Turn Your Hydration Bladder Into an Eye Wash

Not actually Erin.

Picture by KJ Photography

& is used with permission.

Last week I mentioned that an eye wash adapter could be modified to work on a hydration bladder.

This week I'm going to show you how and give you a shopping list. If you've followed my instructions on how to make an inline filter for your drinking tube, then you probably already have everything you will need.

You Will Need

1. One Mazama MagmaFlow Quick Disconnect Coupler. They are currently out of stock at the moment, but if you like you can get a 2-pack for $7.99 on Amazon. 
• You can use other quick disconnect brands, but I prefer this because they're the only one I've seen which automatically shuts off the tube when you disconnect the pieces, preventing the water in your hydration bladder from going everywhere and making a mess.  
2. One male plug. Of course, if you buy the 2-pack listed above then you already have this. 
3. One piece of hydration tube, approximately 1.5 to 2" long. The Sawyer Fast Fill Adapter Pack comes with a tube that long and two male plugs, along with a single female plug. 
4. One eyewash adapter. 

Installation

1. Make sure your hydration bladder is empty. 
2. Cut the tube roughly 2" below the bite valve. 
3. Insert the female end of the Mazama Coupler in the tube closest to the reservoir and the male end in the tube attached to the bite valve. 
4. Place another male plug onto the spare piece of hydration tube. Rest assured, a Sawyer plug will work with Mazama. 
5. Place the other end of the tube onto the nipple sticking out from the bottom of the eyewash adapter. 

When all is done, it should look like this:

Place the eyewash adapter into a Ziplock bag to keep it clean and store it with the rest of your quick-access first aid gear. 

To Use It

1. Remove bite valve
2. Attack eye wash adapter
3. Hold cup to eye
4. Compress hydration bladder

When you're done you'll need to find more water for your hydration bladder, but you'd have the same dilemma if you used a water bottle. Plus, your eyesight is more important than water; you can go 3 days without water, but if you cannot see your survival chances drop substantially.