Carrying a water bottle saves more than money

Over at Get Rich Slowly and Lifehacker, portable water bottles are sparking conversation. Here’s the video that started it all:

So far the focus of the conversation has been on saving money. According to GRS:

If you spent just five bucks a week on water and soda, you’d save $250 a year by using a water bottle instead.

Hmmm. I don’t know that money comes into it all that much–at least for me personally. If you can afford to spend $5 a pop on a bottle of water in the first place, you’re probably not ecstatic about a paltry $250 at the end of the year.

Having said that, I do carry a water bottle nearly everywhere I go, and I probably always will. Two main reasons:

1) Getting sick sucks.

Much of the traveling I do is in the Indian subcontinent, a part of the world not famed for the purity of its water. While waiters may cheerfully assure you that they only serve filtered water, their definition of filtration and yours may differ so greatly that you find yourself crouched over a toilet bowl praying for a quick death.

Obviously, when I’m in Australia or the USA, I don’t need to worry about the potability of public water. But it’s a convenient habit to get into, and no harm can come of it. Although, according to one commenter at Lifehacker:

this is great if you are a cheap bastard. I think people who carry around water bottles everywhere they go look like idiots.

(Ah, the internet…freedom to hate on anything.)

2) Today’s single-use plastic bottles=tomorrow’s garbage.

Nepal and India have a huge problem with trash disposal. Every time you buy water in a plastic bottle, you add to the problem. Piles of plastic bottles and debris litter the streets, clog rivers, and allow harmful chemicals to leech into human bodies. The same goes for other developing nations. Basically, if you get off the plane, look around, and notice heaps of trash, you can assume that anything plastic you buy will end up on a similar heap.

Again, this issue may not seem relevant in Western countries with recycling facilities. But every bottle that is recycled adds to the cost of running such facilities. Also, how do you suppose the water bottles get to your grocery or convenience store? Yup, in big smelly trucks that probably aren’t solar-powered. And then there’s the production of single-use water bottles (driven by consumer demand), which involves emissions of all kinds. I won’t go on, because such arguments are well-known, but a nice reusable bottle can go all over the world with you without leaving a mess.

The reusable water bottle: even more reasons to love it…

Now that I’m thinking about it, there are several other benefits of lugging a water bottle around:

Spreading the habit: the more people carry a water bottle, the more common it becomes, shifting the social norm away from buying single-use bottles.
Easier to stay hydrated: if I have my water bottle next to me, I’m far more likely to drink than if I have to keep getting up to get a glass or ask for one. A good friend of mine uses an oversized water bottle to ensure that she drinks a certain amount each day, which is a great idea if you’re trying to fix the hydration habit.
Gives you something to do in public: awkward silence? someone you want to pretend you didn’t see? everyone else smoking a cigarette? Take a drink from your water bottle.

What kind of water bottle should you buy?

I don’t think there’s one perfect water bottle for everyone. Some people get very passionate about a particular brand or style, but as long as it holds water and doesn’t leak, I’m satisfied. I do prefer a bottle that I can squirt into my mouth without having to touch the bottle itself, but those styles are usually soft plastic and can leech chemicals into your water. Siggs, made from aluminum, are popular, but heavier than plastic to tote around. Stainless steel bottles are also heavy, but they don’t leech or crack easily. It’s a matter of personal preference.

Will you save hundreds of dollars?

Maybe, maybe not. I don’t think the savings are significant enough to convince die-hard drink-buyers to make the change. But if you’re a frequent traveler or working nomad, health and eco concerns are two good reasons to carry a water bottle around.