Platypus Water Tank

Used the six liter tank every day for a month getting water for camp on the AT. Due to the lip-lock top, I would never put this into my pack. Originally purchased the tank due to worries about far water sources. By filling this at camp once in the evening, my boyfriend and I were able to re-hydrate, make dinner, brush teeth, and take 2-3 liters out of camp in the morning.

Filtering water out of this tank was much easier than filtering out of the 10L sink we carried before, and there was no plasticy sink taste.

Filling the tank was sometimes a challenge at springs. If the spring was not piped out (or the pipe was low) we would have to try to let the tank fill through the spout, moving rocks to make the stream deep enough to fill the big tank. Often I would simply resort to scooping the last couple liters of water into the tank by hand, since we filtered it anyway.

Walking back to camp (up to .3 miles and up to 350 vertical feet) was often enough to make the bag pop open, but VERY careful and thorough sealing made this happen much less frequently. All in all, I was happy to have this, it just needs to be used within its natural limits.

I have a 2 year old 2L bag that is "sideways" to this bag - stands up on the short side. And now I have the 4L bag pictured here. Both work great, but you've got to make sure the zip-lock is tight. I fill it with filtered water by using a Nalgene or Camelbak bottle on my pump and dumping 1.75 to 2L at a time into the bag. It's a little bit of a pain, but works. The handles are OK, but you wouldn't want to have to carry a full tank very far. I have put these in my pack, but the 4L was on a water run that only had water bottles in the pack at the time - no clothes. But neither bag has leaked on me when sealed properly - DOUBLE CHECK!

Great for base camp. Especially if it is a hike to the water source. I have a 6L so that I can have enough water to cook dinner, breakfast, heat water for tea, have drinking water, brush my teeth, and fill my camelbak reservoir for the next day's hike. It only weighs a couple ounces and folds up, so it is very convenient to have.

Why did it take mankind this long to figure out that a bigger opening will make it much easier to get the water in the container!!! If you've ever tried to fill a traditional bulk water container at a hand pump you know how great this item truely is!!!!!!!!!