Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter

Review by Erin Trail

The Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter is a hanging water storage container + filter that’s easy to use in large group camping settings.

Specifications

• Dry bag style closure (roll + clip closed) at the top of the bag
• 10L maximum fluid volume
• Gravity filtration, flowing at 2 liters per minute
• Quick release hose for easy cleaning
• Hollow fiber filter 0.1 micron
• Filters out bacteria, cysts, and sediment
• Approximately 1,000 liters of filter cartridge life
• Clip-on strap for carrying or hanging
• 13 oz dry weight

I recently raced the Ragnar Relay outside of Zion National Park.  Our team of 8 women opted for the glamping option, where the race provided a gigantic tent.  Water was provided, but it you had to walk to it.  Additionally, Ragnar is a cupless race, so you had to bring all of your hydration things with you to fill up. If you forgot, you had to go back to your tent to retrieve them.  It also meant that you may be walking around in the dark and cold to fill up your hydration back before your night run shift.

I got the Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter for it’s easy to use storage volume.  We didn’t need a water filter, but it was a nice thing to have, as it ensured that our water tasted great.

Filling the Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter is simple.  In a body of water, you just open the top of the storage bag and fill it with water.  At Ragnar, I hooked the bag to the spout of the water container and let ‘er rip and fill up.  Once filled to the desired level (maximum of 10 liters or approximately 2.6 gallons), you roll the top of the bag closed and secure it with slide locking clips. The process took me a few times (and less total water) to get right without spillage, but it was still relatively simple.

Once filled and sealed, you attach the strap to the bag for easy over the shoulder carrying back to camp.

The Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter relies upon gravity to filter and use.  This means that you need to hang the water fairly high, so the bottom of fill hose is well below the water level stored in the filter bag. (my fluid dynamics engineering class is finally coming handy!)  The higher the water hangs, the faster the flow will be.

For our Ragnar race, I hung the Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter as high as possible inside our tent and shortened the carrying strap to maximize vertical height.  We positioned it above a table that acted as our camp kitchen.

The hose for the Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter is fairly long (X inches).  We found that to get the fastest flow, we had to put our water bottles on the ground.  It still worked when containers were on the table, but at a slower (but still acceptable) rate.

The filling hose opens and closes with a clickable compression clamp.  We needed to make sure it was clamped all the way closed to prevent leakage.  If the clamp was slightly open, water would flow out of the hose and onto the ground.  Additionally, we would get some dripping out of the end of the fill hose if it hung down.  To eliminate the drips, we had to hook the hose into one of the top strap clips (+ a rubber band).  I do wish that the “on/off” flow mechanism was a little more robust or easier to use and that there was a purpose-built place to attach the hose above the storage bag’s water level, to prevent any hose drips when you weren’t using the filter.  It technically worked fine, but it was also a bit clunky.

Thanks to the filter, all of our water tasted great.

The Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter was perfect for our group camping experience.  Having nearly 2.6 gallons of clean, on-demand water was wonderful.  It made morning coffee making easy, with the camp barista filling up the Jetboil on demand, rather than having to head outside of the tent for water anytime someone needed coffee.  Having water inside our tent also helped our running team minimize extraneous field trips and time on our feet when we needed to fill up our hydration packs or get water do drink throughout the day.

Closing Thoughts

The Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter is an easy way to bring clean water to camp with capacity to supply water to a larger group of people.

The Katadyn BeFree Gravity 10L Microfilter is also available in a 6 liter (1.5 gallon size)

Erin Trail

Trail Boss of Stoke

Erin Trail on her mountain bike at the World Tri Cross Triathlon World Championship race

Erin Trail on her running at the World Tri Cross Triathlon World Championship race