That's a valid concern, and one that I, as someone who knows absolutely nothing about them, have had as well. Can someone comment on this, other than the obvious, "keep it clean"?

I guess my reply would be becuase they are convient.

A few weeks ago, I was helping to clear some roofs of snow around town. We get 6 feet of snow in a winter, but people build flat roofs, go figure.

Anywho, I had my little nalgene in my coat pocket, and I'd top that off from one of the big ones from my pack every so often. One of the guys with us had a small camelbak under his coat. I had started with HOT water in my big bottles, but it cooled pretty quickly in a pocket outside of the insulation of my coat. He had warm coffee in his jacket that stayed warm becuase it was under his insulation, and kept him warm becuase it was right over his kidneys.

I had to stop to drink. He didn't- sucker was sipping away going down a ladder!

So, am I trading in my Nalgenes for a bladder? Not a chance. But am I picking up a bladder? You bet. I've had to work in places that made my claustraphobia go into overdrive. But if I can stay properly caffinated, I'm able to control the urge to run screaming from an access tunnel better. It might be flat Dew or superstrong iced tea, but caffeine right handy without having to twist about in a tight place, and cool to.

WoooHooo!

Went to REI today and picked up an insulated CamelBak hose.

I started with a water bottle, holder, pouch that slipped on my belt. That kept making my pants feel like they were falling down. Then I got a fanny pack with a water bottle holder. That was also uncomfortable. One time while I was mule deer hunting I took it off and left it by a big tree in a clearing so I could walk comfortably. I was able to find the spot and picked it back up. That taught me an important lesson: your water carrier has to be comfortable and convenient.

Now I have my PSK and water in a CamelBak Blowfish. The only issue I have is that there are times I would like to have something from the CamelBak and I am not willing to take it off while I am hiking. My wife bought CamelBaks for everyone in our family (6). We all have 2-way radios hooked to the shoulder straps. I also have a Petzl Tikka XP and a pair of binoculars attached to the straps.

Here in Phoenix we need to drink a lot of water. While hiking my wife does not like to stop and take breaks. She says it makes her legs tighten up from cooling off. So we have to drink on the move.

When my wife first bought some CamelBaks I thought it was a terrible waste of money. After all; you can just carry a bottle of water in your hand. I have been very glad to have the CamelBak. We take hikes that take several hours. A single water bottle is often not enough. However if I am on a popular trail and I will be gone less than an hour I will just carry a water bottle in my hand.

When my 14 year old son who is a Boy Scout goes camping he uses his CamelBak as his water bag. He fills the CamelBak, puts in several Nalgene bottles of water, and then puts that in his backpack. That way he can drink while he is backpacking, has water for camp, and use the CamelBak as a day pack for short trips from camp.

One thing to add:

Before I bought my motherlode camelback, I had a big day pack with several 300 ml and 500 ml bottles of water packed inside. It was convenient as a bob, except for when I was needing a drink of water and had to rummage the pack after doffing it.

Also of note, water stored in a camelback bladder over time is still more pallatable than water stored in plastic bottles. If you open a bottle, what you don't drink won't stay fresh very long. In Iraq, we were ordered to dump any unconsumed water from opened bottles rather than stow the container for later consumption. If the water was poured into a camelback bladder (properly maintained), we were allowed to keep it in there indefinitely. Things that would grow in previously opened water bottles would not grow in a cb bladder. Anyone here know why?

By keeping out the airspace, you inhibit/eliminate growth of a lot of the nasties.

Troy

That's one piece of the puzzle. Not the primary, though.

Anyone else?

No backwash with the camelback???

Troy

I gotta think that no backwash is a big part of it. Maybe the liner helps inhibit growth by providing an inhospitible medium? Either way, I gotta think it's not smart to put backwash laden half-bottles of water in your camelbak if the goal is to not consume old possibly contaminated water. You then contaminate your reusable container.

I stand corrected on my own post.... it's not such a bad idea to put the half drained water in your pack after all. I got curious and found this at www.camelbak.com (transcribed for your reading pleasure)

All of Camelbak's reservoirs come equipped with HydroGuard(TM), our own specially designed weapon to fight bacteria and fungus groth. Our HydroGuard(TM) Anti-Microbial Technology, an embedded FDA-approved and EPA-registered silver ion compound, eliminates up to 99.99% of common bacteria and fungus on reservoir and tube surfaces.

I usually use Micropur tablets to treat water I put into the hydration bladder while backpacking. That sanitizes the bladder at the same time, and I always make sure to run the solution through the hose and bite valve once I add the pills so that they get treated as well.

On multiday trips, I also occasionally put a little rubbing alcohol on outside of the bite valve.