Choosing a reusable bottle that will last
If you already have a suitable bottle at home that’s the best one to use. If you don’t then it might be useful to consider what you want the bottle for. Will it need to be extra sturdy or is it more important for it to be lightweight? There is a wide choice os stainless steel and aluminium bottles available, mostly with a plastic lid or a small amount of plastic in or around the lid. There is also a good selection of lightweight bottles made from BPA plastic. Stainless steel can be very sturdy, but is often heavier than plastic. Plastic tends to have a smaller carbon footprint than metal and some plastic is pretty tough.
You might want to check that your bottle will be sturdy and leakproof, perhaps also that it’s easy to open or maybe that it has a strap for carrying or fits in your favourite bag or pocket. If you make the right choice first time you won’t need to dispose of this bottle for a very long time, which will be great for the planet and good for your purse, too.
Greener Godalming members have been pleased with the following reusable water bottles:
Clean Kanteen make stylish, quality bottles from food grade stainless steel.
Super Sparrow offer both food grade stainless steel bottles and lighter weight BPA free plastic water bottles, which are both stylish, leakproof and easy to use with one hand. Great for when you need to carry your bottle on a longer walk or hike.
Sigg is another brand of quality water bottle recommended by Greener Godalming members.
Chilly’s Bottles are food grade, quality, stainless steel bottles for those wanting a bit more pazazz as well as reusability.
Some bottles that seem tough enough for use by children at school are:
Finding the right reusable cup for you
There is a wide range of reusable cups available and it’s easy to pick one up when you next go shopping, but it’s probably worth thinking carefully about what you want from a reusable cup. The cups I’ve seen in the local shops don’t tend to have a seal, which is something to consider if you’ll be carrying it around.
The Keep Cup is worth considering because it has a pretty good sealable lid, although it might be best not to turn it upside down. You can choose from a number of colour combinations so that every member of the family has an easy to recognise Keep Cup if they want one. If you don’t want to use plastic they do make a glass version, but the comments suggest they break fairly easily, so they probably aren’t suitable for every one.
The best collapsible cup I’ve come across is made by Pokito. It’s great for festivals and handy to have in your handbag or even in the car. Unlike some collapsible cups the middle section to protect you from excessive heat doesn’t come off when you collapse the cup. You can make it into 3 standard sizes and it has a lid which shuts.
Greener Godalming 