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Cleaning a CamelBak...

dbdolan

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Location
Tomball/Spring, Texas
First Name
Bryan
Last Name
Dolan
Okay I admit it, I have left a half water half gatorade mix in my camelbak for a couple of weeks. I am usually to tired to dump the left overs after a ride. It usually sits for a week or two in my garage before I dump it and run hot water through it to clean it out. My wife saw me doing this and she said I was sick and it wasn't sanitary.:lol2: So what do you all do to make it sanitary? I have been cleaning it this way for a while and I think it is fine, I haven't gotten sick yet.
 
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Just make sure you flush the bag thoroughly after this stuff has done it's work. Don't forget the drinking tube too.
 
50% bleach and water. Shake well, drain, repeat, rinse and dry.
 
I flush mine with bleach diluted in water. Others use Hydrogen Peroxide. I've got to say though, I've never put anything in my camelback besides water. The thought of anything else is just too gross.

I gotta say my man, Gatorade is nasty. If I do have to use it (long paid rides), I'll dilute it about 50/50 with water and only in the bottles in my cages.

Let that solution sit for a while, especially down the tube and mouthpiece. At least you didn't use milk.
 
Sports drinks and water left in bottles and camelbacks grow stuff practically overnight sometimes. My wife usually tosses her camelback in the crisper of the fridge when she's done riding. That will keep it clean for a while if it's just water. We've also soaked the bladders with Listerine.
 
Only put water in your camel back. If you want electrolyte replacement carry pretzels with you to eat (they have lots of salt). It works great plus they also are a good source of carbs. I always save the recovery drink for after a ride.

I've always rinsed my reservoirs out with really hot water (and run it through the drinking tube as well). Then remove the bite valve and hang the bag up to dry out. Every now and then I'll use the cleaning pills from camel back. I don't like to use bleach because I can never get it all rinsed out and it makes the water taste bad. Also, if you use any kind of soap you really really really have to rinse it good :eek2:

Rob
 
When it starts growing just get a replacement bladder , thats easyer than cleaning it . I use gatoraid in mine all the time but it always gets rinsed after use . SEYA
 
I'm with Rob "only put water in your camel back".


From past experience with sports drinks throw the bladder away and get a new one and also pick up a camel back hanger that holds the bladder open so it drys out. From now on only go with water.

As TX medic mentions a bleach mixture can help keep them clean. After going to water only I've had no issues though. I carry a sports drink in my tank bag and drink it when I stop.
 
I just dump out the water when I get home, wash off any dirt and then fill about half full with water and place it in the freezer. Next time I ride I just fill it up with more water and I have a cold drink ready when I'm in the woods. Plus the camelback helps keep the heat down a little with the ice in it.

I never use anything but water in mine but for reasons other than growth of stuff in the bladder. I like the idea of having straight water with me when I ride to use as a part of a first aid kit. Lot better to wash your eyes out with tap water than with Gatorade or other liquid.

When I clean it I use warm water with a tablespoon or two of Arm & Hammer. Flush the bladder real good and then add lemon juice and water for the final wash/rinse. Fill about half full with water and place in the freezer.
 
Brian - I use the same cleaning technique- (1.5 to 2 weeks of post ride sitting in the garage), but I only use water, and clean with bleach & lots of rinsing before next use.

If I had anything but water in there for 2 weeks, I'd get a new bladder.
 
I use "mostly" just water, but I will slip in a mix of water and gatorade on endurance rides. I do start with water only in the morning, and end with water only in the evening ... dump, flush, and repeat.

To Tony's point, I also carry a spare liter bottle of water in a saddlebag for emergency use ... either in the first aid kit, or as emergency drinking water if I end up stranded in the heat somewhere without service.

Anything other than water definitely starts to eat away at the bladder, but it's also a disposable item, so as long as it lasts me through the trip, I'm not going to sweat it too much.
 
Wow...do you really need THAT much bleach?? 50% sounds like an awful lot! I would think just a tablespoon or two would be plenty.

However, if it has been sitting around for a month or two without being cleaned....:shame:
 
I use a mild bleach solution; just fill up the bladder, shake well, take off the bite valve and drain through the hose and then throw the valve in a cup of the same solution. Hang it from the bottom where the hose connects or get one of those drying racks that fit in there to keep the bladder open to dry. Use only water. Clean it out or it will clean you out
 
No need to buy a fancy camelbak opener - i use a large slotted ladle (plastic) from the kitchen to prop open the bladder to dry thoroughly. Always helps to take the bite valve off and wash it well (dirt/duct/slober).
 
Camelbak makes a cleaning kit. For about $20, it comes with a drying rack, a large brush for the reservoir, a small brush that gets pulled through the drinking tube, and some cleaning tablets which dissolve in the reservoir for soaking.

I have three camelbaks (water only!) that tend to sit in the garage next to their activity vehicle. Hot water does a lot, but it's amazing how much better I feel when I pull the brush through the tube and watch black stuff that had developed disappear.
 
Fuzzy stuff? Out of sight out of mind? :-P
 
Everclear or vodka (the Zevon plan) in the bladder, and then you won't have to worry about cleaning it. For any number of reasons...
 
Thanks for all the ideas. I guess I will start cleaning it instead of letting it sit out in the garage.:lol2:
 
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