History of Nalgene Bottles

[Jared Gordon]

For my personal newsletter, I was digging into the history of nalgene and thought this forum would find it interesting!

In 1949, in Rochester, New York, chemist Emanuel Goldbery developed the first plastic pipette (science eye droppers) for his laboratory. He then founded the Nalge Company and expanded from pipettes to producing plastic lab bottles. The plastic material was more durable than traditional glass, while the screw tops worked well to contain liquids and odours. It was practical in the lab and even more so for scientists working outside in the field. One important thing to keep in mind is that at this time, the world was just starting to move away from Bakelite and rubbers to petroleum-based plastics, which were a relatively new invention. Plastic would not have been a common sight in the home or office.

Just over a decade later in the 1960s, outdoorsy lab scientists started taking their plastic labware with them on back-packing trips because they were unbreakable, leak-proof and lightweight. The popularity of reusable containers grew in the 1970s as the Leave No Trace philosophy was embraced and groups like the Sierra Club began discouraging campers from the previously common disposal practice of burning or burying cans or glass canisters. Around the same time, the President of Nalge Company saw his son using the containers on his Boy Scout trips and had the idea to market the polycarbonate bottles as high-quality camping gear. The “original water bottle” was born.

You can find out more here (and subscribe!) at https://considered.substack.com/p/nalgene

[Eugene Hollingsworth]

Interesting. Thanks for posting!

[Michael Gillenwater]

Only one possible correction. I thought the early Nalge bottles were polyethylene mostly.

[Jared Gordon]

Michael, we just used plastic as a catch all term. Later on, the company made a switch to also offer the Tritan bottles. The company still sells polyethylene bottles, for both recreational and lab use. A lot of their smaller bottles for shampoo etc are HDPE.

[Jeff Y]

I used to work at REI a long time ago,  and we would joke about how the Nalgene bottles that were so popular with outdoorsy types, were actually used as food bowls, etc for animals used in lab tests.

Thanks for the history, very interesting.

[Jon Fong / Flat Cat Gear]

I still use a polyethlene Nalgene, the polycarbonate one weigh more and are easier to crack.  My 2 cents.

[Kevin Babione]

This was fun – I’m a consultant who spent a couple weeks many years ago in Rochester NY at their headquarters helping them.  They gave me so many freebies that I had to go to a nearby UPS store to ship a box home because it was too much to carry on a plane!

They’re a good company and it was nice to get a bit more of the history.  Thanks!

[Dale Wambaugh]

The first ones I saw were narrow neck HDPE and I still have some in the gear locker.

IMHO, the only advantage to the heavier polycarbonate ones was transparency.

[David Thomas]

In the 1970s and 1980s, I had two 1-liter Nalgenes, one wide-mouth and one narrow-mouth.  I always knew where they were and had no problem finding them for a trip.

Now there are approximately 37 reusable water bottles around the house. Some are polycarbonate, some HDPE, some are stainless steel.  Insulated and un-insulated.  Purchased, found, and freebies.

But now I waste time finding one before a trip because household members have a proprietary interest in particular bottles and what’s allowed in each one.  And some live in one of the cars (seasonally), didn’t get unpacked from the last trip, or got stored somewhere in the garage.

An embarrassment of riches?

[Paul S]

The old translucent Nalgenees retained taste and odor..and the water always tasted plasticky (to me). The “newer” polycarbonate Nalgenes don’t hold onto tastes as long, and the water does not taste plasticky. But I do believe that the polycarbonate material, even the newer (BPA free) ones leach chemicals into the water more than the original translucent (original) Nalgenes. They may not be leaching BPA, but since they are relatively new, I bet sooner or later we’ll find that they leach something other than BPA that might be harmful.  Correct me if I’m wrong here.

All that being said, my wife and I used the polycarbonate Nalgenes. We figure that we only use them for about 30 days a year (we use them only on backpacking trips), so we are probably safe.

[Rex Sanders]

I first encountered Nalgene bottles many decades ago in high school and college chemistry and biology labs.

When people first started using them for backpacking, my initial thoughts were “Ewww, do you know what was stored in that bottle? Is that safe to drink from?”

Then their popularity exploded, and I carried some for several years. Built like tanks, and weighed almost as much.

Thanks for bringing back old memories.

— Rex

[Brad W]

The HDPE bottles are the most innocuous as far as chemical leaching-BPA/BPS, etc.

[Roger Caffin]

But some of the old rectangular Nalge bottles with wide necks did not age very well. Some of mine now have large cracked holes in the sides, just from finger pressure. I only keep a few, as a reminder of what can go wrong.

These days I use the rocket-based 1.25 L PET bottles from fizzy drinks. They are shatter-proof, as tested by dropping them about 4 m onto sheet rock while full of water. They barely scratch. And some of mine must be well over 10 years old and still going. Unlike the heavy Nalge bottles, one of my PET bottles weighs a bare 46 g with sealing cap.

Cheers

[Sam Farrington]

Though rugged for many years, the original 32 oz Nalgene widemouth bottles eventually cracked, a big deal on a longer trek with no extra bottles.

Then I saw some in a gear store that were almost identical, but a softer plastic, and easier to hold, since the cylindrical shape had give to it, and dropping them was less of a concern.  Made a fitting for the cap so they could squeeze water out to backflush the water filter.

The web is a bit slow tonight, possibly because Black Friday is near.  So don’t know if the softer ones are the HDPE, or perhaps the “Ultralite”, or perhaps discontinued.  The softer ones weigh about 3.3 oz, so are lighter than what Nalgene calls the “original” bottles and weigh over 6 oz.  My “original” 32 oz Nalgene bottles, no longer used for backpacking, weight about 3.7 oz.

[Brad W]

The ultralight are HDPE and are about 3.5oz for the 1L versions. They are somewhat pliable and can take lot’s of abuse. https://www.rei.com/media/269dbba5-dae6-4f57-9053-8a2a7d89925a?size=784×588

[Gary Dunckel]

HDPE Nalgenes have their limitations in cold temperatures. 20 years ago I deployed to McMurdo Station in Antarctica for the summer season. When I first arrived in early October it wasn’t yet full 24 hour sunshine. I went for a 2-mile walk on the ice road to the landing strip after dinner one night. I carried a 1/2 L Nalgene HDPE bottle in the outer chest pocket of my beloved red parka they issued me. The pocket wasn’t insulated, so it was directly exposed to the -20* F ambient temperature of the air. When I returned from my one-hour walk, I got to my dorm room and set the nearly full (and cold) Nalgene on top of our little refrigerator. The bottle immediately crystalized from the light shock of being set down. It didn’t leak, I assumed because the water contacting the wall of HDPE was still frozen. I quickly placed it in the shower (so that my roommate could use the sink). The next morning I checked it out. It didn’t appear that any water had leaked out, but when I gently squeezed the bottle it totally shattered into ~100 small pieces.

So, yeah, HDPE Nalgenes do have their limitations.

In contrast, I talked with a guy that lost his #7 polycarbonate Nalgene 1-liter bottle at the top of Longs Peak here in Colorado. He laid prone on the edge of the summit, peering down at the 1000′ diamond to the scree field at the base. His half-filled bottle rolled off the edge by accident, and it fell the full distance down to the scree field. He was actually able to find it, and it was essentially unscathed. VERY scratched, but still usable.

 

[Jared Gordon]

Gary,

Those are both incredible stories. Really appreciate you sharing them.

[Elliott Wolin]

Some vintage and not-so-vintage rigid plastic water bottles, oldest on the left.  Leftmost two probably from the 1970s.  These days we use Platypus and similar brand soft/foldable bottles, but for bicycling, kayaking, and car trips we use whatever is handy.

 

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