Stainless steel water bottle that stays in backpack pocket, or hacks?

January 1, 2018 12:06 PM

In less than a month, I have lost two very nice stainless steel water bottles due to the lousy and shallow "bottle holder" pockets of my North Face Surge backpack (which I love otherwise). How do I prevent this from happening again? How does everyone else manage not to lose water bottles? Is there a specific type of bottle, way to secure it? I'd rather not put the bottle in the backpack in case of spills. I don't want to buy another backpack, either, since it's otherwise perfect for my needs.
posted by Seeking Direction to Travel & Transportation (16 answers total)

Best answer: Is there a strap on the outside of the backpack you can clip the bottle to with a carabiner or something? It won't necessarily keep the bottle in the pocket, but at least if it falls out it will still stay attached to the bag.
posted by btfreek at 12:10 PM on January 1, 2018 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: I suppose I could. I dislike plastic caps on water bottles - are there any metal-capped bottles that can fit a carabiner and aren't too pricey?
posted by Seeking Direction at 12:14 PM on January 1, 2018

Response by poster: However, the loop for a carabiner is below the outer edge of the pocket, limiting my options (most water bottles would be too tall).
posted by Seeking Direction at 12:15 PM on January 1, 2018

Best answer: Steel is a pretty slippery material; I'd look at bottles that come with a silicone sleeve; something stickier will help stop it sliding out. I'd also consider a smaller bottle, if that would work for you - a bottle that's 60-70% of the way into the holder will slip out less than one that's only 30-40%.
posted by Homeboy Trouble at 12:17 PM on January 1, 2018 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: And another a bit higher up - maybe too much so. Here.
posted by Seeking Direction at 12:18 PM on January 1, 2018

Best answer: I see a lot of people putting large rubber bands around the middle of water bottles like that, presumably mostly for grip traction when hands are sweaty, but I bet it would help inside a shallow pocket as well.
posted by poffin boffin at 12:22 PM on January 1, 2018 [7 favorites]

Best answer: Klean Kanteen makes a couple stainless caps with loops on them.
posted by box at 12:23 PM on January 1, 2018

Best answer: You can get steel caps with loops for Klean Kanteens (somewhat pricey, but mine have lasted basically forever)

on preview: jinx, box!
posted by btfreek at 12:24 PM on January 1, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Looking at the photo: what's that black diagonal strap doing? Could it either wrap around a bottle or, more likely, have the small loop of a strap like this strung on it? (Link for illustrative purposes only.)
posted by teremala at 12:27 PM on January 1, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: This problem annoys me so much that I no longe purchase backpacks with pockets like that--I look for ones with deeper/taller, straight-top pockets.

Before I made this choice, though, I did two things: started using 20 or 24-oz. bottles so they were tall enough to tuck under that diagonal side strap, and added a grippy band to the bottom of the bottle. These things reduced the instances of my bottles falling out significantly, but didn't totally eliminate them.
posted by rhiannonstone at 12:39 PM on January 1, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Cord, cord is always a cheap and effective answer for ‘how do I not lose/drop this thing that I haul around all the time’. You can use ‘biners and other clips, but you don’t have to.

Get a bootlace or some paracord and learn how to use it. Put a few clove hitches or decorative lashing on the bottle, tie or clip the other end anywhere on to the pack.
Presto, you cannot lose the bottle.
posted by SaltySalticid at 1:01 PM on January 1, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Those type of pockets are a bad joke and the more you put in your backpack the worse they work. They actually squeeze the water bottles out as you fill your pack. I usually just buy a bottle with a good seal and toss it in the pack. Nalgenes don't leak (if you close them), nor do Contigos.

But probably the better option is - sew new pockets or additional loops or added elastic above the pocket. I've seen people do it and it works great but my sewing skills are non-existent so I can't give you specific advice. I bet you could get a local gear store or tailor to do it. You still run into the problem that the way that pack is designed the bottle gets squeezed up and out by the pack itself so a carabiner is a good idea.
posted by fshgrl at 1:23 PM on January 1, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: My water bottle isn't stainless steel, but I too had a problem with bottles popping out of pockets. My current solution combines a Bottle Band, a 1" triangle ring, and a carabiner clip.
posted by radwolf76 at 4:52 PM on January 1, 2018

Best answer: Easy Liner

They're woven rubber mats that you can easily cut; they're designed to act as non-slip shelf liners. They're cheap and awesome for their purpose. They don't have a smell.

They're a little bit stretchy, I imagine that you could cut a sheet that you can wrap around your stainless bottle; it'd be pretty easy to weave something like thick nylon thread or very long plastic-coated twist ties along the connecting edges to give your bottle a tacky exterior liner.
posted by porpoise at 6:42 PM on January 1, 2018

Best answer: As SaltySalticid says, the tool of choice here is a dummy cord. In its simplest form, this is a string tied to your backpack and the bottle. If you want to get fancier, you can add a little keychain carabiner so that it's easier to detach the bottle from the dummy cord. If you're into knots and want to entertain yourself for an hour, splice a halyard shackle.
posted by d. z. wang at 7:33 PM on January 1, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Or, if you want something more subtle, buy an appropriately sized key strap (example at Tom Binh) to bridge the distance between bottle cap and the bag's carabiner loop.
posted by mumkin at 9:32 PM on January 1, 2018