We have long been looking to replace our store bought water bottles with more Eco friendly ones.....there have been some commercials on TV for the Eco canteen...stainless steel bottle. My wife and I were talking about it and a question came up. Stainless steel vs the Nalgeen of the 'same' size. Forgetting the discussion of things like....you can use the stainless steel one to boil water....

Our question is....given all other things equal......which would remain colder longer......?

ECO friendly is a word up there with organic. How much virgin water and coal burning in a mill is used in the manufacturing process of stainless steel, fossil fuel to transport it ( lets guess where it is made)and a dozen other impacts measured and not.

If you want a onetime buy, longterm unit both are excellent choices.Nalgeen wil have greater insulating abilitysimply based on thicker material. I don't think either will win any contests.

I was just having a conversation with a coworker about her Kleen Kanteen the other day. She used to fill up her Nalgene from the chilled water cooler in the morning and sip from that at her desk throughout the day. She says that after she switched to the Kleen Kanteen, she thought that the water stayed cooler longer.

However, being uninsulated, I doubt that this would be the case in other situations, like strapped to the outside of your pack with the hot sun beating down on it.

Keep your pocket book green by going to the local surplus store and buy a $3 army canteen. Pocket the $25 you saved NOT buying a Kleen Kanteen.

Well thats what I do. I also own Nalgenes. I prefer those, except for when I take a carbonated beverage with me like Sparkling water. Nalgenes leak, stainless steel bottles don't.

I would not think either would do much better for keeping water cooler.

I bought neoprene "jackets" for our Sigg bottles and they really do work.

Slipping a Kleen Kanteen in a thick wool sock would work too. I use this trick on any water I carry in my pack. The slimmer metal bottles slip into a sock way easier than the plastic.

Back when I climbed I wrapped my Nalgene bottle with closed cell foam.....more to keep it from freezing than to keep the contents cold but, other than pretty ugly, that worked great.

Interesting statement. How do Nalgenes leak?

Thanks

CO

I think he means in reference to carbonated water.

Right. Put Sparkling Water in a Nalgene and it will seep through the lid. Stainless Steel bottles like Kleen or Sigg do not leak.

Thermos brand thermos bottles make nice light stainless steel versions of their thermoses.
I am not so impressed with their recent price hikes, but thats just the way the bee bumbles.

Thanks.....everyone is basically confirming what we had been throwing around. We currently use 'bottle holders' (including neoprene) and have the same results all of you have been having (or had) with your bottles.

I do have 3 surplus canteens.....they work for me, but my wife and the boys prefer a slightly more 'conventional' appearance. Hence the search for the bottles.....

I'll report your information and ask what she prefers.......


Oh and Chris.....Eco friendly was just tossed out there......we currently use too many store bought bottles to even think we are evironmentally conscious with them... We were looking for a 'better' option......though we still will have the 9-10 cases of bottled water for the 'long term'/hurricane prep.....

I have 3 of these, they will keep your beverage cold all day in a hot car.

Thermos quick charge

I use a 1 liter water or soda bottle over and over and over again. Cheapest out of all that have been suggested so far and greener since you are recycling.

I used to do like Jim Tanker but freeze them if I wanted cold water on a hot day. They melt just about enough to give you a cold drink when you need one.
They also work as ice packs in a cooler if you use one.

I have a 100oz Thermobak and two 1 liter Sigg bottles with Neoprene covers. The Insulated Sigg bottles keep water about as cool as my Neoprene covered Nalgenes did. I believe the Camelbak keeps water cooler longer, but that is probably due to the amount of Ice I can fill it with.

I like the Polar Bottle, used it for years. Never had a problem. Plus it is insulated. As so like Nalgenes.
link for polar
http://www.polarbottle.com/

Desert bags always leak. Thats cool though.

"It's amazing what people have used"

Reminded me of a time I was finishing up a week long backpack in the Grand Canyon. I was on the Bright Angel Trail, hiking up from Phantom Ranch. Guy coming down the trail carrying (in hand) a 1 gallon plastic container like you would buy milk in. It appeared to have Gatorade/Koolaid/ or something. He seemed to be just as happy as a clam on a rim to river to rim hike.

LW

At one of the various primitive skills courses I've taken over the years, an assistant used a dried gourd with a corncob stopper on a sling of cordage she made from dogbane...

Eco friendly means no truck delivered, plastic stored, bottled water. Tap water is the way to go
Cheers

One thing people overlook with military canteens and canteen holders-the fuzzy stuff inside is INSULATION. While in Cuba, we would chill our canteens, then soak the holders in cool water, and it would keep the contents cold most of the day. A wool sock would likely do the same over a bottle-we used to soak our berets as well, and that works great too. I dont think, side by side, there would really be any difference between an uninsulated plastic bottle vs an uninsulated metal one. Metal conducts heat better though, so it MAY be plastic works better-but, again, I think for the sake of argument, the difference is negligible.
I agree with Colorama too...tap water is fine here in the US. I refuse to purchase water when I get the same stuff for free. Save your money for something that ISNT given to you....

I just got an email from a friend asking about SIGG's Stainless Steel water bottles so I checked their site. I didn't even know these existed. They're called Steel Works by Sigg. The site shows all shapes and sizes, but I found even more from a few retailers online.

It looks like Kleen Canteen and others are still a few dollars cheaper though.

Siggs got a good size market share in bottles. Their Century bottle is really heavy. Not something I would want to lug around regardless of what i was carrying it in or on.

Better still go to the local supermarket and buy a bottle of fizzy water, I like Kiwi Strawberry, and drink it and then use the bottle for water. The plastic used is tougher then the plastic used in a bottle of water, as they have to hold some pressure. Then just clean as need.
cheers

Walgreen's is selling (here in NorCal) stainless steel water bottles with cheapie d rings and plastic caps for $3.99, I bought 10 of them for what 2 kleen kanteens would cost, but let's see how they hold up.

I have quite a few Nalgene bottles and Kleen canteens, some I've bought and never used. The ones I stick with now are 32oz clear Nalgene bottles and 18oz single-walled stainless Kleen canteens.

I like the Kleen canteens for belt carry, as they're a good size for that, and if it somehow ends up being the only water bottle I have, I can use it to boil water in.

The Nalgenes I like for general water carrying. Because they're clear with graduated markings it makes it easy to see exactly how much water you have left. This is great for cooking as well (measuring out water is easy).

I've also equipped the Nalgenes with Guyot designs "Firefly" lids. I find these seal better than the stock Nalgene lids and they have a neat little function of a built in flashlight that turns your water bottles into a dim lantern (or a so-so back-up flashlight if worst comes to worst).

I've tried camelbacks in the past, but I've never really had good luck with them, so I don't trust them.

Now, I also have a little 8oz single-walled stainless steel flask that I carry, usually filled with Booker's bourbon...but that's for another topic of discussion.

Hey Paul,

After a tragic inner-pack plastic bottle explosion about 15 years ago I have carried my whisky in an aluminum fuel bottle ever since. Lately I have noticed that the interior of the bottle is corroding and stuff is floating in my hooch; aluminum residue cannot be good for my memory.

Any problems with alcohol (the drinking kind, not stove fuel) being stored in a stainless steel bottle, because aluminum residue cannot be good for my memory?

Thanks,

Mike

Nope, nothing really. The steel can impart a slight metallic taste over time and it will build up pressure when it gets warmer (which is why I never fill it all the way up to the top), but otherwise it seems like alcohol can be left in there for a long time without ill consequences. I would say at least a few months.

With that said, if you plan on using a traditional flask, you do have to work to find a good one. Most of the ones you find in stores today are of poor quality. Either poorly soldiered/welded, poorly sealing (of the cap), or both. The better ones are less likely to leak and break, however they're tough to find and usually pretty expensive.

There is something about cleaning stainless steel thermoses and water bottles we should all know, but might want a reminder about.
NO BLEACH!
The bleach eats the steel and causes perforations in it, like pinholes.

I believe that Sigg, the maker of all those aluminum fuel bottles and now I guess water bottles used to recommend only using their anodized version for alcohol. The old rule was use the silver ones for your white gas and the red ones for your white lightning.

JohnE

Okay, I'll admit it. I had to Google "LAPHROAIG"

Laphroaig 30 Year Old Single Islay Malt Scotch Whisky. The aroma, on pouring the 30 year old, gives an initial burst of sherry, the full profound depth and ...

Chris, I'll go camping with you any time. I'm not necessarily a scotch man, but I can recognize and appreciate style when I see it.

Thanks, Scafool. I didn't know that.

Personally I prefer The Macallan, but I guess, if I'm camping, Laphroaig is ok.

With that said, it's not a camping trip without a nice bottle of Armagnac.

Ah, Armagnac. My love of Patrick O'Brian's "Master and Commander" series brought me to buy a bottle.

I took the last of my bottle on a camping trip in March...and also got to try a bottle of Balvenie 21-year-old scotch, which just knocked the socks off of every other scotch I've ever tried.
(Not sure if that means I've found the best scotch for me, or I need to try more scotch )

Dave

I think I've been camping with the Boy Scouts too long. These liquid supplies don't make it into my kitchen on these trips :-(

Not even a bottle of cheap cooking sherry? How do make your flambe dishes then?

Laken bottles are quite nice... but, a little pricey

I still like my good ole G.I canteen

Funny enough raven, I often carry my GI Canteen with me in & out of businesses during the day. I am never surprised at how often people call me out for it. In a good way, like a *blink*blink* "Did I really just buy a $25 kleen canteen when I could have used the GI canteen in my gear box at home?"

I have buddies who use USGIs. But I like water that doesn't taste like a tire. *laughs*

Then Nalgene has a canteen for you. Triton canteen

I'll stick with my BPA contaminated bottles.

I think another reson I like my G.I canteen is that a metal cup that fits so nice under it .and some thing eles 14yrs ago my back went out [ can't spell it ] tthe DR said I'll be pazly in 5years from the wist down [ he was worng] I can still hike but can not carry as much so I us a web belt with most of my stuff below where my back pain is , very litter wigth on my shouder most on my hips . if I'm wearing BDU's I look like I'm AWOL from the army. most of my hiking gear is military cause it's cheaper and will last forevery. I've never had any of it break on me

thanks for the info

Guyot designs SS bottle with an outdoor research insulated bottle jacket. Same profile as Nalgenes. Ice and liquid in the morning still cool in early afternoon. I use them all day long at work and around outside, hiking, etc. They do weigh more than Nalgenes, but I also can cook.

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