While I was trying out a Camelbak Podium bottle, I couldn’t resist also trying a CamelBak ChillJacket Podium bottle, which is the insulated version.

The ChillJacket bottle has all the features of the regular Podium bottle, but the insulation is supposed to keep drinks hot or cold for hours. It’s a lot like the popular Polar bottle, but with Camelbak’s new twists.

I used to use the Polar bottle, but that was many years ago, so my memory is kind of fuzzy on how well it worked. However, I do remember it broke eventually, and I didn’t bother buying any more Polar bottles after that.

But once another insulated bottle option is out, I’m happy to test it. So let’s get going…

To start with, this is virtually identical to the regular Podium bottle. The pros and cons are nearly identical.

To recap, I really like the ease of use of the Podium bottle, thanks to its JetValve. It’s like having a bite valve from a hydration pack on your water bottle. No need to pull the valve open with your teeth then hip slam it closed – you just squeeze the bottle and it squirts water into your mouth. The valve opens and closes automatically, which is very convenient.

The downfall is the fact that the valve takes more effort than usual to clean out. If you carry sports drinks in this bottle, you’re almost guaranteed to get some nice mold growing in the crevices! Then you have to pull the valve apart and clean it with Q-tips and toothpicks.

Another downfall is that, unless you are extremely careful, you’re going to spill some. While the bottle is leakproof if you don’t mess with it, it’s virtually impossible not to spill some fluid if you’re using the bottle while riding.

One difference is that the ChillJacket is a 21oz bottle while the regular Podium will hold 24oz. This is usually the case with any insulated bottle because insulation takes up space. So the slightly smaller 21oz capacity isn’t a big deal.

But the redeeming factor here is that the ChillJacket bottle might just keep our drinks colder for longer periods! I love cold water on a long, hot ride, so I’m excited about this bottle!

I like the squeezeability of this bottle as well. I remember the Polar bottle being way too stiff and hard to squeeze. However, Camelbak’s Chilljacket bottle is just as easy to squeeze as a standard water bottle. (It’s even softer than my regular Podium bottle… possibly because I used it more often and it’s now broken in? Hmm.)

Testing the Insulation

How does this bottle hold up in hot and cold weather? Let’s test it to see just how long this bottle will actually keep your beverage warm or cold, depending on the outside temperature.

In Cold Weather:

For this test, I took the regular Podium bottle and the ChillJacket bottle and filled them with warm green tea. I then placed them outside in 25 degree F weather. I sipped from each bottle about every 15 minutes (starting at 1:00 PM.)

The tea started out comfortably warm in both bottles. At the 15 minute mark, things remained the same.

At 30 minutes, I was able to notice that the tea in the ChillJacket was slightly warmer than in the regular Podium bottle.

At 45 minutes, there was a noticeable difference. The tea had become cool in the regular bottle, while in the ChillJacket, the tea was still warmer than room temperature.

After one hour, the bottles started to even up. The tea in the regular bottle was cool, and in the ChillJacket bottle, it was room temperature (no longer considered warm.)

After an hour and a half, the teas were both cooling off slightly, although the ChillJacket’s tea was still hovering around room temperature. Finally, at the two hour mark, the teas were both cool.

At three hours, both bottles had cooled off. The difference is that the regular bottle’s valve had frozen shut. I had to blow warm breath on it, and squeeze it really hard to break through the frozen part so I could get some liquid.

Now it’s been four hours! Both bottles contain cool, but not quite cold, liquid. The only real difference is the regular Podium bottle had the valve freeze shut completely. The ChillJacket bottle functioned much better, but the valve was starting to freeze a bit.

For keeping drinks warm, the ChillJacket definitely helped. However, the difference wasn’t as much as I expected.

Also, there is another issue in cold weather. It’s not that the water in the bottle will freeze fast, it’s that the valve itself will freeze shut. The valve can easily freeze shut in 15 minutes, even if the drink inside stays liquid for a couple hours.

This problem plagued even the ChillJacket bottle. Water droplets coat the soft part of the valve, freezing it shut. With enough pressure, you can usually break it free though. Unfortunately, the material becomes less flexible in the cold, so the valve will no longer seal properly. It is much less likely to close completely in cold weather.

I’ve actually had the valve freeze in the open position! If this happens, the trick is to squeeze the bottle a few times. Eventually the air pressure should result in the valve pulling closed again. But watch out because it might not lay back down fully sealed!

In Hot Weather:

For this test, I took the regular Podium bottle and the ChillJacket bottle and filled them with ice water. I then placed them outside in the sun, in 80 degree F weather. I sipped from each bottle every 15 minutes.

[True test results coming when I can find hot, sunny weather!]

What I can say in the meantime is I did find some benefits to the ChillJacket’s insulation on hot days. It definitely kept my drinks cooler for a little longer than a regular bottle.

I don’t have any hard numbers (and they’d vary so much based on heat, sun, humidity, etc.,) but if you’re riding in super hot weather, anything helps! So definitely look at the ChillJacket bottle.

My final verdict is…

Over the past six months, this bottle has been getting used more than any others in my collection. I use it almost every day, whether it’s in my car, in the gym, or out on the ski trails. I even take it on some road bike rides, but like I mentioned before, my Specialized bottles still get used most often on my bikes.

That said, I highly recommend you try this bottle. You might just like it for bike riding, and if not, you’ll still find many uses for it.

Official website: www.Camelbak.com

Buy online: www.REI.com

Back when I first wrote about BPA-free water bottles, I mentioned the new Camelbak bottles as one choice. Once I noticed how cool the CamelBak Podium bottle was, I had to get one. It’s like a regular water bottle but with a valve akin to the bite valves on Camelbak’s hydration packs.

The premise is that you can easily access the water in this bottle either by sucking on the valve or squeezing the bottle with your hand. With virtually every other water bottle, you bite and pull the top with your teeth, squeeze the bottle, and then slam it shut on your hip. So this Podium bottle should be much easier to deal with while riding.

In theory, it shouldn’t leak, since the valve automatically stays closed. (It really sucks to get sports drink dripping on your frame, and also your gloves, because then it ends up on your bar tape too.) You can also lock the valve closed using a simple twist-lock lever on the lid.

The one downside I see, much like with a hydration pack, is that it’s hard to clean inside the bite valve. If you use sports drinks, chances are there will be gunk built up in there, which will eventually turn to mold.

But enough with the theory… let’s see how this works in real life…

Buying: This bottle is about $9, which is a little steep compared to your typical $4 water bottle.

Filling: This was simple, like a regular water bottle. The opening is big enough for ice cubes, so there’s no problem here.

Carrying: It fits in a standard size water bottle cage and stays in place. It will also slide into a jersey pocket if you like.

Handling: My first thought with this bottle is that it will take some getting used to! For one thing, I kept wanting to pull the valve open with my teeth, but after a week or so I got past that.

What bothered me is grabbing it out of the bottle cage. You have to grab the top of the bottle so that you don’t end up squeezing the center (which would spray your drink straight onto your bike.) Then once you are holding the bottle, you have to slide your hand down to the center to squeeze it properly. (You could squeeze from the top, but it felt awkward to me.)

I almost dropped this bottle a few times at first, thanks to the odd feel. Also, it gets pretty slippery.

I much prefer grabbing a Specialized Big Mouth bottle, which has a textured grip at just the right spot. It also feels softer, which makes it feel right in my hand. The Podium bottle is rather stiff.

Drinking: This is where the bottle really shines. It really is super easy to drink from. You don’t even have to put it in your mouth at all, so that makes it easy on your teeth.

Just a good squeeze on the middle of the bottle sends a good stream of water into your mouth. You can also suck on the valve if you prefer.

Best part – I really like how I don’t have to slam the valve shut on my hip or chest after getting a drink.

Cleaning: As suspected, this bottle is a huge pain in the behind when it’s time for a cleaning!

If you use sports drinks in your bottles, you’ll end up with sugary residue trapped around the soft part of the valve. That means you need to use a toothpick and/or a Q-tip to get down in there and clean off any built-up sports drink or resultant mold.

See, I want bottles where I can use sports drinks since I hate putting anything sugary in my hydration pack (residue and mold in the tube and bite valve sucks!!) So putting a sort of bite valve on the Podium bottle doesn’t do me much good at all!

Finally, the million dollar question…

Is this bottle leak-proof?

In theory, yes. In reality, no. This is most definitely not a 100% leak-proof water bottle.

First of all, let’s say you’re mixing up a sports drink powder in the bottle. If you start shaking the bottle, the force inside will open the valve and send a stream of water onto your kitchen table, car seat, riding buddies, or wherever you’re standing. So if you are mixing up a drink, make sure the twist-close lever on the lid is turned to the locked position!

Second, when you’re grabbing the water bottle and pulling it out of the bottle cage, you have to grab it perfectly. If you put too much pressure in the wrong area, you’re going to squirt your drink straight onto your bike’s frame.

Third, after mountain biking with this bottle for a few hours, I checked my bike and found my down tube covered in stickiness. I’m not sure if that was from me handling the bottle or from the roughness of the trails shaking the valve open, letting a few drops escape each time.

Fourth, I noticed that most of the time, there are a few leftover drops of liquid sitting on top the valve once it closes. If I just have the bottle sitting on a table, these drops end up on my shirt the next time I go for a drink. If the bottle is on my bike, I bet the drops fly off onto my down tube.

Let’s face it – you’ll still get sports drink residue somewhere if that’s what you’re using. You could probably lessen that by always locking the lid, but if you’re racing, you’re not going to take the time to spin the lever to the locked position after each sip. And if you’re mountain biking, you probably won’t have time to perform such a maneuver while moving.

Sure, if your goal is to transport a full bottle of sports drink from point A to point B, without drinking it, this bottle would work perfect and not leak. But if you’re messing around with it, you’re bound to spill a few drops of sports drink somehow.

So…

What did I really like about this bottle?

While this bottle isn’t perfect, there are a few things I like about it. As mentioned, not having to slam the top shut on my hip is awesome.

Despite not liking the feel of the plastic, I like the taste of it. That is, even on the first use, there was no plastic taste. The water tasted nice and fresh each time.

One thing that made this really cool for mountain biking is not having to put my mouth on the valve. As you know, water bottles get dirty when mountain biking, and it sucks to get that built-up mud in your mouth each time you take a sip. With the Podium bottle, you keep the muddy valve at a distance and just squeeze out the fresh drink.

(Unfortunately, due to the openness of the valve, it can get filled with mud, which then means you’re squirting chunks of mud into your mouth with each burst of water!)

What I ended up doing with this bottle is using it primarily for other sports. It’s cool because I can carry the filled bottle in a backpack or duffel bag with the twist-lock lever locked shut, and it won’t leak at all (even if squeezed.) I actually ended up loving this bottle for things like weight lifting, squash, and other sports where I don’t have to carry the bottle around in a cage.

It’s also great for road trips in the car. I always have my Podium ChillJacket bottle right beside me.

My final verdict is…

While I give CamelBak an A+ in innovation, and I was really excited about this bottle, it didn’t impress me as much as expected. For me, it brought on more problems than it solved. It’s a cool bottle, but in the end, I’m happier with my tried-and-true Specialized Big Mouth bottles.

I do love the bottle for other sports use, so I got my money’s worth. I actually use them all the time. It’s just that for cycling it doesn’t seem any better than usual. And I don’t use sports drinks in them.

You might really like these Podium bottles though (as many others do,) so you should still check them out.

Official website: www.Camelbak.com

Buy online: www.REI.com

Hydration packs are extremely useful, especially for mountain bikers. You can drink conveniently without taking your hands off the bars, as well as carry a set of tools and accessories.

But once the ride is over, things get tougher. You have to remove the bladder and clean it thoroughly, and don’t forget the bite valve – that thing is tough to clean! (That’s what makes me opt for water bottles when they’re a feasible option.)

The good news is, once you know the drill, keeping your CamelBak’s bladder (or reservoir) clean and fresh isn’t all that difficult.

Part 1: How to Clean Your Hydration Pack

We’ll assume you have a grungy bladder at the moment, so let’s start by cleaning it!

Here are five different ways to clean it:

1. Hot water + baking soda

Fill the bladder with hot water and baking soda. Shake it up and let it sit overnight.

2. Camelbak cleaning kit

You could go all out and get Camelbak’s brush kit and cleaning tablets. It’s nice because everything comes in one package, but it isn’t the cheapest option.

3. Cold water + bleach

Try filling the bladder with cold water and 1 tsp bleach. Let that sit overnight. Just make sure you rinse thoroughly! (If I use bleach, I also clean it with the hot water + baking soda afterward to get rid of the chlorine taste.)

I don’t really like to use harsh substances like bleach, but sometimes you might have to.

4. Denture cleaning tablets

A cheaper alternative to Camelbak tablets is a box of denture cleaning tablets. (Just make sure they are flavorless, unless you want to drink mint-flavored water.)

5. Pipe cleaners and Q-tips

If your main problem is cleaning the tube, try some pipe cleaners! Q-tips also work inside the bite valve.

Part 2: Tips to Keep Your Hydration Pack Clean and Fresh

Now that the reservoir is clean, keep it that way! Here are five more tips that will keep things clean:

1. Only carry water

Without sugary sports drinks, it’s much less likely that mold will grow in the reservoir. I prefer to carry plain water or Nuun in my pack while carrying drinks like Accelerade and Perpetuem in bottles.

2. The freezer

Keep the reservoir in the freezer when not in use. The freezer provides an environment cold enough that mold can’t grow.

3. Concentrate on the bite valve

When cleaning, make sure you get the bleach or soapy water down through the hose and bite valve.

4. Air dry

Hang the reservoir to air dry after each cleaning to be sure it is totally dry.

5. Buy new

If you do carry sports drinks and get mold, it might be too late. The reservoir isn’t the worst problem – the tube and valves are. Ditch the bite valve, because the mold in there is nearly impossible to remove, no matter what detergents and brushes, toothpicks, Q-tips, etc. you try.

Just clean everything, get a new bite valve for $5, and regularly wash it all and store it in the freezer.

BPA (short for “bisphenol A”) is in the news once again, with more and more studies showing the possible side effects of BPA consumption, which happens when BPA leaches out of a plastic water bottle and into your drinking water.

I haven’t been too worried about BPA, but now that most water bottle makers have been pressured into producing new bottles, and Canada has placed a ban on plastic baby bottles that contain BPA (with the USA proposing something similar,) it might be time to switch to BPA-free bottles.

Typical on-bike water bottles aren’t affected, but the heavy-duty polycarbonate bottles from makers such as Nalgene are getting hit hard with negative publicity because they do contain traces of BPA.

To adapt, companies are reformulating their plastic water bottles to use BPA-free plastics. Nalgene plans to focus on these new bottles and filter out the existing bottles that contain BPA, and CamelBak has also launched a new line of BPA-free bottles.

With this being a “Water Bottle Wednesday” I think we should take a look at these new bottles!

First, the Nalgene Everyday Bottles. If you are a current Nalgene user, these bottles will look familiar – they are tough, translucent plastic bottles that look just like their polycarbonate cousins.

However, the Nalgene “Everyday” line is made of Eastman Tritan copolyester, so the bottles are completely BPA-free! It is still super tough and dishwasher safe, too, as copolyester is very similar to polycarbonate, except that it does not contain BPA.

The 22 oz bottle is said to be sleek and slender so it will even fit into bicycle bottle cages. That doesn’t mean it will be easy to drink from while riding, but at least they’re keeping cyclists in mind!

These bottles can be found at REI, in stores and online:

Nalgene Everyday OTG Tritan Bottle – 22 oz.

Nalgene Everyday Grip-N-Gulp Tritan Water Bottle – Kids 12 oz.

Next, the CamelBak Better Bottles. The “Better Bottle” lineup is CamelBak’s entrance into the BPA-free water bottle market, and it uses the same Eastman Tritan copolyester plastic as the new Nalgene bottles, so it should be just as tough.

What sets CamelBak apart is that they offer not only the classic cap, a typical screw-on cap, but also the neat bite-valve cap, which makes it like drinking from a CamelBak hydration pack.

These bottles can be found at REI, in stores and online:

CamelBak Tritan Better Bottle with Classic Cap – 32 oz.

CamelBak Tritan Better Bottle with Classic Cap – 25 oz.

CamelBak Tritan Better Bottle with Classic Cap – 16 oz.

Now check out the Better Bottle with a CamelBak bite valve style cap:

CamelBak Tritan Better Bottle – 32 oz.

CamelBak Tritan Better Bottle – 25 oz.

CamelBak Tritan Better Bottle – 16 oz.

Want to do some more shopping? Then check REI, because they offer a wide variety of bottles for hiking, bicycling, and everyday use, and they have separated all the BPA-free bottles into their own category!

More shopping links: www.REI.com or go direct to the REI BPA-Free Water Bottles Category