5 Reusable Water Bottles Better Than Recyclable Paper Bottles

even better than any of these bottles would be a cap similar to those that appear on the 'love bottle' that can be snapped onto an empty soda, beer or wine bottle.

why buy a whole new container when all we need is a way to take advantage of the existing containers around us?

along these lines, i'd like to see soft drink companies bring back the reusable glass bottle and beer companies take up the 'deposit' concept like in europe ('pfand' sp? in german)

Might I say that I love my Sigg water bottle. It didn't make your list, but after double checking there website I don't see why not. It is good in the health area and donates 1% of sales to environmental causes.

Why not drink tap water with a glass that you can wash. who needs bottled water period...

I'm in full support of the use of reusable bottles over disposable. However, I do question the wisdom of the following line...

"Using paper (preferably from sustainable sources and processed greenly) is better than using plastic, after all."

This is the same logic that has banned plastic bags while encouraging the use of paper. Reusable is better than plastic or paper. The production of paper products on the other hand is MUCH more energy and resource intensive than the production of a comparable plastic product.

The same logic applies to choosing say an aluminum or glass water bottle over a reusable polyethylene bottle, or a ceramic coffee mug over a compostable paper cup.

The energy demands simply cannot justify the decision. If we are serious about living green it is going to require a bit more analysis than simply "plastic is bad"

Going green is loosing credibility. Every time a bad thing happens in the press about water bottles or contaminates, Some idiot or company makes a product slaps a green tag on it and high jacks the price.

Green Living has become a business norm and sales pitch. Just like MLM green living and living products are over exposed all to often and loosing valuable credibility.

Most of us throw away or recycle lots of PET or polyethylene shampoo, conditioner and soap bottles which rinse-out easily into perfectly good water bottles and often have convenient quick-squirt tops. If you buy the larger size shampoos, the container-contents ratio improves producing less waste and fewer trips to the store and the larger sizes; 500ml or so, are just right for carrying water.

landon, I think you're missing something. You're focusing on just energy and not looking at the bigger picture.

You also have to look at what type of resources are used in manufacturing; how easy it is to be recycled; and what happens to that item in the environment when it's not recycled or otherwise disposed of properly.

When considering all its impacts, you're argument might work for the compostable vs. reusable coffee cup debate, but using plastic bags creates more issues beyond how much energy is used to produce them.

As an owner of the KOR bottle (swag from an IDSA conference), I can say that it is definitely not a better alternative to disposable bottles.

It is composed of multiple fused materials (including plastics, urethane, and metal), making its recycling next to impossible.

I commented to its designer that the bottle was too long to fit under most taps and to be effectively filled from a fountain. He said the bottle was designed to be filled from an office water cooler! D'oh!

Cup your hand and use your hands. No eco problems back in those days

having just returned from a developing country where plastic bottles are common along the side of the road in rural areas, I think this is actually pretty cool. Yes, the first priority should be to get clean drinking water to everyone so bottled water isn't needed, but that's not going to happen in the next 6 months, and this seems like a possible interim step.

Apparently someone didn't look too far for good reusable bottles.

Guyot Design makes a few different stainless steel waterbottles, most have the same top threading as nalgene, so you can transfer accessories. Best part is they are claiming the production is Carbon Negative.

here is a link

http://www.guyotdesigns.com/stainlessbottles?sc=11

The problem is that most bottle makers make stupid sized and shaped bottles. The bottled water comes in perfectly sized and shaped bottles. They fit in my cup holder, they fit in my purse, they aren't ridiculously large, too large to carry, etc.

I have a stainless steel bottle, and I bought the smaller size, but it's still too big. And the people who I buy my water filter from keep sending me these bottles free with every filter. They are tall, narrow, glass bottles. What possible use is such an easily knocked over breakable bottle? That's stupid.

I do buy the half pint bottles and reuse each one for about a week. I pour out any water I didn't drink and store dry and empty and never drink water that's been sitting in it for long. I do hope that is keeping me from consuming chemicals leached into the water. Because it's the perfect size to put in my purse while shopping or taking on my walk. I use the steel bottle in my car even though the stupid thing is too wide for my cup holder. And of course drink from a glass at home.

Bottle makers. You need to make bottles they same size as the water bottlers.

In my recent efforts to go green I picked up two stainless steel bottles (one for me, one for my gal) from a local outdoor store. They look similar to the Klean Kanteen bottle pictured above. But what sealed the deal for me was they came with a lifetime warranty. Also, instead of a plastic cap they have a stainless cap (with plastic loop). They're made by a company called Pura - http://www.purastainless.com.