BISCUT
Member
Thanks for the link Mike. I didn't realize there was a difference. Now I know better.
Freezing freaking water bottles
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Thanks for the link Mike. I didn't realize there was a difference. Now I know better.
John H Swanson
Active member
I used to do the whole Nalgene bottle, boiling water (or near boiling), zip koozie "method" with one on hip and one in pack.
This all changed when I got tired of carrying a winter pack weighing >25 lbs. I took a good hard look at my gear and concluded my water containers and insulators were too damn heavy. So I looked for a new method.
When UltraLite backpacking I use PET soda bottles but this does not work well in winter. In summer day hiking I use a collection of 20 ounce PET Gatorade bottles. I wanted to go to one of these methods to save weight and be able to carry about 1 1/2 to 2 L of water in winter
I dug out an old koozie from the 80s that is designed to hold a 1/2 liter bottle. It would've been great if it fit a 20 ounce Gatorade bottle but it was a little too small so I stuck with a 1/2 liter narrow neck nalgene. The idea it was to scale down the weight of my "hip" bottle but keep something that was still usable in cold weather.
Since it is only 1/2 liter it gets consumed fast enough to not freeze using room temp water. Just fill it the night before and let it sit on the counter. The narrow neck is easier to use (I can drink faster and not spill it on my shirt like with a 1 liter wide mouth Nalgene) and it surprisingly it does not freeze.
Now I take 1-3 20 oz Gatorade bottles and put the inside my pack wrapped in my puffy jacket. No insulators. This way I can optimize the amount of water I bring so many times one liter was not enough and 2 L was too much. The puffy jacket and being close to my back keeps these bottles warm enough to not freeze. If you use the method you need to be smart enough to make sure the caps are on well and the containers dried. Again room temperature water is usually okay but if I'm going out in subzero I will fill these bottles with about one half boiling water. Just start with RT water in the bottle first and top it off with boiling so you don't "blow out the gate"
In the field when my one half liter bottle on my hip becomes empty I will stop and literally pour the contents of a 20 ounce Gatorade bottle into the 1/2 L bottle and consume the small quantity that is left inside the Gatorade bottle put everything away and continue hiking.
It's a system that works very well for me. It saves me over 1/2 pound in pack weight. The morning ritual is easier. The drinking is easier. The hip weight is lighter. And I have greater flexibility in how much water I can bring. The down side of transferring water will be eliminated if I find or make a zip koozie that hold a 20 oz bottle.
This all changed when I got tired of carrying a winter pack weighing >25 lbs. I took a good hard look at my gear and concluded my water containers and insulators were too damn heavy. So I looked for a new method.
When UltraLite backpacking I use PET soda bottles but this does not work well in winter. In summer day hiking I use a collection of 20 ounce PET Gatorade bottles. I wanted to go to one of these methods to save weight and be able to carry about 1 1/2 to 2 L of water in winter
I dug out an old koozie from the 80s that is designed to hold a 1/2 liter bottle. It would've been great if it fit a 20 ounce Gatorade bottle but it was a little too small so I stuck with a 1/2 liter narrow neck nalgene. The idea it was to scale down the weight of my "hip" bottle but keep something that was still usable in cold weather.
Since it is only 1/2 liter it gets consumed fast enough to not freeze using room temp water. Just fill it the night before and let it sit on the counter. The narrow neck is easier to use (I can drink faster and not spill it on my shirt like with a 1 liter wide mouth Nalgene) and it surprisingly it does not freeze.
Now I take 1-3 20 oz Gatorade bottles and put the inside my pack wrapped in my puffy jacket. No insulators. This way I can optimize the amount of water I bring so many times one liter was not enough and 2 L was too much. The puffy jacket and being close to my back keeps these bottles warm enough to not freeze. If you use the method you need to be smart enough to make sure the caps are on well and the containers dried. Again room temperature water is usually okay but if I'm going out in subzero I will fill these bottles with about one half boiling water. Just start with RT water in the bottle first and top it off with boiling so you don't "blow out the gate"
In the field when my one half liter bottle on my hip becomes empty I will stop and literally pour the contents of a 20 ounce Gatorade bottle into the 1/2 L bottle and consume the small quantity that is left inside the Gatorade bottle put everything away and continue hiking.
It's a system that works very well for me. It saves me over 1/2 pound in pack weight. The morning ritual is easier. The drinking is easier. The hip weight is lighter. And I have greater flexibility in how much water I can bring. The down side of transferring water will be eliminated if I find or make a zip koozie that hold a 20 oz bottle.
Tom Rankin
Well-known member
All hail his Swanson-ness, king of the weight savers! 
