I used this pump maybe four times before taking it to the Grand Canyon on a solo hike. The first night in the canyon, I pumped out of Cottonwood Creek and it was fine. The next night, I pumped from Hance Creek and it started slowing down noticably. The third day, I reached the Colorado River and began to refill my water, and that's when this pump pretty much stopped all together. The very silty Colorado clogged the pump completely. Luckily, I met a kind group of hikers who let me top off with their Katadyn (thanks again Rhiannon, Rich, and Spencer). I did try to backwash mine but it didn't work. The harder I pumped and tried to make it work, it just blew the intake tube off the top of the filter. Also, this filter did not come apart to allow me to clean it. Luckily, I was on my way out the New Hance that day, but wow, what an uneasy feeling to be in a 105 degree desert with no water filter.
This is NOT the filter for silty or merky water. On a previous canyon trip I brought a highly used MRS Sweetwater and pumped from the Colorado, and a couple tad-pole laden pot holes and all went fine. I bought this filter for the higher filtration but now I'm not willing to trade that for the easy clogging. I'm going back to the old school filter.
REI
The First Need XL water purifier delivers convenient chemical-free water purification for outdoor adventures and international travel.
- Unique Structured Matrix three-stage purification technology provides natural and ecological removal of contaminants from your drinking water
- Purifier is certified to EPA Guide Standard for microbiological purifiers against bacteria, cysts and viruses
- Also removes dirt, unpleasant tastes and chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides
- Easy-grip, ergonomic handle provides comfortable pumping; double-action pump is field serviceable
- Use the included gravity feed kit for hands-free purification without pumping
- Fast flow rate of 1.89 liters per min. lets you enjoy clean, great-tasting water in no time at all
- XL purifier's large capacity lets you purify up to 150 gal. before needing to replace the canister
- Direct Connect attaches unit snugly to many wide-mouth and narrow-mouth water bottles and hydration systems, sold separately
- Attach the drink tube on your Camelbak® hydration reservoir directly to canister so you can refill without removing the reservoir from your bag
- Additional adapters (sold separately) allow attachment to directly to select Platypus, Sigg and Nalgene water bottles and reservoirs, sold separately
- Included prefilter reduces the need for backflushing; adjustable float lets you position the prefilter exactly where you want it
- 36 in. long inlet hose provides consistent flow and won't kink
- Excellent impact resistance withstands use in the wilderness and during international travel
Classified under:
Filters
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| Dimensions: | 6.25 x 4.9 x 2.8 inches |
|---|---|
| Field cleanable: | No, must change cartridge |
| Housing material: | Polyproplene |
| Material: | Structured matrix micro-strainer |
| Output: | 1.89 liters per minute |
| Pump force: | Unavailable |
| Pump strokes per liter: | Unavailable |
| Removes/Destroys: | Protozoa, bacteria and viruses |
| Weight: | 16 ounces |
Buy at:
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| Color | |
|---|---|
| None | 103.00 |
Average Price:
This graph shows the average price of the product over time, it may have been sold for less or more then the price graphed since it is a plot of the average of all found prices. For all details see the "price history".
Reviews:
VERY untimely clog
Rated: 
Great clean,tasting water!
Rated:
Most of the time I am pretty close to some type of water source(rivers,ponds,lakes,snow,etc.)and this water purifier(not filter), I repeat, WATER PURIFIER, is great! Water taste sooooooo gooood! If you prefilter dirty water through a bandana or such you can make the filter/purifier last a long time. It beats lugging 6 to 15 lbs. of bottled water or taking your chances on untreated water.
This filter is the bomb
Rated:
This filter worked great.....very fast and very easy to pump. Works on both up and down stroke and makes for fast filling. Easily pumped plenty of water for a 3 day back country trip for 5 of us. One of the best gear purchases I have made!
Easy to use & works quickly
Rated:
I was very surprised to find that this worked much faster than my friends filter. The water provided tasted great. The size of this filter is its only drawback but it does combine the filtering and purification in to a single device and is very easy to use.
Still the best
Rated:
There are other purifers and filters out there that are smaller, lighter, slimmer, and cooler-looking than the First Need, but this is still hands-down the best one for the money. It will easily and quickly pump a large volume of water on both the up and down strokes, and unlike most other packable filters it removes viruses. Another plus is that it's a water purifer, so there's no funky aftertaste that you sometimes get from filters using chlorine. It's not really field-cleanable as some other filters are, although a quick backwash will work to clear most clogs. No other filter at this price combines all of the performance features of the First Need.[...]
It has it's problems
Rated:
I use the First Need Filter every week on backpack trips throughout the U.S and other parts of the world. The Cartridge, even with backwashing, does not seem to last as long as I would expect. I get about 10 months use out of it, then have to replace the cartridge. It's easy to use and I feel confident in the purification process. Just wish the cartridge would last longer. I feel it necessary to carry a backup cartridge when I go on extended trips, and the size and weight of the extra cartridge is not very appealing.
Easy to Use; Easy to Pump
Rated:
I love this water filter. Compared to other equivalent filters, it is easy to use, easy to pump and easy to keep hygienic (i.e. you don't have to "protect" the clean out-put tube from the dirty in-take tube, because the filter cap does that for you). It is no more bulky that other comparable filters. I also like that it filters out both microbes and chemicals.
I've never used the passive filter feature, because the pumping goes very quickly. The filter pumps water both on the up and the down stroke of your pumping, so there's less pumping to be done overall.
The filter screws onto wide-mouth Nalgene containers and First-Need sells adapters for smaller-mouth Nalgene containers. This means that pumping can be done by just one person (i.e. you don't need one person to pump and one person to hold the canteen).
The only CON I found: I once had the handle break off the filter, after about 3 years regular use. With a little creative engineering I was still able to use the filter with the broken handle. I exchanged the broken filter for a new one at REI without any trouble. With my new filter, I am taking care to apply most of my pumping pressure directly over the pump staff, so as not to torque the handle too much. My current filter is 3 years old and going strong.
If you use this filter regularly, or need to filter murky water, I recommend replacing the cartridge about once per year, to avoid clogs. This would be true for any filter, however.
I've never used the passive filter feature, because the pumping goes very quickly. The filter pumps water both on the up and the down stroke of your pumping, so there's less pumping to be done overall.
The filter screws onto wide-mouth Nalgene containers and First-Need sells adapters for smaller-mouth Nalgene containers. This means that pumping can be done by just one person (i.e. you don't need one person to pump and one person to hold the canteen).
The only CON I found: I once had the handle break off the filter, after about 3 years regular use. With a little creative engineering I was still able to use the filter with the broken handle. I exchanged the broken filter for a new one at REI without any trouble. With my new filter, I am taking care to apply most of my pumping pressure directly over the pump staff, so as not to torque the handle too much. My current filter is 3 years old and going strong.
If you use this filter regularly, or need to filter murky water, I recommend replacing the cartridge about once per year, to avoid clogs. This would be true for any filter, however.
Great Purifier
Rated:
This has been a great filter / purifier overall. It's very easy to use - especially is you have a large mouth Nalgene. It's easy to pump, and the best feature is that there is water flow with the up stroke AND down stroke.
Big Down side is no matter how often you back flush, filter only seems to last a year and the oly thing to do is to replace the filter - which is a little expensive at over $40.00 per cartridge. besides this flaw, I haven't met a filter/purifier that matches it yet.
Big Down side is no matter how often you back flush, filter only seems to last a year and the oly thing to do is to replace the filter - which is a little expensive at over $40.00 per cartridge. besides this flaw, I haven't met a filter/purifier that matches it yet.
Worth every ounce to carry on long treks
Rated:
Just got back from 6 weeks in Africa. Climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, and treked though five other East African countries. The First Need XL paid for itself on the very first day of climbing Kili. This water purifier was invaluable. This pump ended up filtering water everyday for every climber in my group. And there were eight of us total. It was easy and quick to use. The water tasted great, and was able to filter anything that came our way. This was one of the best investments I made for hiking/treking. I would highly recommend this unit for anyone thinking about buying a filter. With the amount of water that we were filtering on a daily basis, there is no way one of the handheld pens could have gotten the job done. Save your money, don't buy a pen.
Best of the best
Rated:
This is the best worry free purifier that there is, just, as with any filter, carry a extra cartridge and a small bottle of bleach to backwash.
But this is with any filter that requires a back wash, always use a pure water source and a few drops of bleach to backwash. It is just common sense.
This is one of the few filters I recommend when I teach urban disaster survival.
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