Papa Tom

I just bought two of these for my weekend trip after reading a bunch of glowing reviews. The REI salesperson told me I could expect to have cold water several hours into my 50-mile ride, which seemed ridiculous because I knew I'd already be on to my second or third refill by then. I decided to give them a shot anyway.

The bottom line? I'm not too impressed with the performance of these things at all. Essentially, they didn't seem to keep the water any colder than any five dollar bottle I've ever owned.

Has anybody else used these?

DTSCDS

They seem to be a good idea in theory. I too am not convinced they keep liquids cold much better than plain bottles. I think they may sweat less than a plain bottle.
The other problem I have with them is they don't seem to fit my favorite lids (the Camlebak lid with the twist opening). If I press too hard at just the right angle I get some leakage down my arm and onto my shirt. But it's worth it to use the better lid.

robow

I have "tested" my Polar bottles vs a regular bottle several times and found that the Polar bottles will keep your fluids colder a touch longer but only by a few minutes on a warm day.

Papa Tom

Hmmm. REI says they will take them back if I am not happy. Can anybody suggest an alternative that isn't $25 a bottle and isn't a magnet for thieves?

Bacciagalupe

I've had slightly better results. The key is to load up the insulated bottle with ice. You can either use lots of cubes, or you can fill it up 1/3 or 1/2 and stick it in the freezer overnight.

That said, hydration packs work significantly better than insulated bottles.

bradtx

PT, I had them years ago. I gave them away to the kids, who thought they were great.

Brad

Rob_E

Are bottles a magnet for thieves? I suspect if you want a magic bottle, you're going to pay for it. The cheap solution is to get used to drinking warm water. Not as refreshing, but just as hydrating. When I'm thirsty enough, the water temperature becomes less important, but still, a cold drink on a hot day can be extra refreshing if you can manage it.

I have a stainless steel, double-wall Camelback bottle. I don't know if you can find it in your price range, but if you can, it might fit the bill. After the first day of riding with it, my wife asked how it performed. I said I really didn't know, because I had kept it as a backup bottle and hadn't actually used it after filling it with ice and water before setting out. I then pulled the bottle out of the bottle cage and heard the ice clink inside. This was hours later, and maybe even the next morning. I was amazed. I never worry about it getting stolen, but then if I was concerned, I'd just take the bottle with me, which I often do anyway.

Things to keep in mind:
There's a plastic version. Cheaper, but not as good.
It does great at insulating, but it's not going to cool water you put in unless there's still ice in it.
Because it's double walled, it doesn't hold as much. Less so if you fill it with ice to cool down your next refill. Probably my biggest problem is that sometimes I put too much ice in it and not enough water. The ice doesn't melt fast enough, and I end up draining the bottle and only having ice left.
The second biggest problem is the number of times I've tried to track down the errant ping that my bike is making only to eventually figure out that it's the sound of ice cubes hitting the steel wall of the bottle. On a blazing hot day, my mind just doesn't go to "ice cubes" as a potential source of the noises I hear.

eja_ bottecchia

Crap product. I also gave mine away.

sknhgy 

On a recent week-long tour I came to rely on my 16 oz. SS thermos. It doesn't hold as much as a waterbottle but if I filled it with coffee at a gas station the night before I had hot coffee the next morning. During the day I would fill it with cold drinks. I brought it along as an afterthought and was very glad I did.

Yumadons

Polar bottles no good. Our tried-and-true Arizona bottles are stainless steel. My husband's is a Trek & was ~$25. Mine is a Starbucks found for free flying downhill into Dillon, MT. They're both too heavy to lift up to drink in the normal way, but work great with straws since they have little openings to drink coffee through. Did I mention they work for coffee too?

DwarvenChef

In central CA it gets hot for long periods of time. Cooling at night to 90f at night on bad days Anyway we have these bottles for our rides and a full load of ice water lasts a few hours. Regular bottles are hot after 20 minutes. So for me they are worth it to have at least non-HOT water afte the first bottle is empty, when I get to the third bottle it's still not hot but not cold anymore. We have the larger sized bottles.

choclabman

I do like Bacciagalupe and freeze one of the polar bottles and fill the other up with ice and 50/50 mixture gatorade and water. By the time I use the first bottle the second one has begun to melt and I have cold water for all of my ride and some left over when I finish.

staehpj1

Any cheap bottle. House brands from Nashbar, Performance, or REI are fine. Fill with ice from convenience store or minimart beverage station (ask first).

staehpj1

Works great around home, but... Freezing a bottle is typically not an option that often when on tour.

VT_Speed_TR

I have "tested" the Polar bottles vs a standard bottle, and I found that indeed the Polar bottle keeps the liquid cooler longer. Not a huge difference, but enough to be noticeable. I've switched to the Camelback insulated water bottles because I like their mouth piece better. They have about the same performance as the Polar, which again is better then a standard bottle.

That said, neither works as well a stainless steel insulated water bottle. I have a couple of HydroFlask SS water bottles and those things keep my beverage ice cold for hours and hours. I use them for my lemonade or Gatorade mixes, since I don't like putting those in a plastic bottle. My standard kit in the summer is 2 insulated plastic water bottles and a HydroFlask filled with something tasty.

Burton

Insulated water bottles trade major volume for a very very modest gain in thermal effeciency. Personally I've found a far more effective approach is to freeze the bottles and contents solid overnight. Guaranteed four hours later they're still cold. I use two of those for backup, fill two others with water and crushed ice for immediate use and I'm good for most rides. Foe longer rides a Camelback in the freezer takes even linger to unthaw, and is cool but not cold on the back.

I've also found McDonalds and Tim Hortons to be great places to get refills of crushed ice. Their blueberry muffins are pretty good too.

Barrettscv 

This reflects my experiences. If I load a warm bottle with ice a refrigerated water, it will stay cold for one to two hours while riding. If I partially fill the bottle and freeze it overnight, it will stay cold for three hours. I rest the bottle on its side in the freezer, this makes it possible to still squeeze it when starting a ride.

eja_ bottecchia

I will try this.

DCwom

Polar bottles work well in the spring & fall, but in the summer its a challenge. Besides freezing a partial filled bottle on its side we also fill the bottles with ice cold water before we leave, there's no sense warming up your ice with warm water, it only hastens the melt. Another strategy is to drink one bottle at a time (4 on our tandem) this usually leaves just ice in one or two bottles and ice without water lasts along time (air is a great insulator, then add water to the ice from the other bottles. Also use the coldest ice/freezer you have, warm ice doesn't last as long.

jamawani 

"Real" Polar Bottles -

You want cold water anytime in your trip?
Provided you are not riding in Louisiana with 100% humidity -
Keep a wet sock around your water bottle.
Especially in the West, the western Southern Tier, etc. it works great.

It's the principle of evaporative cooling -
as long as the sock stays wet, the water stays cool.
And you get a full water bottle - not 6 oz. or whatever.

jamawani 

PS - I'm surprised no one has mentioned the wet sock yet.
Prior to refrigeration - i.e. for most of human history -
It was the only way to cool water.
That's why Depression photos of old Model Ts
often show a canvas canteen strapped to the front.
Also, old boy scout canvas canteens.

Technology is a great thing -
but for cyclists, the traditional method works best.
Of course, 99% of people can just fill a cooler with ice -
But we can't.

djb

now there you go, thinking outside the box. Ive used the "wet towel" trick for stuff in a car,but I never thought of the idea for a bike water bottle--thanks, great tip.

himespau 

I like the loop on the mouth of the Polar bottles, but I like the flexibility and valve of the Camelbak Podium Big Chill so much better that I almost never use my Polar bottles anymore. Have been thinking about trying SS at some point.

rm -rf

Camelbak Ice bottles have more insulation than the Big Chill bottle. But it appears they are no longer available.

I like mine. If I fill it with ice cubes, and top off with water, I'll have a little ice left after 45 minutes when it's 90 outside.
But they only hold 21 ounces.

I got a 16 ounce Aladdin vacuum insulated bottle from Target. I don't use it on a bike, though, it's too small. And the ice cubes clank against the stainless steel liner.

With about 6 ice cubes, it still has ice left when wrapped in a towel and left in the hot car on a 90 degree day for more than 3 hours. Or coffee stays really hot for hours. it won't leak when laid on it side.

Ridefreemc

Does anyone know if this one will fit in a bottle cage?

https://www.rei.com/product/830406/ca...ottle-20-fl-oz