I wash my Camelbak Chill Jacket bottles in the top rack of the dishwasher.
Other practices I follow:
– I only put water in them, not sports drink (Gatorade). I tried Gatorade for a brief period, but I didn’t like the extra post-ride cleaning required. Plus, the Gatorade can leak out of the bottles and onto the bike, which is an even bigger problem. Or the Gatorade can spray out while trying to drink from the valve. I use carb chews for calories instead, and water for hydration. Carb chews are less messy than gels, especially on the bike. If you drop a chew, it just goes onto the road or trail and becomes ant or squirrel food. If you spill a gel, it can drop onto and cover the bike frame or get into the chain or derailleur. Or onto the wheel rim. At the very least, that requires more cleaning. At worst, it could cause a safety issue if it locks up moving parts once the sugar dries.
(Joe Friel recommends splitting hydration and nutrition, instead of relying on sports drink for both, in longer races and rides, maybe past the 2-3 hour range. I learned why the hard way. A few years ago, I was doing a long triathlon on a very hilly course, near Ellicott City, MD. I burned through a lot of calories because of the near-constant climbing. But the air temperature was only in the upper 50s and low 60s, so I wasn’t that thirsty. I barely drank any Gatorade at all during the 56-mile bike. That was a mistake in terms of nutrition, because shortly after starting the half marathon run, I completely ran out of glycogen, i.e., I bonked completely. I loaded up on calories after walking to the next aid station, but I could never get back to race pace that day. On cool days, you may not drink enough sports drink to get enough calories, because you aren’t as thirsty. On hot days, you may drink a lot and end up taking in far too much sugar from the sports drink. With water, you can drink to thirst, no matter what the temperature is, and then eat carb chews on a pre-planned schedule, based on length of ride/race and intensity of the ride. Or no calories at all for shorter rides.)
– I always empty out the bottles right after the ride, or as soon as possible after a race. I never store them with liquid inside.
– I clean them after every use, or at least I put them in the dishwasher with the top removed. I don’t use them again until after I’ve run the dishwasher.
– Even after using the dishwasher, I notice that the bottles do not dry as well as drinking glasses do. So I take them out, shake out the excess water and put them back in the top rack to let them continue to air-dry. I do the same with the tops. After a while, I store the bottles horizontally, with the tops removed. Since I have a small stack of the Chill Jackets, I leave them on their sides without the tops, and place the tops in between the bottles, so that the underside of the tops are exposed to air. I think this lets any remaining drops of water fall down or evaporate.
I’ve been doing this for about 4 years now and haven’t noticed any strange taste with the bottles. I don’t really use the non-insulated bottles that I have. I keep them around or give them away to young relatives.
I also have an insulated stainless-steel Klean Kanteen bottle. It works far better than the plastic Chill Jacket bottles in keeping liquids cool (or hot). The one time I used it on a hot day, it kept cold liquids completely cold after 3 hrs. while the Chill Jacket water starts to get warm after 45-60 minutes, and completely warm by 90-120 min. on a hot day. But the KK bottles are heavier and I guess I’m worried about something scratching the exterior, like a screw in a bottle cage, so I don’t use it that much. Maybe I’ll try using them with hot liquid this winter. Another issue is that they don’t have a convenient drinking nozzle. They have a traditional sliding top, which isn’t user-friendly for drinking water while riding. You really need to stop to drink.
Klean Kanteen does sell a different top with a drinking valve. But it isn’t insulated, so the bottle won’t work as well. Maybe that’s the problem with the Chill Jackets. But changing to a closed top isn’t a good option when using the bottles for mid-ride water.
(Another idea which I should use but don’t, is to bring a Chill Jacket as the primary bottle and the Klean Kanteen as extra storage. I could use the Chill Jacket mid-ride. When that runs out, I can refill it from the Klean Kanteen. However, I rarely seem to run out of water these days. I don’t remember the last time I used more than one bottle on a ride, even for 3-4 hr. rides in the summer or winter. I posted about this on a thread, a few months ago. I guess I’m a camel or something.)
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