Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water?

Posted by: 4evrplan

Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/06/17 04:58 PM

I've seen the advice to use a water bottle as a hot water bottle many times, but the one time I tried it, the bottle melted. Is this only for dedicated use bottles like Nalgene and Platypus? Or, does anyone know any drink/water brands with bottles made of a plastic that can handle it?
Posted by: Glenn Roberts

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/06/17 05:50 PM

I've used a Nalgene hard-side bottle to do this. I've never used the flexible Nalgene Cantene or any of the Platypus products for hot water, so I can't comment. I've never used the MSR Dromlite for this, either, but it's for use with a shower kit, so it will hold warm water, at least.
Posted by: BZH

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/09/17 02:21 PM

I've only done it with hard sided Nalgene, but I poured boiling water into ziplock freezer bags. They did fine with it so I am surprised any water bottle would melt.... The bottle actually melted? and sprung a leak? or did it just deform a bit?
Posted by: 4evrplan

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/10/17 01:37 PM

It deformed to the point that the cap loosened and leaked. But, I think water/soda/Gatorade bottles are usually made with PETE or LDPE. If I could find a brand that used polypropylene, that would probably work well.
Posted by: wgiles

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/10/17 07:12 PM

As far as I know, all of the Gatorade, soft drink and water bottles are Polyester (PET). I think that most caps are Polypropylene. Nalgene makes LDPE water bottles and probably makes Polypropylene laboratory bottles, but I don't know if they make high temperature water bottles. The REI Nalgene bottle is made from "Eastman Tritan Copolyester" And is claimed to be Dishwasher "top shelf only" safe. The Vapur Element collapsible water bottle is laminated and claims to be dishwasher and freezer safe. I'm not certain that any of these will be satisfactory with near boiling water.
Posted by: balzaccom

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/10/17 08:18 PM

Sorry to mention this, but don't the new aluminum "bottles" for beer and sodas work for this?
Posted by: 4evrplan

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/12/17 12:57 AM

My only concern with the aluminum bottles is I don't know what kind of plastic they're lined with. I doubt they're meant to get hot.
Posted by: OhioPaddler

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/13/17 01:03 PM

According to good old Wikipedia, the melting point of PET is 250*C (482*F). I can see the really cheap, flexible plastic water bottles deforming enough to leak if you put boiling water in them though. Some of them leak anyways once you open them. Some of the heaviest plastic bottles I've seen are the Smartwater bottles. I doubt that they would deform enough to leak. Might be time for an experiment smile The Smartwater bottles can also be found with a flip top which can also be used to back flush Sawyer water filters (if you use a Sawyer and like multi-use equipment).
Posted by: wandering_daisy

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/13/17 09:09 PM

You do not necessarily use boiling water. At the altitudes I hike, "boiling" is much less than at sea level. Boiling water would be too hot and burn you. I would think for a hot water bottle hot but not boiling would suffice.

The risk of leakage is something that keeps me from using ANY hot water bottle in my down sleeping bag. Even with a proper hot water bottle there always is operator error. I am not above making a big mistake.

My dog is a much better solution. She is my favorite foot warmer.
Posted by: OregonMouse

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/13/17 09:20 PM

Back in the days of my youth when campfires were routinely used for cooking and warmth (1940s-1950s), a hot rock inserted in the sleeping bag was a great foot warmer. This method had its problems, though, particularly if there turned out to be moisture inside the rock while it was being heated in the fire, revealing the explosive potential of steam. That could get rather exciting!

Like W_D, I won't put a water bottle in my sleeping bag. Now that I no longer have a dog, I've discovered down booties. Chemical warmers work, too, and stay warm much longer than the hot water bottle or rock. Finally, wearing a warm hat can be a surprising cure for cold feet, as I once again realized just last night (we had record low temps in the Portland area last night, and my feet got chilled before I went to bed). "When your feet are cold, put on a hat" really does work!
Posted by: 4evrplan

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/15/17 12:35 AM

I'm really intrigued by this hot rock idea. I'd like to try that sometime maybe. I've only been to campfire friendly areas when I did my backpacking, and if my son is with me, he insists on having a fire. He's definitely my little firebug. Obviously we'd try this with great care.

Having said that, I do carry hand warmers, but if I ever go for a longer trip, it'd be nice to have something lighter than a warmer per night (like found water and a little fuel).

I'm also intrigued by those aluminum beer bottles. I may have to play around with some just for fun.
Posted by: balzaccom

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/17/17 01:28 PM

I'm at a conference with a couple of QC guys from Coors. They say their aluminum bottles are very stable and dependable, and should work for this.

Nice guys. Very serious about materials and QA...
Posted by: 4evrplan

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/17/17 02:34 PM

Awesome! Are you saying they're still safe to drink from after they've had boiling water in them?

P.S. Or had water boiled in them directly over a stove? That's probably pushing it.
Posted by: balzaccom

Re: Any Drink Bottles that Will Handle Hot Water? - 01/18/17 12:31 AM

They said that if I made tea with boiling water and poured it in the bottle it would be good safe, stable, and wouldn't leak. I didn't ask about using it as a pot over an open flame.

The bottle is free. All you have to do is drink the beer to find out!