Nalgene Tritan Wide Mouth BPA-Free Water Bottle, 1-Quart. I have two. If I leave enough space at the top, should that be enough to counter the freezing effects?

hikermor wrote:
<Storing food in a vehicle, in my opinion, means you should have some sort of stove and fuel as well. There are lots of light weight, stable alternatives available >

good advice, but remember to have food you can eat cold too. It might be lashing rain out there.

chaosmagnet wrote:
<For food I keep my favorite road snacks (beef jerky)>

More good advice and maybe it's just me; but pack some dental floss too, as the dried meat stuck between my teeth drives me mad!

qjs

It makes sense that this would work, but I haven't tried it with Nalgenes.

The Nalgenes will be fine with a little extra space to allow for freezing. Try one in your freezer to see just how much space you need.

The synthetic bottles do not freeze as quickly as metal ones, and they let sunlight through so they melt more quickly. They also do not feel so bad against the skin when frozen! I do like to carry a single walled stainless steel one for the ability to use it in a fire for boiling water or melting snow. Just a versatility thing.

Nalgenes withstand freezing really well, as long as you leave a little room at the top for the expansion of the water. I always have one in my car and have never had a problem with the bottle breaking in the cold. We use this method all the time in the summer too - freezing the bottles at home before heading out for a trek. Drink it as it thaws and it keeps your water colder longer.

Another tip, is to lay the bottle on it's side when freezing, leaving enough room so that the bottle opening is not completely covered with ice. This leaves you space to drink or pour the water before it's completely thawed, without the ice blocking the opening.

In the winter, when I expect the bottle to freeze, I keep it in a metal water bottle and also carry a camp stove to boil & melt it right in the bottle. A wider mouth bottle is easier for melting snow and a secondary cup will allow you to drink the water before the bottle has cooled so you avoid burning your lips or drinking luke-warm water.

EDIT: A water bottle cozy is a big help in both temperature extremes as well. Insulation in the winter and condensation control in the summer. It also keeps the bottle quieter.

Personally, I keep instant coffee, tea, apple cidar, hot chocolate, instant soup, etc. in the car, along with water, stove/fuel/flame to whip up a hot brew in case we get stuck.

Since I roll with kids, there's always snacks in my car, as well as in my purse, and they got rotated frequently.

I couldn't find that flavour but just tried the chocolate brownie Larabar, based on the thumbs up from you guys, and it's delicious! It's been in my pack for a couple of weeks and I don't taste anything but goodness. Maybe I'll risk it and include them in my weekly rotation.

I've sort of crossed over from 'taste better' to 'trunk food' but it all seems related. I've got a short trip to work/home in an urban environment so don't really think of water or anything substantial for the car unless a long trip is planned.

With that, the lifeboat rations go into the 'go-bag' that lives in the car and I've got an empty Nalgene water bottle attached to the bag so I can fill it when needed but don't carry water in the car. I may pay for that one day and should figure out a way to stash some H2O in the car too.

Paul -

I am an old desert rat that has been really thirsty a time or two so I really value water. Basically all of my canteens are filled all or most of the time. I can assure you that lousy water is much better than no water at all. it can almost always be treated so that survival will occur. There are some exceptions, of course, but they are rare....

I would be very cautious about drinking from a water source labeled as "Arsenic Spring" on my trusty topo map, for instance.

I carry water with me on a daily basis, so that's what gets used in the car (not stored in the car, but carried in fresh each day).

For food, I don't worry about that too much in my daily suburban life. But during winter I've been known to throw in an unopened box of saltine crackers and an unopened jar of peanut butter. Obviously that's emergency rations only, but they might get me by in a pinch. For "trunk food" (read: emergency only), anything that requires hydrating or heating is overkill for me. The object is not having to gnaw my arm off in hunger, as opposed to holding a first class banquet. I just can't see myself whipping out my stove and cooking up a can of beans in the library parking lot.

I would do more if I lived in a rural area or was heading off into remote areas where I could be stranded for a couple of days. But that's not typical for me any more.

For the sake of my dog, all year around I have long had a bit more than a gallon of water in the car (a Honda Element) -- in 48 oz and 32 oz Nalgene bottles and canteens. I keep those in a Coleman steel cooler, in case of leakage. I periodically switch out the water for fresh and before winter will begin leaving 3" or so of air at the top to accommodate freeze expansion.

My Samoyed, Gidget, recently died (at age 14 years, 2 months) and I'm currently dogless but will continue carrying water.

Food-wise, it's too hot half the year to keep any in the car but during winter I'll have some breakfast bars in there -- which I will eat and replace as needed. I do a lot of winter hiking and biking so like having a quick snack handy.

If I were going on a long roadtrip I'd have more.


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