Considering how much walking is required to traverse the roughly 4,400 acres that make up the University of Connecticut’s Storrs and Regional campuses, staying hydrated — and by consequence, water bottle options — are huge talking points. Some water bottles look like they’re made for giants, while others are made intentionally small to fit in the smallest of bags. In this roundtable, let’s see what Life writers consider to be the “Goldilocks bottle” — the one that’s just right.
James Fitzpatrick, Associate Life Editor (he/him/his)
Given that fountain drink dispensers at most dining halls allow for thermoses to be refilled with beverages, one must choose the optimal size of their bottle based on the height between the dispensers and the tray. Like people who are too tall to ride certain roller-coaster rides (me with Superman at Six Flags New England), some bottles can be too tall to use with the dispensers. The threshold I’ve noticed from experience is that a 40-ounce bottle with an average width requires tilting to be filled, and ice misses the bottle at that point.
Speaking of ice, another problem with tall bottles — let’s say those that hold 40 ounces or more for simplicity’s sake — is that you need an abundance of ice to keep your beverage cool throughout the day. The more liquid there is, especially with how hot it’s been lately, the quicker your ice will melt, and no one wants a lukewarm beverage when you’re already lugging around a heavy metal bottle to combat such a dilemma.
Benjamin Lassy, Life Editor (he/him/his)
When the large Hydro Flasks and 40-ouncers became a fad a year or two ago, I won’t lie, I was concerned. They’re unwieldy, lanky and just ludicrously oversized. After doing a little research, I am now seeing marketing for 64-ounce water bottles. How much bigger can we go before we’re essentially just carrying around a pond?
I believe that if we pull off the metallic mask of giant water bottles, we’ll expose a deeper issue on campus: the lack of decent, clean and widespread water fountains/refill stations. There are some in the corners of hallways or little nooks near bathrooms like in the Student Union: all uninviting locations to say the least.
Would you be lugging around a jug when you could refill, say, a cup or 12-ounce bottle easily between classes? I know I’m skirting around the question at hand; but, in a way, we are only asking this question because UConn is skirting around logistics and ignoring water demand.
So, if refill stations keep popping up, mark my words that in a year or two, 12-ounce bottles will make a comeback. Until then, we live among the giants.
Thatcher Slocum, Campus Correspondent (he/him/his)
I drink a lot of water, so I have a lot of experience with this. On a day-to-day basis, I tend to carry a 20-ounce bottle. Anything smaller just doesn’t last long enough. When hiking (which I also have a lot of experience with), I tend to carry higher capacity bottles — normally a one-liter hardshell bottle with a two-liter collapsible bladder. For me, one liter strikes a happy middle ground for all my daily use cases.
But I’d say that size does not matter as much as some people say. It’s more the form of the bottle that matters. Lately, I’ve been prioritizing style over practicality and have no space in my streamlined (but stylish) backpack for a rigid bottle like a Nalgene or Hydro Flask. As a result, I’ve become a huge advocate for bottles that fit the form of the water in them. That’s why the one-liter Platypus SoftBottle (not sponsored) is perfect for me. If I only have five ounces of water left, or if I only want to fill it halfway, I can flatten the remaining air out of the bottle and make it thin enough to fit in my thin backpack. It can still fit a full liter if I ever need it (such as for a hike). It looks a little quirky, but it’s streamlined, practical, and versatile.
Hayden Cromer, Campus Correspondent (he/him/his)
I personally carry an absolute maximum of 40 ounces on me and I believe that’s pushing it sometimes. I think anything above that is all for dramatics. The most optimal size for a water bottle is probably 24 ounces and 40 if you’re a #RealDrinker. Carrying around 24 ounces may be a bit of a nuisance due to having to constantly refill it, but I think it makes you feel more productive. Having to hit the water fountain every couple of hours adds to the hydration experience.
But once you’re sick and tired of refilling it all the time, that’s when you graduate to 40 ounces. With going up in size, however, you sacrifice the ability to put your water bottle in the side pocket of your backpack. Forced to drag your ball and chain around, water bottle in hand, you are binded, it becomes an extension of you; it makes a soldier out of you. Only then is when you’ve ascended to #RealDrinker status.