Soapbox

I got caught with my first hydration system when I didn’t clean and dry well enough.

My method for cleaning hydration systems is very simple, buy some Milton Fluid (its what they use for cleaning baby feeding bottles I'm told) and add it to a bowl of tap water, leave tube and bottle to soak then dry in airing cupboard etc. Works perfectly – well if its good enough for delicate little babies it has to be good enough for me!

I find a mixture of Sodium Metabisulphate (campden tablets) and citric acid in a pint of water keeps my camalbak clean in storage kills the bugs and doest leave an after taste like miltons..

Sodium metabi sulphate and citric acid can be baught at Wilkinsons or at home brew shops

I use Milton fluid and havn't had any after taste.Keeping the system in the freezer also prevents mould growing in it.

Yes I agree, I wash mine out throughly with water and then leave it to air hung up with my camelback but when I used a platypus I just used to put it in the freezer and that worked fine.

If I need to sterilise it I used a milton style fluid/tablet.

Cleaning

<fx: shudder>

What a horrible word for such a lovely, sunny day!

:-)

Fairy liquid, rinse, freezer. That's my routine, and it's as dull as it looks :o)

I use the Milton tablets in a sink full of warm water to clean my Platypus hydration system. I leave it to steep overnight. I noticed a bitter taste when using the Platypus after doing this though. Now I find that after using the Milton tablets that thoroughly rinsing the Platypus out before leaving it to steep for 24 hours in a sink full of pure cold water and then rinsing again before storage/use does the trick.

I've managed to go over 2 years with my Unbottle without resorting to chemicals (yet) by rinsing, re-inflating (yup, blowing it up) to aid drying and then hanging up to dry open. I once noticed a build up of mould in the bitevalve, so got a new on, but everything else appears fine - mainly 'cos it's all covered up, and a complete nightmare to dismantle and reassemble. Out of sight, out of mind? If you only fill it with water, what are we likely to die of anyway? We should be told!!
PS - anyone tried homebrew sterilizers such as SPD?

use spd on my bottles and flasks works a treat even takes away tomato soup flavour.

I use a camelback with no problems at all. The key is to ensure it is dry after cleaning. I just wash in warm soapy water and rinse it thoroughly and dry the inside as best you can with a paper towel. Then I take off the bite valve swing the tube round a few times to expels any excess water. Then hang it from the bottom with tube and opening pointing down.In the summer I hang it over the clothes line

To help it drain I put a couple of loosely scrunched paper towels inside, this keeps the inside surfaces apart and I put another paper towel stuffed in the bottom to absorb the water that drain downs. It usually dry over night

Sorry to ressurect this thread, but how can you get rid of limescale in a platypus, no real problem, but i looks a bit funny! I normally use Bicarb of Soda to clean it and it works really well, but loads of the white stuff is left behind!

Vinegar, for either limescale or bicarb.

Use white distilled vinegar.

had had the same thought, and done it earlier today, along with the tips about cleaning the tube on another thread, my platy is now looking like new!