By Lena | Leave A Comment
- I’ve rid my house of plastic shopping bags
- Traded in my SUV for a car that gets double the gas mileage
- Take reusable bags everywhere I go
- Replaced our washer and dryer with energy star ones
But the big green no-no I am having a hard time with is giving up my plastic water bottles.
I mean, look at the new Eco-shaped design that fits oh so nicely in your hand (and in my car cup holder). Who wouldn’t love it?
For me it is not about the water inside the bottle, it is about the bottle itself. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I haven’t tried. I have. I have tried many different kinds of reusable water bottles but I haven’t found one that I like nearly as much as my Eco-Friendly designed disposable one.
I will let you in on my other No-No secret; we wash and reuse the plastic disposable bottles. I know we shouldn’t but we do. We fill them with filtered tap water and put them in the refrigerator so whenever we leave the house we just grab and go.
Does it make it a shade of light green if I tell you that when we are home we drink filtered tap water out of a glass? How about if I tell you that we recycle the plastic bottles? (I didn’t think so but it was worth a try)!
Now that I have put my big green no-no in writing I feel I have to try again with my search for the perfect Reusable Water Bottle. Wish me luck!
If you have a favorite reusable water bottle tell me about it. I would love to try one that I know others use and like. You can find Lena trying to live a greener life at OverCoffee.
ABOUT Lena
Lena is a wife and working mother of 2 beautiful but very busy children. She blogs about the joys an{read more}
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What is wrong with washing an refilling the bottles with filtered tap water? I do that all the time. I though that was a good thing.
I suggest looking into a “Sigg” water bottle. We bought my husband a 1 liter bottle for school and he uses it all the time. It has a small mouth, but we randomly found ice cube trays that make thin ice cubes at bed bath & beyond. So he still has cold drinks on the fly.
Thanks for the great question Lisa. Multiple sources say that putting non-reusable containers like water bottles in the dishwasher, especially under heat, may cause them to break down and leach harmful chemicals. This is why they say not to wash them in a dishwasher. Leaching of chemicals can also occur when the water bottles are left in the sun, especially in hot cars. Rinsing the bottles out solves the leaching problem but then you face the germ/bacterial build up problem. Maybe we can think of it as making our immune systems stronger.
Thanks for the suggestion Reagan! I will look into a Sigg bottle.
I don’t buy water bottles myself but my children and grandchildren do and you are right. Where to find the perfect bottle?
I prefer the CamelBak BPA free water bottle with a flip top lid and a straw inside (REI has them and so does Dick’s sproting goods. Make sure there is a sticker on the bottle that says BPA free.) Mainly because I’m lazy and hate tipping a bottle up to drink and really like drinking with a straw. My husband tried a Sigg bottle and didn’t like the way the mouth piece was rough. He then bought a Clean Kanteen and absolutely adores it. The opening has a smooth rounded edge and he never leaves home without it!
Thanks for the suggestions. I will try them out and let you know which ones I like.
I had this same problem with water bottles, until I connected my youngest child’s constant battle with strep, to it. Unfortunately, last summer, my son had the same problem with a regular re-usable/refillable bottle, at camp. Bleach rinsing helped him, but I’m worried about what that and dishwasher use of the water bottles will do to those bottles.. *sigh* I feel like I can’t win! (I’m from Cali and so miss Arrowhead water, too.)