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I finally found my go-to water bottle…has everyone already seen these?


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Home Forums Gear Forums Gear (General) I finally found my go-to water bottle…has everyone already seen these?

Viewing 25 posts - 26 through 50 (of 52 total)
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  • #3488514
    Brad P
    Spectator

    @brawndo

     The BeFree doesn’t work on the Core. I work at Whole Foods and have bought every wide mouth bottle available in the store to see if one works haha

    Did this require a home equity loan?  :)

     

    #3488566
    DAN-Y/FANCEE FEEST
    Spectator

    @zelph2

    I saw this brand of drink a gas station today 18oz. It was at an island display near cash register.

    #3625200
    Bryan Bihlmaier
    BPL Member

    @bryanb

    Locale: Wasatch Mountains

    I know this is an older thread, but I want to second what @hjuan99 said – even now the wide-mouth 1 liter Pepsi/Mtn Dew bottles are at almost every gas station in Utah. Here’s another post lamenting their disappearance a while ago: https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/34671/ 

    I have a collection of maybe 5 or 6 of them. I too prefer the green because I usually use them in winter and clear is really hard to find in snow! (In summer I’m ok with small-mouth bottles or reservoirs). The large mouth is easier to pour melted snow into from a pot, and to get the cap off if you forget to store your bottle cap-down and the threads freeze.

    #3625201
    Bryan Bihlmaier
    BPL Member

    @bryanb

    Locale: Wasatch Mountains

    If anyone wants one, I’ll send one to you if you cover shipping costs. The bottle will be empty though :-D

    #3625287
    Kevin R
    BPL Member

    @kevinr

    I typically carry one Bolthouse Farms 32 oz smoothie bottle.  Height is about the same as a 23 oz smartwater, wide mouth like a Gatorade, smooth, tapered sides so it slides in and out easily.  Not sure about the weight, but the plastic thickness feels about the same as a smartwater.

    #3625296
    Greg Mihalik
    Spectator

    @greg23

    Locale: Colorado

    Kevin –

    All I see are 16 ounce bottles.

    Are there 32 ounce products/bottles?

    #3625299
    Kevin R
    BPL Member

    @kevinr

    Yep, 32 oz bolthouse are available. Not as many flavors as there used to be, but Walmart and other grocery stores typically have at least mocha cappuccino or something like that. Just weighed it on my scale- 45g.

    #3625304
    Sam Farrington
    BPL Member

    @scfhome

    Locale: Chocorua NH, USA

    Gatorade bottles are available in 28 or 32 oz from Amazon for $6 that have a screw top as wide as the bottle with a pull-out nipple in the top.  Also a clear vertical strip to check the water level. Free shipping for 4 or more:

    https://www.amazon.com/Gatorade-Squeeze-Bottle/dp/B01G3KE7LS?th=1&psc=1

    Or is this heresy and/or not adaptable to squeeze filters?  Prefer Nalgene softer plastic bottles myself because they squeeze for backflushing*, are easier to hold onto, and the plastic lasts longer before cracking like the harder plastic ones eventually do.  Like the full wide mouth because much easier to scrub clean.  *Clear plastic hose can be adapted to squeeze over the opening for the nipples. Since I use a myog pump filter, only potable water ever goes into the bottles:

    https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/99643/

    .Stopped carrying bug juice or sweetened ice tea because they attracted bears. Just drink black or sleepytime tea from my Ti cup.

    #3625352
    Lester Moore
    BPL Member

    @satori

    Locale: Olympic Peninsula, WA

    These 32 oz evamore wide mouth water bottles are only 32 grams (1.13oz) each and they work well:

    https://www.amazon.com/Alkaline-Artesian-Water-32-Alkaline-Recyclable/dp/B00474D0HK

    #3625377
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Evamore bottle: $23.48  (Gatorade bottle similar $)
    Rocket-base PET bottle: $0
    Um

    Cheers

    #3625413
    Greg Mihalik
    Spectator

    @greg23

    Locale: Colorado

    Roger –

    I, and a few others I think, are searching for a top large enough to get a good seal with the stopper, or enough wiggle room to facilitate the “steripen stir”.

    Do your use your steripen in the bottle or in a pot that you then pour off into a bottle?

    TIA

    #3625421
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Hi Greg

    I would be concerned about having the Steripen just intruding into the top of the bottle. I do not know how effective it would be at treating the bottom end of the bottle. If I am going to the bother of treating the water, I want to know that it HAS been properly treated. For this reason I treat in a pot, stirring the whole time, then decant into a bottle. It’s very easy.

    Note that the UV light cannot escape through the surface of the water.

    Cheers

    #3625474
    JCH
    BPL Member

    @pastyj-2-2

    “Note that the UV light cannot escape through the surface of the water.”

    Roger – I did not know this and am curious as to how this works…a property of physics I imagine.  Can you provide an answer for the layman? :)

    Clearly the light cannot escape through the sides and bottom of the pot either (but could in a clear bottle).  Does this make treating in the pot comparatively more efficient?

    #3625536
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    @JCH
    You know how a prism will break light up into a rainbow? That happens because the prism bends light according to the wavelength of the light, something we call the refractive index. Water too has a refractive index, and you can see this when you poke a straight stick into water: the stick seems bent at the surface of the water.

    Well, this dependence on the wavelength extends all the way down into the UV. By the time you get to UV-C, the light gets so bent it can’t escape from the water unless it hits the surface very close to a right angle. That would be a very small percentage. All the rest is ‘reflected’ back into the water.

    The blue light you can see coming from the Steripen bulb is not UV light: it is ordinary blue light. The discharge in the bulb generates a little bit of blue light as well as the UV-C light. I find the blue light useful as a guide.

    Is treating the water in a pot more efficient? Probably not by much if you are talking about reflections off the Ti pot walls. I don’t think the surface of the Ti metal is all that reflective. However, if your pot is polished aluminium, then the answer is definitely yes. Have a look at this article on the Steripen Quantum:
    https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/steripen-quantum-uv-water-treatment-system-roger-caffin/

    Basically, what Steripen have added to a standard Classic3 wand in the Quantum is the equivalent of one of those aluminised metal balloons, all shiny on the inside. They have had to use a more robust bag to get enough product life. The UV-C light is reflected off the shiny aluminium internal walls of the bag so that it bounces around many times, increasing the ‘path length’ of the UV-C photons and the probability of zapping any bug in the water. Yeah, the aluminium layer is only microns thick, but that is enough.

    Personally, I don’t think the extra weight of the Quantum bag is justified for just one or two people: just take an extra couple of AAA lithium batteries. However, if you had to cater for a group of 4 – 6 people, the Quantum would become weight-effective. It is faster and would not use as many batteries. An ideal case would be a Boy Scout group or a large Club group.

    Cheers

    #3625552
    Eric Blumensaadt
    BPL Member

    @danepacker

    Locale: Mojave Desert

    What this thread points to is that Platypus, among other collapsable bottle makers, needs to make its bottle mouths W-I-D-E-R.

     

    #3625563
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    The problem with wider bottle mouths is that they need wider screw caps, and the ability to seal tightly goes down as you increase the diameter of the mouth and cap. This is why carbonated beverages (Coke and Pepsi to the ignorant) come in bottles with small caps, while uncarbonated drinks can have larger caps.

    I KNOW, from (my) extensive testing, that the small caps on the rocket-base PET bottles can take very high pressures. My experience has been that the larger caps can leak under pressure.

    Cheers

    #3625585
    JCH
    BPL Member

    @pastyj-2-2

    Thank you for the explanation Roger…very informative.

    #3625595
    Bryan Bihlmaier
    BPL Member

    @bryanb

    Locale: Wasatch Mountains

    I look for and use bottles with wider mouths than a standard soda bottle for the <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>winter</span> because, like I said above, it is easier to pour melted snow into from a pot, and the threads are less likely to freeze up to the point you can’t get the cap off. Also, finding a larger cap is easier if you *accidentally* drop one in the snow while wearing gloves.
    There are certainly lighter and better options for use in summer with water filters, and I use those in warmer weather. I don’t take filters in winter because one freeze ruins them, so I’m not concerned with filter compatibility for the wide mouth bottles. I use chemicals in winter usually, because I’ve had too many SteriPens tell me that brand new batteries were dead in the winter even when I keep them warm.

    #3625602
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    I’ve had too many SteriPens tell me that brand new batteries were dead in the winter even when I keep them warm.
    Were these alkalines or lithium batteries?

    Cheers

    #3625624
    James Marco
    BPL Member

    @jamesdmarco

    Locale: Finger Lakes

    Yes, lithium batts are the only ones available for the Opti. As I remember, when I called in about batteries, they said that ALL C123 are lithium. Some of this battery format is in rechargeable NiCad, though. These will only last about 5-10 uses so are not recommended.
    Lithium batts can run the Opti at ranges between -20C and around 60C. but reductions of power output, internal resistance, etc, cause shortened battery life. My recommendation for the Opti: (besides always using Lithium batteries)
    1) Keep it in an internal pocket. This will keep it well above freezing. During use, internal resistance and discharge chemistry will keep the batts warm even at very low (-10F) temps.
    2) Avoid using them for more than 4 uses in a row. Internal resistance will go down but the timing means more electricity for the time when good and warm (above 110F.)
    3) Always flip one battery after use (two batteries for the Classic at opposite corners.) All electronic switches require a trickle current to detect which state they are in. However, they all require a an initial “charge” when turning them on for the first time. This roughly cancels out over about an hour of idle current draw. For me, I only use them a few times during the day, so flipping one battery essentially turns this trickle off. You save about a half of a use each night. At night, always flip the batt. Some people recommend a thumb screw glued onto the cap screw but I just use my thumb nail. For the average of 4hr between uses gives me another five or more uses at the end of the battery life.
    4) As with all electronics, avoid getting them wet. While sealed, I have had a bit of trouble with condensation corroding contacts. A pencil eraser will polish the contacts clean again.
    5) Get in the habit of warming up the batts/Opti before use. They function quite a bit more reliably and easily at body temp usually saving some power. Usually about another use or two over the lifetime of the batts, especially in the morning of a cold day. If the batts are seemingly dead, you can often get another use out of them by warming them over the stove. WARM not hot. This can result in a burst battery of you over do it. Use caution.
    5) Always store the batts flipped or out of the Opti. While lithium batts don’t leak, it is just good practice.

    Anyway, you can save about 10%-15% of the battery life, more in cool weather(below 40F.)

    Wide Mouth Bottles? Just reuse a Gatoraid or Life Water 500ml bottle. For the Opti, it lets it set on the rim as you rotate it gently through the water. They are not deep enough to cause problems, but some rotation is being wise. A 1L bottle is a bit too deep, soo, use a steady rotation on these throughout the treatment. The majority of the UV is produced at the sides of the Opti, soo, By rotating it around a bottle rim provides agitation, it also increases the amount of UV/cm of water depth.

    Never use these in floppy water bottles. A crease can cause blind spots to UV and/or low circulation. I haven’t tried the newer Quantum.
    I always wipe the cap and rim with my bandana after each treatment. Is this really necessary? I don’t know. But, it seems like a safe practice to me.

    #3625641
    Tom K
    BPL Member

    @tom-kirchneraol-com-2

    “If I am going to the bother of treating the water, I want to know that it HAS been properly treated. For this reason I treat in a pot, stirring the whole time, then decant into a bottle. It’s very easy.”

    +1 when I was using a Steripen.  Why take a chance?  As Roger says, “It’s very easy”.

    #3625647
    Bryan Bihlmaier
    BPL Member

    @bryanb

    Locale: Wasatch Mountains

    I need to access my bottles too often when mountaineering or skiing in the winter to keep them in my backpack, and I often strip down enough while going uphill that I can’t always keep one tucked under a warm jacket. I carry 1 liter of water in an insulated “holster” attached the the bottom of my shoulder strap (OR bottle parka). I can slide it down near the hip belt out of the way while moving, and slide it up the strap to better see the zipper on the insulator when accessing it. It is the only method I have found to keep my water easily accessible and from freezing while moving in cold weather. For me, a 500 mL bottle is not big enough. I also carry additional water in my pack, but stopping every hour to swap bottles is not worth carrying a smaller 0.5L external bottle to me. Anyway, I’m just describing what I do in case it inspires other people to experiment with other methods. Everyone has their own preferences.
    My bad experience with SteriPen was with both alkaline and non-rechargeable “lithium” AA batteries. I now have the Opti which is much easier to keep operating while using (optical instead of electrical contact sensors), and has an actual internal Li-ion battery. I still just personally prefer the lighter weight and reliability of Aquamira or simple bleach drops.

    #3625657
    Dale Wambaugh
    BPL Member

    @dwambaugh

    Locale: Pacific Northwest

    I’ve picked up Soda Stream bottles in thrift stores for cheap. They are the ones made for bottling your own carbonated soda. They have a top that is 30mm inside diameter, 25cm tall overall, 85mm diameter and weigh 130g/4.4oz, abd holds 1050ml, so a little better than a Nalgene. The cap has a good gasket too.

    #3625663
    James Marco
    BPL Member

    @jamesdmarco

    Locale: Finger Lakes

    The Adventurer or Opti doesn’t have an internal battery. You must mean the Aqua or Ultralite. I don’t care too much for internal batteries. Their lifespan is always less than the bulb.
    I dislike things hanging on my shoulder straps. I can reach the side pouches on my pack, OK.
    I know what you mean about a 1/2L being too small. I get one well needed drink per bottle. I just rotate the bottles in my side pouch, though.
    I used to be a huge fan of aquamira…till I figured out it wasn’t really worth it unless I was “cheating.” The drops/tabs require quite a while (about 4 hours) to work. (I picked up a bug using AM on a thru hike by rushing it.) Sometimes this works OK, but I ended up carrying extra weight in water. I went from an average of 1.5L carry weight(2L or 1 being worked on by the chemicals, 1 being drunk) to an average of about 3/4L since there is no wait time (0.5L being drunk, 0.5L reserve.) This saves about 1.33 pounds while only adding the weight of the ‘pen and batts (3.5oz.) Of course, if you have to carry ALL water because there isn’t any, it is a different calculation. Chemicals would be fine.

    #3626409
    Diane “Piper” Soini
    BPL Member

    @sbhikes

    Locale: Santa Barbara

    How do you know you’ve crossed over into hiker trash territory? I think this thread answers that pretty well.

    All you need now is to figure out how to make one of those magnetic capsules that spin at the bottom of your solution for the perfect hands-free steripen experience.

Viewing 25 posts - 26 through 50 (of 52 total)
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