Hydro Flask bottles are one of the most popular items searched for and sold from on GearChase.com. It’s no wonder they are so popular, once you have tried one, it’s hard to use anything else. Hydro Flask is defiantly the premium brand for vacuum sealed hot and cold bottles. The quality in the constructions stands out when compared side by side. Additionally, the corner on the market for Hydro Flask bottles is unbelievable, if you have been to an outdoor store recently, you would have likely seen a display like the one above.
With Hydro Flask bottles and growlers costing anywhere from $30 to $65 we felt these bottles should be nothing but perfect. However, right off the bat with the first use of the 40 oz bottle we ran into issues. Read more about our experience below with their warranty and customer service.
The Hydro Flask bottles defiantly delivered on the claims of keeping hot beverages hot, and cold ones cold. I’m still amazed that I can put ice water in the bottle and come back the next day and there still be ice clanking around in there. Additionally, we recently took some hot chocolate to the ski resort. It was not boiling hot, but at the threshold of the temperature we like to drink. We spent all day on the mountain (6 hours) in 20 degree (Fahrenheit) weather and still came back to a little warmer than lukewarm cocoa. Another huge positive if you have been using the classic Nalgene(R) before is that you don’t get the condensation puddles everywhere you set your bottle down.
Hydro Flask has a few different types of bottles. The bottle pictured above is classified as a “growler” for beer storage. The lids on the Hydro Flask are great at keeping in carbonation, and preventing leaks. The lid on the growler is also insulated to prevent heat/cool transfer. This lid type works really well to hold in carbonation and is very leak-proof.
Another type of bottle is the coffee mug. With a classic flip top and vacuum insulation we found the 20 oz bottle to be just the right size. However, they also make them in 12 and 16 oz that use the same flip top lid. It has a 2.9 inch diameter which fits well in just about any cup holder.
The 32 oz growler and 40 oz flask have a diameter of 3.5 inch which fits in some car and truck cup holders but not great. It’s almost exactly the same diameter as a Nalgene(R) bottle for good reference. The 32 oz growler is about an inch taller than a Nalgene(R) bottle to be able to get the same volume with the same diameter.
The part on the Hydro Flask bottles we noticed first was the quality build around the mouth of the bottle as well as the welding of the rim. They seems very high quality and felt good against the lip when drinking directly from the bottle. We also fell in love with the 18/8 stainless steel leaving water tasting great. There is really no taste transfer from stainless steel in our opinion. Also, the stainless steel is easy to clean and naturally prevents bacteria spread, and we think it just looks cool too.
Our biggest complaint with the Hydro Flask bottle and straw was that the straw sucked in a lot of air with the water. After some tearing apart of the straw and the lid we were still not able to get water out of the straw without air. This would be a great chance for us to try out Hydro Flask lifetime warranty.
We went to the warranty page of their website and filled out the form explaining the issue in a pretty generic warranty claim form. After we submitted the form we got a confirmation email that they had received our request. We never received a reply from Hydro Flask, but a day later we had a tracking number for a new lid on the way. And the new lid we received didn’t have any issues sucking in air with the water. We expected things to take a bit longer with the holiday season, but that was fast turnaround.
The bottles obviously weigh more than single walled or plastic bottles. For example the 40 oz bottle with the straw lid empty weighs 472 grams, just about a pound. Not what you would be taking with you ultra-light backpacking, but great for running errands, to the gym, or on the desk at work.
The growlers weigh a bit more because of the wide heavy duty lid, collar and hook. For us the weight was never an issue, and we prefer the heavy duty feeling of the growler to a lighter weigh thermos.
Just in case you were wondering the weight of the 20 oz bottle with the flip top, it’s 317 grams.
Conclusion
Hydro Flask is most defiantly a premium priced thermos or vacuum sealed bottle however you want to look at it. The claims are real, it keeps cold drinks cold for up to 24 hours, it will loose heat, and ice will melt, but if you fill it full of ice and water, it will last 24 hours in average temperatures. Also, hot drinks also stay warm, obviously the hotter the starting point, the longer it stays warm. We typically start with as hot as we can stand. It will maintain that temperature for an hour or so, but after 4 or 5 hours the temperature has decreased but it is still warm, even staying lukewarm for 6 to 7 hours. Again, this all depends on how hot/cold you start with and the outside temperature.
The colors of the Hydro Flask bottles are just pretty to look at, every time we see a display of the bottles the colors they offer them in just seem to reach out to us saying “buy me” we know this is personal opinion, but for us it was something worth pointing out.
The construction quality is very good, with the 18/8 stainless steel, you can feel a very little flex in the bottle when squeezing very hard, but not a concern of denting unless dropped. The powder coating on the outside of the bottles is also very durable. We never damaged the bottle during everyday use, but I could imaging dragging the bottle on rocks or dropping it on cement would likely scratch through the coating. The coating also gives the bottle a nice feel in hand, and prevents the slippy feeling of other metal bottles.
We would recommend Hydro Flask bottles for someone looking for a really high quality bottle.
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