my "bag" is a Blackhawk I picked off the prize table at a Ft Benning 3gun match, so has a bladder and pouch built in... a Sawyer filter bottle with nested cup in one outside pouch, and in the other side the aluminum bottle from the Swiss Ranger stove set...I maintain a 1/2 flat of 500ml bottles of water in the Explorer

I carry one or two 32 oz. (1 liter) wide-mouth Nalgene bottles and use a Black Diamond carabiner to clip them to stuff, as needed.

A few years back I switch the entire family to the non-BPA versions.

Carrying much more than that is too heavy for me.

Perhaps I am hopelessly old school, but I've never really gotten into the Camelback fad. While they are no doubt handy for some things (endurance races, combat infantry) I don't see that many big advantages for day to day hiking. So I just carry one or more ordinary nalgene type bottles in my pack. I'm getting to be an old fart, and I don't mind stopping from time to time to take off my pack, catch my breath, eat a snack, and take a drink.

Note that the bladders have some disadvantages. Cleaning has been mentioned. Another issue is that the tubes tend to freeze in cold weather. I've seen some that attempt to insulate the tube, but in real cold weather even that doesn't work all that well. When backcountry skiing I carry my water bottle inside a cover with about a half inch of foam insulation, which goes in my pack. Even with that, my water will sometimes start to freeze during the day when out in serious cold.

I should mention that lately when hiking in hot weather I have started using collapsable water bottles for some of my extra supply. Mine is a Platypus Softbottle. It works just like an ordinary bottle, but stows flat as I empty it.

Aksar, do you blow the water out of the tube back into the bladder when it's really cold outside?

I don't know how cold you're talking about but I've used mine below 0F by filling the tube with air. I believe I learned this many moons ago on Camelbak's website.

For the original question I have and love using Camelbak bladders for the outdoors. I have them with and without the insulated tube.

I first used one bicycle riding and found it so much easier to drink while moving. I frequently leave PLAIN water in it for a week+ , =lazy, and only once had it go funky. Soap and water fixed it. I find them easy to leave unfilled in a backpack and fill when needed. I always keep my bags in the same location as my water so I can throw some bottles in the bag and fill on the way if I have to grab and go.

For street use I EDC a S.S. Camelbak bottle. You can clip a carabiner to it to fasten it onto almost anything.
I had previously used three other manufactures S.S. bottles but I liked the ease of the bite valve the best.
(You can't heat it but I EDC a Steripen and ClO2 tablets.)

One reason I have stayed with Camelbak was that I had a bladder that was at least 5 yrs old when it developed a small hole. I sent them the old one and they sent me a free new one.
Companies that stand behind their product are important to me.

Standard disclaimer, no affiliation except as a happy customer.

Our family BOB resembles this set up - stainless steel water bottles, nested in cans, nested in stainless or aluminum cups. we also have some empty platypus bags, MicroPUR tabs and a katadyn pocket filter.

Our daypacks house the nesting bottle/can/cup, microPUR tabs and a Frontier straw filter, except for our 9 yo's. He often chooses a GI canteen and mess cup.

My edc set-up is slightly lighter, with a nalgene and a camp cup, along with some microPUR tabs.

Many years back when at a campout with my son's Boy Scout Troop there was a parent visiting that was wearing some kind of water bladder backpack. She plopped down in a chair and then quickly sprang back up.

It turned out that she'd put ice in her bladder, and the bladder burst open when she sat down - flooding her back and rear end with ice water.

I've always been under the assumption that it was a cheap imitation and that the good brands would not have failed so violently (so to speak).

I'm with AKSAR, after trying various Camelbak type water bladders/packs, I still use water bottles regardless of the activity as I find them a lot more versatile and also find that I use less water as they are not as convenient to sip out as compared to a Camelbak.

The bladder is pretty impervious, and a long term soak in solutions of clorox, baking soda, or vinegar should effectively cleanse it in both the microbiological and ritual aspects. That said, one could drink a lot of dog urine without experiencing any physical injury, and it would probably would be no more esthetically displeasing than one of the less expensive domestic chardonnays...

I threw it out. If nothing else my wife would never, ever stop teasing me if I drank out of the bladder that the dog peed on.

Bwahahahaaa!!

Tell you what.... if you'll drink it, I'll put in on my tab. Lol