I put them in the dishwasher, but not daily. I may run a little soapy water on them in between dishwasher cycles.

My new solution is to have a low basket with all the water bottles in them. That way I can store them without the lids, so if they aren't 100% dry when I put them away OH WELL. My other solution is to get rid of any that aren't favorites and toss them as soon as they leak.

Anonymous wrote:Total first world problem I know but I swear the water bottle situation in my house is driving me crazy. The kids need them for school, for sports, who has the “good” one? this one leaks, no it doesn’t, where is the lid to this one? there are six water bottles sitting on my counter in various stages of fullness/coldness. And several more that haven’t made their way out of a school or sports bag. And don’t get me started about cleaning them. Am I using soap? Is there soapy residue? If I don’t, is that gross? Not putting them in the d/w so they’re always drying upside down next to the sink. I don’t know why but I saw my one kid grab one to have water with a snack and it drove me crazy! Use a glass! Then in the morning the ice chips on the floor as they fill them make my socks wet. Plus I don’t have anywhere great to store them. And now there are two of the huge huge ones in the mix.

Ok rant over. Thank you.

Can I add to this rant that for some stupid reason my DH sharpied each kid's first name on various bottles (that are otherwise exactly the same), so now my kids won't use/carry the one with his brother's name on it, even if that is the only one that is clean and ready to go. I've always marked things that can be used by both kids with our last name to avoid this problem. Ok, fine, I get that this didn't occur to you the first time, DH, but why did you keep doing it even AFTER I explained the problem and asked you to just use the last name or don't write anything on the bottle.

Removable reusable straws you have to wash and render the bottle useless without


WWWWWHHHHHYYYYYYY!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So I have a question about SPORTS BOTTLES. It has the spout on top you suck/squirt from. You toss it into a bag or wherever; isn’t that spout getting super dirty touching random bag contents or the floor or what not? They seem to require a “this end up” type handling.

We use flip-top water bottles so no worrying about the mouth piece getting touched by dirty fingers or touching stuff inside the sports bag. Push the button to flick open the top cover and there's the mouth piece. No leaking problems either.

Oh flip top makes sense, I mean the kind that are pull out and you suck the bare bottle bits

I'm always looking for ways to streamline things like this and decrease any stress associated with an activity. I only have two kids (boys, ages 9 and 13). I have one that breaks or loses water bottles several times a year, so I bought extras. I got the exact same kind for each kid, just different colors. Dishwasher safe is a must for water bottles. Nothing extra like a straw or flip spout that could make cleaning it harder. When the kids come home they must empty their lunchboxes and water bottles into the sink. If I packed a thermos or similar, that has to be filled with soap/water and either put in the sink or on the counter near the sink. Short of needing to go to the bathroom or wash their hands, nothing else gets done before they empty their lunchboxes. My kids know that this needs to be done and it will not be left for me/DH or they will not get a packed lunch the next day and/or a water bottle. I try to get them to finish any water left in the bottle, but if not I water our plants.

Anonymous wrote:So I have a question about SPORTS BOTTLES. It has the spout on top you suck/squirt from. You toss it into a bag or wherever; isn’t that spout getting super dirty touching random bag contents or the floor or what not? They seem to require a “this end up” type handling.

We use flip-top water bottles so no worrying about the mouth piece getting touched by dirty fingers or touching stuff inside the sports bag. Push the button to flick open the top cover and there's the mouth piece. No leaking problems either.

Anonymous wrote:I run them through the dishwasher but then they have to DRY after the cycle on a kitchen towel.

Get metal ones? Ours are metal and they're totally dry by the time they come out. They also keep the water cold for two days.

We bought eight of the same, four for each kid, and they are labeled with their names. The tops are interchangeable because they're the same brand and size. They live next to where the cups live but on their own shelf. We wash them in the dishwasher because they're not plastic and then they are put back with their lids attached. Because they're all the same, minus the colors - each kid got to pick theirs - no one ever complains about getting one they don't like. And when one kid needs a second one after school for a sport, we know which one is theirs. Having four per kid means there is always a clean one. My husband and I have the same kind but in a larger size, so there's never any confusion there. The ice I can't help you with except to suggest getting a lab? We have two and they love ice cubes so they will quickly pick them up when they hit the floor.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I use denture tablets to lean mine.

My DH does this to. I hate it. I don't know why but I hate it.

Just the thought makes me gag.

Darn it. I bought those pricey bottle cleaning tablets when I could have bought dollar store denture cleaner. Thanks for the tip!

So I have a question about SPORTS BOTTLES. It has the spout on top you suck/squirt from. You toss it into a bag or wherever; isn’t that spout getting super dirty touching random bag contents or the floor or what not? They seem to require a “this end up” type handling.

Weren’t any of you kids in the 90s? Nalgene bottles never leak, they are amazing. Our kids have carabiners on all their bags and clip the bottles to them half the time. Wide mouth pretty easy to clean.

The old school polypropylene is super safe but is opaque and not everyone’s jam, but the new polyester BPA free has been around for a long time and is clear.

I would love a steel bottle, but you still need a plastic lid and that material interface is way more likely to leak.

Yes ! Hate them for All the reasons mentioned.

I buy the Planetbox metal ones since the lid is attached and can’t be lost and there are no parts to clean. I put in dishwasher. Also have a few Nalgene ones that are middle range width, again no parts except lid. Even they are still large, annoying, take up a ton of space, dishwasher doesn’t dry the inside well so they are sitting on the counter most a lot, oh...and don’t you dare take out a clean one to get a sip of water at home. Use a glass! I’m always saying this too.

They got free water bottles from the library and a relative sent them home with some too- all of these immediately went to donation bin. Not collecting more and certainly not ones with straws, valves, or such I have to disassemble

Anonymous wrote:I hate water bottles. Hate them. Our PTA manages the lost and found at school. There are probably 50 unlabeled water bottles there every month, no kid every claims them once the bottle is within 10 feet of Lost & Found, and they’re always abandoned full and filthy.

We have to open them and empty them out to throw them away, and god forbid a parent see us doing it because then they insist we should wash them and give them to goodwill or take them fully apart and separate the recyclable pieces. As if washing my own household’s water bottles wasn’t annoying enough.

And there are the kids who have the nerve to lose water bottles that their parents filled with MILK.

Omg. This is funny. Not for you, because he’s this would be so irritating!

Also really love Takeya bottles. They don't leak or sweat and no gross nooks that are hard to clean. Also like the interchangeable tops for different sizes.

Anonymous wrote:I have to admit that I love the cheap Gatorade ones you get at Dicks. They are probably made of bad plastic but I love that they don’t have a lot of parts to clean. And, personally, they make it much easier to drink out of when working o

I get these too, in a 6 pack from Amazon. I write our family’s surname in big letters in Sharpie down the side. It has really reduced water bottle hassle.