I’ve been using metal water bottles for years, and I have come to figure out what I love and what I don’t love about them. If you have yet to embrace the metal water bottle trend or haven’t found one that you like, you may find this post helpful.

The good

Klean Kanteen makes my favorite metal water bottle. Klean Kanteen bottles come in several sizes, including a 12-ounce size perfect for kids, a 64-ounce bottle and even a wine carafe. Once you choose a size that will suit your needs, you then need to choose the perfect cap or spout. After trying several options, I have decided that the perfect combination is the Klean Kanteen Wide with a Sport Cap. The wide mouth allows me to easily fill the bottle with ice, and I don’t have to take the top off in order to drink from the bottle. This works great for my children and I, but if they were younger I would use one of the Klean Kanteen Sippy Spouts.

The bad

My first foray into reusable metal water bottles was an aluminum SIGG bottle. I liked the lightweight of the bottle and was comforted by the BPA-free lining. Unfortunately, my comfort was quickly shattered with the revelation that the BPA-free lining did, in fact, contain BPA. Although it has been several years since this discovery and SIGG has officially removed the BPA in the lining, I have not had my confidence in the product restored. Looking beyond this issue, I also had problems filling the SIGG container with ice. The narrow opening did not allow me to freely fill the bottle with ice from my refrigerator’s automatic system; instead, I had to carefully place ice in one cube at a time. The bottle design may have changed since that time, however.

Recommendation

After trial and error over several years, I have decided that I am indeed a fan of stainless steel water bottles. They aren’t as heavy as they once were, and there are no concerns about BPA leaching from the lining. They are easy to clean and can take a beating, which is important with young kids. And when their time comes, they are easy to recycle.