Is it ok to reuse plastic water bottles?

I just noticed that a bottle I used for number two is a number one. That has made my day.
( I keep it just in case I lose the new one, wide mouth, very impressive)
Franco

>I just noticed that a bottle I used for number two is a number one

Franco, around here a "number 2" may have an entirely different meaning than what you meant to convey, especially with your reference to a "wide mouth"!

These are the BPL forums right? GET A PLATY!

"These are the BPL forums right? GET A PLATY!"
Do they degrade and leach? I have had a few of mine since late '04.

Before the BPA scare, some of the hydration bladders were polycarbonate (so potentially could leach if you added hot water etc…). Post-BPA scare, most if not all newer hydration bladders are free of BPA plastics.

> These are the BPL forums right? GET A PLATY!
Yes, this is BPL, not a platy advocacy.

1.0 L Platy: 90 g
1.25 L PET bottle: 34 g

2.0 L Platy: 100 g
2.5 L PET bottles: 68 g

Puncture risk with Platy: significant.
Puncture risk with PET: almost zero (based on 10 years experience).

And just why should I carry the extra weight of a platy which can be damaged?

Cheers

Platy or Nalgene or or PET bottle is a personal choice. Whatever you choose, if you're 'worried' about BPA, just make sure it's NOT polycarbonate.

I use a Platy-type bottle as I like the convenience of drinking on the move, and the easy packability of them (no where external on my Gust to easily access a PET bottle). But I (happily) pay a weight penalty for this convenience. So this being BPL is really nothing to do with using a platy, and most people I meet on the trail use recycled soda bottles (PET). Not just lighter and more robust, but far, far cheaper! Mind you, I picked up a lifetime supply of these bladders and hoses at a garage sale for almost nix…

1.0 L Platy: 90 g
1.25 L PET bottle: 34 g

2.0 L Platy: 100 g
2.5 L PET bottles: 68 g

I'm not taking sides in the PET vs. Platy controversy but I just weighed some Platys and got 24 g for the 1.0 L and 35 g for the 2.4 L.

>I'm not taking sides in the PET vs. Platy controversy but I just weighed some Platys and got 24 g for the 1.0 L and 35 g for the 2.4 L

Yes, that's if you don't use the tubing system. I find platys hard to drink out of cf PET if not using the tubing, but it's an option that may suit some folks.

> I just weighed some Platys

The weights quoted are direct from the Platy web site.
I believe they include the hoses, but you could try using them without the hoses. Looks a shade tricky.

OK, let's broaden the analysis a bit, cause everyone is poor these days and we have a recession somewhere:

1.0 L Platy: 90 g, US$17.95
1.25 L PET bottle: 34 g, US$00.00

2.0 L Platy: 100 g, US$19.95
2.5 L PET bottles: 68 g, US$00.00

Cheers

but you could try using them without the hoses. Looks a shade tricky.

Not really. The 1 L Platys have indentations in the middle and fit neatly into your hand.

In order to make a fair analysis you have to compare apples to apples, not bottles to hydration systems.

1.0 Platy: 24 g, US $7.95
1.25 L PET bottle: 34 g, US$00.00

2.4 L Platy: 35 g, US $9.95
2.5 L PET bottles: 68 g, US$00.00

So you pay a little money and lose a little weight, something that many who visit this site seem willing to do.

Personally, I don't have have strong preference for one or the other. Most often I carry a PET bottle strapped AR style to my shoulder strap and keep a 2.4 L Platy in my pack for camp use or for times I need to carry more water.

"The 1 L Platys have indentations in the middle and fit neatly into your hand."

this only works if the Platy is full, or near full. An aquamira bottle on the other hand, retains it shape no matter the content volume.

I like both, they both have usable features. Most packs I have owned had side pockets that worked much better with a PET bottle. YMMV

also, fwiw there are some platy wannabe's that cost about half. no side hips tho. check out rumrunnerflask.com

this only works if the Platy is full, or near full.

Michael, that doesn't seem to be the case for me. To test what I might be missing, I just filled a 1 L Platy and took sips when it was full, half full, and with just a bit of water. It was pretty easy all the way through.

Thanks for the link. Those are really good prices. The larger ones would be good for camp use.

cool, glad it works for you!
maybe its the size of my hands..

i wish rrf sold a 2L

delete

.

delete what?

cheers

Brain fart, Evan. I thought I had found a 2 L rumrunnerflask but alas, it was only 1 L. I should know better than to be playing with my dog while looking things up.

I'd like to get back to Michael Landman's question. Does anyone know if Platys degrade and leach over time?

when I started weighing my stuff, I was amazed at how heavy the Platypus tube + cap + valve combo was, much heavier than the bottles, I don't have the figure with me now but it makes sense what turns out substracting the figures mentioned for the bottles alone from those from the Platy website.

I still wanted to have a drinking tube so I cut it shorter. This is one of those cases of gear that can be made lighter *and* more functional (not less): now my drinking tube would have just the right length to reach my mouth and the valve wouldn't lie on the ground everytime I'd take my pack off.

The resulting tube + screw cap + valve turned out 35 gram. I usually carry two bottles but just one tube so the weight penalty for a hands free, no need to stop hiking drinking system is even less.

Platys have a definitive advantage over PET bottles in packability and they usually last several seasons so the price shouldn't be that big of an issue. They do fail eventually, I couldn't tell if they're more prone to failure than PET bottles but they're also handled differently. They're also more difficult to fill. As for drinking straight from the bottle, come on… most of us have two hands.

i was googling around about this today and found this thread.

i also found something much more recent from the new york times and thought i'd share:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/12/08/bpa-in-cans-and-plastic-bottles-linked-to-quick-rise-in-blood-pressure

so, who knows.

at least we're outside enjoying nature! :)

and a 2011 study:

http://www.npr.org/2011/03/02/134196209/study-most-plastics-leach-hormone-like-chemicals

takeaway: plastic might be weird for humans, we're not entirely sure.

Haven't read the whole thread, but I'll chime in. It was a big moment for me when I realized how heavy those Nalgene lexan bottles are, and how much weight I could save by using something else. So I started using bottles from Dasani bottled water. Paranoid about losing water (esp. in Grand Canyon), I stress-tested the hell out of one by flinging it (full) into the air 20ft or so and letting it land on a paved parking lot. Then I emptied it, crushed it flat with my boot, and re-inflated it with my breath. No leaks.

That being said, I think it's a foolish risk to not use new ones at the beginning of a trip, and I always do.

I have been using the same Naked Juice bottle since I picked it up in Stehekin in 2009. I've been using the same platypus bottles since 2008. They've been on one complete PCT hike and lots of hikes after that. No problems with the platypus bottles. I'm not very hard on my gear.