NYT had an article about how sales of reusable water bottles have skyrocketed. That made me wonder what brands people are using and like.

I have three Hydroflask water bottles, two purchased very recently. I love ice, which is a big factor in which bottles I will use. Gotta be able to fit ice cubes in it without a struggle. I also work on my back patio, so I need a bottle that doesn't comical on Zoom.

All three are Hydroflask. I have one big purple one (32 ounces) for outdoor sports when it is hot. It does not fit into a cupholder, so it cannot be my go-to bottle.

I recently bought a 29-ounce one in bright blue, with screw top. But I don't like it for driving because I have to use two hands to open it and it blocks my vision.

So I bought another one, this time with a straw, in Kiwi green.

I have a whole bunch of hard plastic ones from a long time ago that are not insulated. I have no use for these because they sweat and don't keep things cold. They are good for bringing water for the dog, though.

I've never tried Yeti. They seem expensive.

I have a camelbak for my bike and a few basic grey flip-top bottles for the gym. I don’t usually put ice in them but doing so is not a problem.

I don’t like straws; they’re hard to keep clean.

My current favorite is a flip top Zojirushi that I can open with a one hand push of a button. Also essential is that the lid can lock for when I throw the bottle in my bag (ask how I learned that).

It’s a slimmer bottle because it has to fit into the side pocket of my small backpack. It probably comes in bigger sizes, too. Mine is white with gold Hello Kitty motif.

I have Hydroflasks with flip tops, but they’re not leakproof, so they’re just for hanging around in the yard or the house with an icy bubbly seltzer.

Part of the kitchen counter is covered with water bottles.
Most are the bicycle type, others have a straw, and some have a flap that opens from drinking.
My trike has water bladders like those in Camelbacks.

I hate the fact that most reusable bottles are so expensive. Maybe that's the wrong way to think about it but...

I have two metal bottles that I've used for a long time. They're very basic, you do need two hands to open them though. And then we just found this fancy water in a metal bottle that we bought (for like $2), I'll see if I can find a photo...

Anyway,

I now use Yeti everything. I like my drinks cold and they keep things cold forever. Or hot if you start that way. I have three tumblers which I use for both coffee and water. Two water bottles that we use when travelling. A wine glass for the deck. A coffee mug for school. However, the water bottles need two hands to open. I usually use it without the lid when I’m not wandering around so I don’t have to bother. At school I just drink water out of the tumbler because I can snap open the magnet closure with one hand (but they don’t travel as well as a water bottle since they don’t fully close).

Another Yeti guy here. Their stuff just works.

Another vote for Yeti. I have their 16 oz tumbler. Coffee in the morning. Iced tea in the afternoon. Can leave it in a hot car for hours and I come back and there's still ice in there.

I also have a Stanley mug that's like a little thermos. That works equally as well, but the lid is a very complex contraption that is difficult to keep clean.

Cindy, you have your finger on the pulse apparently!

NYT article: ‘We’re All Water-Bottle Freaks’ Americans are drinking more water. How best to contain it: That’s the burning question.

or here:

Gift version of article

Ok wow, reading that article (after I posted the link of course!) I realize two things...

First of all, we almost never by single-use bottled water. I've always been able to find a place to fill at work for example, because campuses have filtered water bottle fillers all over the place. If we're going out and are going to be gone a while, I try (and usually succeed) to fill up a bottle at home and bring it with. And I always bring an empty bottle to the airport so I can fill once I get past security. I especially don't want to buy the ridiculously priced water at airports!

Oh, and at home, we have a counter top Brita thing, not a pitcher, it's larger and rectangular, with a spigot, what are those called? Anyway, we keep that filled (using it to filter our tap water) and then use that for both drinking water at home and also for filling our water bottles. So we rarely buy drinking water in any form/container.

Second, I don't actually like super cold water, and I rarely want a beverage with ice in it. Mr. SK does like ice cold water, but he hates the thought of buying bottled water, so after filling a few, he puts his water bottles in the fridge. So that's the other reason why we rarely buy bottled water.

Anyway, very interesting.

As I'm sure you all know, this water bottle thing is a relatively recent development. When talking about the connections between culture and the physical environment with my students, I can remember once talking about how "personal water" (which is what I called it at the time, and I still think that's a good way to refer to it) was not a thing when I graduated from college (w/ my BA). But when I came back to go to grad school 12 years later, it was. How did I know/notice that? I had my old backpack from undergrad, which had no special pockets for a water bottle, but when I started grad school, all the backpacks had water bottle pockets. When I was in high school or undergrad, no one carried around a water bottle to class. Now everyone does.

Interesting to think about.

quote:

Originally posted by ShiroKuro:
Cindy, you have your finger on the pulse apparently!

NYT article: ‘We’re All Water-Bottle Freaks’ Americans are drinking more water. How best to contain it: That’s the burning question.

or here:

Gift version of article

“Just drink from the hose.”

I like this guy!

I'm probably the unicorn here. I have never carried a water bottle.

quote:

As I'm sure you all know, this water bottle thing is a relatively recent development.

Does make one wonder, doesn't it.

Do You Need Eight Glasses of Water Per Day?

I'm one step away from the "Just drink from the hose" guy.

I don't like drinking out of a water bottle. It feels like a sippy cup to me. But I also hardly ever buy bottled water. It seems wasteful in terms of both physical waste and money.

When I'm at home, which is a lot of the time, I get a glass and use the refrigerator dispenser for ice and chilled water. It tastes good to me, there's no waste, and I get to drink out of an open glass made out of real glass.

When I'm away from home, I generally get water with my meals--again, I get to drink out of an open glass--and I sometimes also order coffee or a soda.

I don't mind drinking from public water fountains, but the water in Norman, where I work, is really, really terrible. I think our water at home, twenty minutes away but drawing from a different municipal system, tastes good. Norman has this odd system of pumping water from the aquifer and storing it in a lake that is naturally pretty murky. ("Storing" seems like a weird word for this.) Then they pump water from the lake as needed, but it's one of those lakes that stratifies and "turns over" seasonally, when the change in temperatures causes the top and bottom strata to change places. During those weeks, I'm shocked that the water is considered potable. You can smell it down the hall. Coffee made with it is just awful. That's a long way of saying that I would ordinarily drink from the fountain, but not here.

Our home water comes from municipal wells.

I suppose I don't drink enough water, but I don't like having to keep up with a water bottle.

I mostly drink coffee and sparkling water. I do have quite a lot of stainless steel bottles collected over the years. It’s probably worth investing in a Soda Stream, but I just lug carbonated water home from Costco, generally.

We’ll see how my habits change when my office is up two steep flights of stairs from the kitchen (and when there is no water source on that floor).

quote:

Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
I mostly drink coffee and sparkling water. I do have quite a lot of stainless steel bottles collected over the years. It’s probably worth investing in a Soda Stream, but I just lug carbonated water home from Costco, generally.

We’ll see how my habits change when my office is up two steep flights of stairs from the kitchen (and when there is no water source on that floor).

We have had a soda stream for about a year and a half and I LOVE IT. I only use it for sparkling water. No flavourings.