Square stainless steel water bottle review: opens at the top and the bottom
First published on February 12, 2013
Would you pay $45 for a really good reusable water bottle?
The Square is a stainless steel bottle, and the main feature that makes it different is that it opens at the top and the bottom. This makes it much easier to clean. It holds about 560mL (20 ounces). Currently (February 2013), you can only purchase it online.
This is what the bottom of the bottle looks like when the bottom cap is twisted off:
Clean Bottle, which is the company that makes The Square, makes a cheaper, $10 plastic bottle that also opens at the top and the bottom.
The concept is rather brilliant yet simple. Clean Bottle owns a patent on the design; on the one hand, this is fair, but on the other hand every reusable bottle could benefit from that! Cleaning regular water bottles is hard because of the small-ish spout and the inability to reach to the bottom. It can get quite disgusting at the bottom of a bottle. There are of course alternative cleaning solutions, such as using a long-necked scrubber:
The square design of the bottle is also intended to help it pack better and prevents the bottle from rolling on the ground when it is dropped. There are other self-proclaimed features about the bottle, and you can find out more about them in the promotional video, which might seem unintentionally farcical.
There are a couple of potential drawbacks regarding The Square. The durability of the plastic elements — the lip and the bottom — is questionable. However, it’s supposedly “guaranteed for life”.
Also, due to the fact that the inside of the bottle has square corners, it is difficult to get the last drops of water out.
The Square is indeed easy to clean, it’s comfortable to port around, and it fits in car and side pocket cup holders. If you care a lot about reusable water bottles or if you’re a hipster, this could be the bottle for you. Most people probably think that $45 is a crazy amount to pay for a bottle, but arguably it is still a bargain if you compare its cost to regularly buying throwaway water bottles.
Facebook
Twitter
Email this
keung.biz. Hire my web consulting services at 
Follow us on Twitter
February 12th, 2013 at 1:06 pm
Jocelyn says:
What an ingenius and useful innovation! I have a long handled scrubber, but depending on the water bottle and contents, even this doesn’t clean the sides at the bottom. I use reusable water bottles from Starbucks, but I’m still unclear as to why The Square retails for $45 (I assume that’s USD too.) I’d like to see some samples sent out/testimonials posted before I’d spend the money. Thanks for sharing the info Peter!
February 21st, 2013 at 8:58 am
Navudesh says:
Good innovation!
April 2nd, 2013 at 2:38 pm
Costco Shopper says:
Not to crap on this idea, but disposable water bottles, 1 a day for a year, at costco, would be about the same price as this bottle. They are recyclable, convenient, sterile, lightweight…it goes on.
In my experience, reusable water bottles get lost or break far sooner than they pay for themselves.
April 5th, 2013 at 2:17 pm
Dexter says:
Can you send me an email for another clear image from what it looks like from the inside? I bought mine too from another reseller and I got one with dark/white vertical lines from the inside. I’ve had many stainless water bottles but this is the only one i’ve seen so far that had lines on it which made me not to use it (could be hazardous/un-healthy to drink). I took a photo of it just in case. (http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=vctdmh&s=6)
Reply from Peter: I couldn’t get a clear photo, but the bottle I have also has black vertical lines inside (no white parts, though). You could probably ask the Clean Bottle company regarding what those lines are.