Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Praxis: Making your own metal water bottle tote/canteen cover.

Long time readers will recall my post of last year on po' boy militia logistics and stainless steel water bottles.
As Wikipedia reports the good and bad of uninsulated metal as a canteen:
Metal water bottles are growing in popularity. Made primarily from stainless steel or aluminum they are very durable and retain minimal odor or taste from contents. Aluminum bottles contain a plastic resin or epoxy liner to protect contents from taste and odor transfer. Although most liners are now BPA free, older and less expensive models can contain BPA. It is not recommended to fill aluminum bottles with acidic liquids (e.g. orange juice) as this could cause aluminum to leach into the contents of the bottle. Stainless steel bottles do not contain a liner but have been known to transfer a metallic taste and odor to contents. Bottles made with food grade (Type 304 or 18/8) stainless steel do not transfer taste or odor. Depending on the type of source material and manufacturing process behind your stainless steel bottle, trace amounts of minerals can leach into contents. Metal water bottles can be heavier than their plastic counterparts and readily transfer temperature of contents to external surfaces which makes them unsuitable for use with very hot or very cold liquids.
The last sentence is a real downer, but it can be remedied by making your own insulated cover with general instructions found here:
Easy to Make Insulated Water Bottle Tote
Such totes (as in the one pictured above) can be purchased, but they are generally more expensive than the bottle itself, especially when you pay $.39 each for them at the thrift store like I do.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

You could also recycle Coors Light Aluminium pint containers for use as a water container. Other than the obnoxious lable they should work pretty well. And when the cap wears out, then just buy another 12 pack and enjoy the contents getting ready to reuse the container for a water bottle. No, I don't drink Coors Light, it Four Peaks Kiltlifter for me.

Anonymous said...

Double walled metal bottles keep it warm or cold.

http://www.hydroflask.com/categories/shop

Kerry Cowman said...

I love the frugality, but I read that some people find the Klean Kanteens impart a nasty metallic taste to the water.

Best Regards,

Richard

Chuck said...

The upside is that you can boil water right in the bottle (remove the lid and lanyard) so a nesting sierra cup and stainless bottle is a great combo.