OR - Camelbak Chute 1 L Water Bottle - Kathy Waters

Dear Editors,

 

Hopefully, this will be an easy edit - water bottles aren't too complicated!
Text is below and HTML is in the OR test folder at:
http://tinyurl.com/kxxln4m

 

I look forward to your edits and comments.

 

Thanks for all you do!

Kathy

_______________________________________________________________________

 

CAMELBAK CHUTE 1L WATER BOTTLE   

 

Camelbak Logo 

BY KATHLEEN WATERS

November 11, 2014   

 OWNER REVIEW   

 

 

  

 

TESTER INFORMATION   

 

NAME:    Kathleen Waters   

 EMAIL:    kathy at backpackgeartest dot com   

 AGE:    63   

 LOCATION:    Canon City, Colorado, USA   

 GENDER:    F   

 HEIGHT:    5' 4" (1.60 m)   

 WEIGHT:    125 lb (56.70 kg)   

 

Living in Colorado and being self-employed, I have ample opportunities to
backpack. There are over 700,000 acres/280,000 hectares of public land
bordering my 71-acre/29-hectare "backyard" in addition to all the other
gorgeous locations which abound in Colorado. Over the past 15 years, my
husband John and I have also had the good fortune to hike/snowshoe glaciers,
rain forests, mountains and deserts in exotic locations, including New
Zealand, Iceland, Costa Rica, Slovenia and Death Valley. My hiking style is
comfortable, aiming for lightweight. I use a tent (rainfly if needed).
Current pack averages 25 lb (11 kg) excluding food and water.  

 

PRODUCT INFORMATION   

 

 

 

Manufacturer: Camelbak, Inc.

Year of Manufacture: 2014

Manufacturer's Website: http://www.camelbak.com

MSRP: US $14.00

Listed Weight: 6.08 oz (172 g)

Measured Weight: 6 oz (170 g)

Colors Available: Charcoal, Sage, Marine Blue & Indigo

Color Reviewed: Sage

Volume: Liter / 32 oz

 

Other details: From Manufacturer's Promotional Materials

 

* 100% Free of BPA and BPS

* Bottle Material: BPA-free Eastman TritanT Copolyster

* Cap Material: BPA-Free Polypropylene

* Dimensions: 10 X 3.5 in / 25.4 X 8.89 cm

* CamelBakR Got Your BakT Guarantee: "If we build it, we'll Bak itT with our
lifetime guarantee." 

Camelbak Chute Water Bottle 

Picture Courtesy of Camelbak 

 

 

Description

 

The Camelbak Chute takes the common "plastic" water bottle and makes several
innovative improvements. Gone is the "straw" with the rubbery bite-valve or
flip-lid. In its place is an angled spout wide enough for people like me who
would rather gulp than sip and small enough to avoid getting soaked by
sloshing water. The spout cap neatly snaps into the tethered handle to keep
it out of the way when drinking. This tether keeps the cap attached to the
bottle so it doesn't get lost and forms a convenient, comfortable carry
handle. The cap opens (and closes) with just a half a turn and threads
internally into the bottle so there is no more drinking with lips rubbing
uncomfortable bottle threads.

 

FIELD USE AND PERFORMANCE   

 

Though I haven't had the Camelbak Chute for an overly long period of time, I
have used it on every outing I've made in the last 2 months and have used it
daily on my desk in my office. Almost all of my trips have been day hikes in
south central Colorado (CO) and in Louisiana, except one overnighter and the
weather has been crazy - all over the (weather) map! We've broken high
records and in just the last two days temperatures have plummeted into the
single digits, but on average, my hiking weather was in the mid-40s to
mid-50s F (7-13 C).

 

 

 

Chute on Blue Lakes Trail in Breckenridg 

Chute (right pouch) Blue Lakes TR, Breckenridge, CO 

 Filling the Chute is a nice departure from some of my other water bottles
thanks to the wide-mouth opening. I like my water cold even when it's not
necessarily toasty outside. I use ice almost all the time and with the
Chute, I can actually fill the bottle with my refrigerator's ice dispenser
rather than having to stuff one ice cube in at a time. No more frozen
fingers! I like my drink cold, not my digits!

 

The lid of the Chute is in two pieces secured together by a tethering system
which prevents either one of the caps from going AWOL. This is great for me,
but I have a tendency to drop things and my butter-fingers have led to the
tossing of a few water bottles which went topless in the field. I did find
securing the spout cap into the handle to be a challenge. While the concept
is rather intuitive (and ingenious), the execution is a little harder for me
than it probably should be. I actually checked out the online video on the
Camelbak website for my "ah-ha" moment. Even after weeks of using the Chute,
I still struggle a little getting that cap snapped in tight.

 

And while I'm on the subject of the spout cap. It easily snaps into place
for closure and on my very first outing with the Chute, I learned the hard
way, that the cap must be screwed/twisted on tight, not just pushed down.
Half way up the trail, I reached back for my water bottle only to find it
almost completely empty! I had not tightened the cap and while I had the
pack stashed in the car on its side in route to the trailhead, the water
leaked all over the place! Because I was bundled against the cold, I hadn't
notice the very damp backpack. Dang! Good thing I had a hydration bladder as
well.

 

The spout is a nice size opening. It's about the same as the average
soda/pop bottle opening, so I can neatly wrap my lips around it and prevent
water from sloshing around all over myself. I like that a lot! And I really
like that the outside of the spout is smooth with the threads inside the
spout, not outside against my delicate skin. It's a little thing but it
makes the drinking experience that much more pleasant.

 

As I've come to expect from Camelbak - this is not my first Camelbak water
bottle - from the first filling (after a thorough washing), right through
the next several dozens - there is no taste other than the liquid used to
fill the Chute. I haven't detected any smells or chemical aftertaste ever.
And, I'm happy to say, I have used various energy additives to my water at
various times. The Chute has not retained any residual odors or tastes. Yay!

 

Despite the fact that Camelbak advises the Chute can be cleaned in the top
rack of a dishwasher, I have only washed it by hand with my usual
dishwashing liquid. There is no way it will even fit in my dishwasher's top
rack! But no worry, I've found it easy to remove the various parts and let
them soak a bit, swish them around, thoroughly rinse and let air dry. After
about a dozen day trips and one overnighter and daily indoor use, the Chute
still smells fresh and clean after washing and shows no signs of major
scratches despite my innate clumsiness, including the time I accidently
kicked it across a graveled parking lot after a day hike! The tether remains
flexible without any signs of getting brittle or cracking. 

 

I'm looking forward to many for outings with the Camelbak Chute water bottle
stowed in my pack!

 

STARRING ATTRACTIONS   

 

1.) I can gulp down water rather than puckering up and sucking hard to sip
it.

2.) The wide mouth makes the bottle easy to fill - including with ice - and
to wash

3.) Spout top can get lost due to tethering.

4.) No chemical taste

5.) Love the internal threading of the cap - no rough edges.  

 

MINOR DISTRACTIONS   

 

1.) I find the spout cap a bit difficult to anchor into the tether.  

 

SUMMARY   

 

One of the first things I learned when I started backpacking and hiking was
the importance of staying hydrated and when I moved to Colorado, I found
that to be especially true even when sedentary! I'm always on the look-out
for the next new-and-improved water bottle. I literally have dozens of them
but there has always been something I didn't particularly care for about
each one. Smell. Weight. Hard to fill. Hard to use. Just something!

 

After using the Camelbak Chute 1 L Water Bottle, I have to say I think
Camelbak has come really close to filling all my water-bottle-wishes.
There's no smell, no taste, it's not heavy, easy to fill, easy to drink
from. What's not to like? Oh yeah, my clumsy fingers still struggle with the
spout cap anchoring thingy! I will definitely continue to gulp from my Chute
though and look forward to Camelbak's next innovation.

 

Kathleen (Kathy) Waters