
$99.95
Item qualifies for annual
REI Member Refund (typically 10%)
Made in USA.
Item 767563
Specification | Description |
| Weight | 12.7 ounces |
| Dimensions | Filter: 5.75 x 1.75 / reservoirs: 19 x 8 inches |
| Filter medium | Hollow fibers |
| Housing material | ABS plastic |
| Removes | Protozoa and bacteria |
| Output | 1.6 liters per minute |
| Pump force | Not applicable |
| Pump strokes per liter | Not applicable |
| Field cleanable | Reverse water flow |
REVIEW SNAPSHOT®
by PowerReviewsPros
Cons
Best Uses
Reviewed by 18 customers
Sort by
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
I used the "dirty" resevoir/pump and left the "clean" resevoir at home. When filtering water, I directly hooked it up to my platypus hydration bag, or directly into my pot. Used it straight from the box on a 9-day backpack trip with no problems. Easy to backflush filter in the field. You can remove the pump, use the short hose with the clamp, hang the "dirty" bag from a tree and use it as a camp shower. No cold fingers in the morning from pumping water! NICE!!
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
I used this on an 8 day trip with a group of 7. It was a lot easier than pumping water - hang it and (almost) forget it. When the filter is clean it's also much faster than pumping. It does require backflushing regularly to maintain the flow rate - probably every second or third time based on the lakes and streams we used. For a group as large as ours (7 people) I would recommend a secondary container for water storage convenience. Initially I was concerned about the integrity of the plastic water reservoirs, but it's all low pressure so you could do a field repair with duct tape if needed. Overall this was a huge improvement over past trips where we used a conventional filter and pumped the 1-2 gallons per person per day.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
Good flow rate, water tasted just as good as my katydin hiker pro. Only negative is that you need a good flowing source of water to get the bag completely full. It is somewhat hard to get a full bag in shallow slow moving water.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
I love the concept of letting gravity do the pumping, but stopped working for me after about 20L of water. Water was silty from a glacial river, but I did backflush. I did the backflush of 1L after each dirty bladder full, as recommended, and got a backflush of silty water out. Despite doing the backflushing, my filter flow rate was down to a very slow less than 1L in 5 minutes. I even backflushed with a tap water faucet when I got home and got alot of flow through on the back flush, but did not change my very slow filtering rate. Will be returning this product and go back to pumping.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
Really like this concept, but ... the filter clogged up after a couple of uses, the handle pulled loose from the clean bag, and the bag closure is not a solo venture. This item really needs an easily servicble pre-filter/screen on the dirty side and a redisgn of the closure system and handle attachment. I'll be returning this item
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
Went on my first backpack of the year yesterday. Took this filter, along with my old MSR as a back-up. The creek was running high and not crystal clear--but not THAT bad. This gizmo ran 3 liters through and just stopped. I did NOT backflush in the field--brought it home and tried to get it working again in the laundry sink, under ideal conditions. It is finally, after 20 minutes' work, functioning at a very low level--not nearly as fast as the first three liters.
The concept is great, the execution flawed. It needs a pre-filter or better access for cleaning or SOMETHING.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
I took this on a 6-day trip to Sequoia/King's Canyon last year. For the first 3 days this was my favorite piece of gear ever. The speed and convenience of filtering water for three people compared to pumping was just night and day.
All of this changed the morning of the fourth day, when we discovered that the filter had dropped dead in the night. It was cold, but not below freezing, and we had taken the precaution of wrapping it and snuggling with it to make sure it didn't freeze. Water essentially stopped flowing at all, and field tests indicated that the fibers had ruptured. We still have no idea what could have happened to it. So we ended up boiling and chlorinating water for the last three days. I've heard similar stories about other hollow-fiber filters.
Bottom line, I no longer trust this filter.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
I've used the the Cleanstream now on at least six group/family trips and a handful of backcountry trips. I am now fully confident to have it replace my pumps for almost any trip. I am thrilled with the idea of ALWAYS having water around and not agonizing over whether to pump before bed or breakfast - with this filter, water is always on-hand or just a few minutes away from being so. I've gotten into a habit of backflushing (a.k.a - lifting the clean bag!) a little after every 4-liter run and have never had any issues.
Disconnect the Clean bag from the filter when it's full and hang it for on-demand use and washing around camp - awesome. Combined with a larger reservoir for storing clean water, this system provides an endless supply.
Caveats:
On backcountry trips, I will continue to carry purifier drops just in case.(as I did with pumps anyway.) Freezing, dropping and clogging are all pitfalls with Hollow Fiber - but only if you don't take care of them properly.
I will still use my miniworks in glaciated, tannic or otherwise challenging filtration conditions to maintain the higher degree of field maintainability, but these are the only places I'll ever pump again.
I do think the zip-lock seal could be easier to manipulate. However, I put some of the food-grade slicone lube on it from my Miniworks maintenance kit and it helped a lot.
Filling could be easier in slow-moving or shallow water but I just bring a pan with me if needed and it fills just fine.
OVERALL: Simply the best filtration mode I've used in the last 25 years that I've been guiding or otherwise playing outdoors. Granted, I was skeptical and it just doesn't seem like that big a deal but it turned out to be. Even with all the small caveats of care, the speed and ease of this filter are well worth the added attention needed to keep it running smooth.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
My wife and our two young daughters just finished a five day trip on the BWCA in Northern MN. Having pumped (water) our way through these trips in the past we decided to buy this filter and took a hand pump as a back-up. We never got the pump out! We filtered 2 to 3 gallons per day and never had any problems.
This is a huge improvement over pumping!
It is critical to purge the air from the lines between the dirty and clean water bags and the filter to get a good flow, but this is not hard. I disconnected the tube that leads from the dirty bag to the filter from its connection point at the filter, let a little water flow from the tube to purge the air, pinched it off and reconnected it. After that, the water pressure from the full dirty bag purged the air from the filter. Easy, easy.
I backflushed a small (.25 liters) after each use to clear any sediment from the filter and dirty bag. While an extra necessary step, it took less than a minute, and that sure beats the heck out of pumping!
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Platypus CleanStream Gravity Filter System:
I've used this on three backpacking trips this year and it has worked well. I love the convenience of not having to pump, plus it gives me the flexibility of bringing 8 liters of water to camp in a single trip without carrying an extra container. Zippers are a challenge, but in most cases you don't need them. I carry a couple feet of light cord to hang them from a tree. Dirty or stagnant water tend to plug it up, so a disposable or easily cleanable pre-filter would make sense to me. Backwashing is easy enough and flow resumed pretty well. Even when it was slow, who cares, it's hanging from the tree filtering away while I'm off doing other things. Purging the feed line to the filter of air is critical. Overall the best gear investment I've made in years.
How are we doing? Give us feedback on this page.
Shopping Cart
Find REI on:
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
MySpace
Flickr