How do you store your water bladder?

Ive heard this as well from people that do it. Sounds like it works. All Ive ever done with my bladder though is store it in the dark and wash it with a cleaner each time its filled from a non town water source. Thats worked for me. A trick worth thinking about with cleaner is that the proper tabs are quite expensive but contain exactly the same stuff as home brew sterilizing solution. You get a life time supply from the home brew shop for the same cost as 2 or 3 tabs from the tramping shop. Do you need to take a bladder for a 45 minute walk

wash it with baby bottle cleaner from time to time, way cheaper than the camelback cleaner. doesnt have to be every day.. that will keep it clean enough. dont put sugary drinks in the bladder if you can avoid it, you won't need it for a 45 min walk, sugar will increase the chances of bacteria or mould growing greatly... if you've had sugar in it you'll need to flush it thoroughly including the tube and mouth piece.... any residual sugar left behind will cause bacteria or mould to grow. if you're using it ever day and flushing it regularly and not putting sugar in it, you shouldnt have to clean it every day... i barely bother cleaning mine unless i havent used it for a while and i only use it in the weekends. making sure i flush it is my main means of cleaning... when tramping you could easily be loosing anything from a quarter of a litre of water to well over a litre of water an hour through exercising and sweat...

You can get specific water bladder coat hangers. Just hang it up after each use, and it dries it out for you. You'll only have to clean it sparingly then. Me personally, I've gone away from bladders. I prefer two or three 1L Platypus soft water bottles.

Drain it. Whack it in the freezer. I HAVE resurrected a mouldy one with dental cleaner, but it took a couple of rinses to get rid of the Steradent taste.

Bonus Pro! Whilst remaining hydrated, you keep minty-fresh breath. ;)

Hm, the only bladder i have ever owned is somewhere down in my belt region I think. Mind you, lots of us old men have one hanging down the trouser leg too. Is that what you are referring to? Joking aside - Grew up in the scouts and Whangarei Tramping club and we never carried water, or very rarely. Someone would dive off at lunch time with the billy to get water for a brew up, even if they had to go way down some gully to get it. Otherwise just carry on. Never thought it was necessary to lug water around. I do, these days, carry a second hand, 700ml plastic bottle for tops travel and that's about it. (PS My wife things I'm very lucky to not need to drink water frequently, so maybe I'm a freak? As obviously were the other Tramping Club members! lol )

dehydration is a sliding scale, you can get by without drinking for several hours usually while exercising, but during those hours, your blood thickens up and the fluid in your cells thickens up making your metabolism inefficient, your heart has to work harder to pump blood, making it harder to exercise and regulate heat... making you tired faster. you're better off drinking regularly.... anyone who says they dont need much water , doesnt necessarily need less water than other people, they are just used to putting up with dealing with less water... http://www.humankinetics.com/excerpts/excerpts/dehydration-and-its-effects-on-performance

I used to be a low water user sometimes getting by with 1 1 litre bottle on the trails for a weekend plus morning and evening coffee. I used to also suffer horrendous headaches the second day. Drink lots more water much fewer headaches and less severe

I suffer from hyperhidrosis. Excessive sweating. It is, in fact, the number one reason I moved to NZ. So minimal water is not an option for me. Thankfully, here in NZ, if you die of dehydration, you're an idiot who is probably doing the species a favour. But other places in the world.... Different story. I have nearly succumbed to dehydration twice. Once in Australia, and once in the Cambodian jungle. So I usually carry water - a couple of litres at least - when anywhere but here in NZ. And sometimes a third Platypus for whiskey or wine etc. ;)