bladder put in about 1/2litre of water, remove all the air and keep it in the fridge til next time.
Never had any mould issues.
Just remember to rinse it out, including the tube, before reusing
 
Here you go!

Why not give one of these a whirl, maybe even a wine rack for the :princess:?

The Beerbelly: Home


:beer:


Though I guess it depends on what you're looking to accomplish. I usually just buy the camelback replacement bladders and pack em high in my pack with the line running out (I use a top loading draw string pack though, no zipper) so the weight stays high and I can replace them for fairly cheap if required. My friend had a platypus that he didn't have too much luck with, though I will agree that their spouts are much more user friendly. Every issue with camelback bladders I've ever had has been spout failure.
 
Platypus = total garbage. They just don't hold up to regular use / regular training and the warranty is half-assed bogus as they won't warranty mine anymore since I've killed so many of them. The bite valve are poor and the shut off valve is pretty crappy. The tubes delaminate in short order.

CamelBak is 1000x better than most of the others out there. They cost more, but are far superior. The nasty plastic taste goes away quite quickly with regular use - a week or two usually.

I have about 3 or 4 CBs and perhaps 6 Platypusses - I have only got a pinhole in 1 CamelBak since 2003 (which happened recently), whereas I have been through perhaps a dozen or more Playtpus (which I haven't really used since about 2006 as they were just way too badly made).

The bite valve needs to have decent flow and a valve to shut it off when in transport.



~John
I take part in endurance sports - like Adventure Racing and Ultra running
 
x5 (or is it 6 now) on the MSR Dromedary. Pretty much indestructible, and available in up to 10L sizes.
 
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