Water Bottles!

[OakLeaf]

I've never had an issue getting to the bottom of my bottles with a standard bottle brush - and the only reason I ever need to do that is when I've left them lying around with HEED in them. Normally the opening is as big as a drinking glass and they're as easy to wash as a drinking glass. If you don't like to put plastics in the dishwasher, then a wet dish rag or an ordinary bottle brush will reach the entire inside.

The valve can get funky (again, usually if I'm less than diligent about immediate rinsing after a ride), but soaking the lids with a denture tablet takes care of that. And the "clean bottle" doesn't look like it offers any special kind of valve.

I saw something about a bird feeder with a removable bottom the other day, and I thought that was a great idea. I just don't see that it's necessary for bicycle water bottles. Considering that they almost always drip a little bit out of the top lid where it's only road sloshing and not gravity forcing the water out, it just looks like another opportunity to leak sticky stuff all over my frame and bottom bracket.


ETA - I've also hesitated to go to steel because of the stiffness - not because I don't think the cage would flex enough (I'm sure it would) but because I'm afraid I'd have trouble holding on and dispensing water. If you just open the valve on a regular bottle, gravity only does so much, you really need to squeeze it to get water quickly enough. So I would also like to hear from some people who use SS bottles.

[soprano]

If you just open the valve on a regular bottle, gravity only does so much, you really need to squeeze it to get water quickly enough. So I would also like to hear from some people who use SS bottles.

My 1L Kleen Kanteen SS bottle has a little opening in the top to allow airflow. The hole originally had a little rubber widget that I *think* was supposed to let air in. It didn't let in enough air for me drink quickly, however, so I took it out. Now I can drink as fast as I want, but if I tip the bottle over, water comes out of the opening.

My .75L Camelback SS non-insulated bottle does a much better job of balancing air flow with spill-resistance. I would carry it all the time and ditch the Kleen Kanteen, but 750 mL is not enough for me to commute home with on a hot day. Otherwise, the Camelback is by far my favorite bottle.

I have Topeak Modula cages for both of these bottles. They are just a hair too large for regular cages.

Both of my SS bottles have acquired a nice patina of wear-and-tear over time. The logos scratch up pretty easily, they've gotten dents from being dropped in the street, and both of them now wobble when set down because the bottoms have bowed out a bit. I think of them as the water-bottle equivalent to a well-worn Brooks saddle - they convey an impression of long, hard use. I don't want to think of how many plastic bottles I would have destroyed at this point!

[sgtiger]

I've never tried it with cold liquids, but I have a Thermos backpacker bottle (its basically a small stainless thermos with a nifty flip top lid) that I use for hot liquids on winter rides..... I've modified it by making it a neoprene sleeve so it doesn't rattle too much, as I have metal bottle cages on my winter bike. It keeps hot tea hot for an hour or so outside in the coldest of temperatures and warm for 3 or 4. If its not out in the wind, it will stay hot nearly all day.

I have one of those, too, and I use mine with iced tea all the time. It keeps liquids with ice cold for hours. I even left it in my car overnight once and, while all the ice had melted, the contents were still cool.