Custom Sports and Water Bottles - Plastic, Stainless & More

Custom Sports Bottles and Water Bottles are one of our most popular promotional product categories.  Growing ever more popular, these are great day to day items for sports, desktop or just going around town.  Getting the right sports bottle can be confusing with the array of materials, caps, vacuum insulation options and imprint methods.  This article will help you decide which custom sports bottle is right for you. 

To see our sport bottle selection, click here!

What is BPA?  What is Tritan?

In the early days of the sports bottle craze, the hard plastic used was commonly called polycarbonate.  Polycarbonate seemed ideal in that it was hard, strong, stain and smell resistant.  The problem was that it contained a chemical called Bisphenol A (BPA).  BPA has been used since the 1960's in plastic resins.  Some research has shown that BPA can seep into food or beverages from containers that are made with BPA. Exposure to BPA is a concern because of possible health effects of BPA on the brain, behavior and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children.  Due to these concerns and recent scientific studies, we have switched the vast majority of bottles to BPA free materials.  The other thing to know about BPA is that it is not only in plastic bottles but can be in the liners of aluminum bottles.  Make sure to ask if the custom aluminum sports bottle you are getting is BPA free!

Many of the polycarbonate bottles have been replaced with a newer material from Eastman Kodak that is BPA free called Eastman Tritan (tm).  Tritan is a copolyester material that is very tough, heat-resistant, stain resistant and has been tested stringently for safety.  Many of the retail brands are using Tritan in their plastic style sports bottles due to its test results and durability.  We are proud to carry custom Tritan sports bottles and water bottles.

Available Materials for Custom Sports Bottles

Our promotional sports bottles come in a large variety and wide range of materials.  The most common material are Tritan plastic, regular plastic, aluminum, stainless steel, LDPE and more.

Stainless is a wonderful material in that it does not absorb tastes or ordors, is naturally BPA free and is very durable.  Our custom stainless bottles are very popular and come in a variety of styles.  Additionally, stainless bottles are great for heat resistance.  With the new trend toward vacuum insulation, some of these bottles can now keep a drink cold for up to 12 hours.  Brand names like Yeti, Contigo, Pelican, h2Go, and more are well known vacuum insulated bottles.

Aluminum is a classic material but usually contains a liner so as not to reat with the liquid stored inside.  Always make sure that the liner in your aluminum sports bottle is BPA free.

Plastic is one of the most common materials.  As mentioned above, avoid polycarbonate bottles and stick to a BPA free material.  One of the newest and, in our opinion, best plastic bottles out there are the Tritan sports bottles.  There are also classic materials like LDPE for flexible bike bottles, which is safe but can leave behind a taste.  Acrylic is also used but can show stress cracks after continuous use.

Imprint or Custom Decoration Methods

The most common imprint method to put a custom logo on a promotional sports bottle is the screen or pad print.  This is a simple colored ink baked onto the bottle and can be used on almost all materials including plastic, stainless and aluminum bottles.  This is a great method if your logo needs a color or colors to be printed on the bottles.

Some sport bottles have silicone or leather grips, and these can be blind deossed.  A blind deboss is a method of imprint where the logo is pushed into the material leading to a subtle showing of your logo.

Laser engraving can be done on select stainless steel bottles and some aluminum bottles.  This is a tone-on-tone look that is quite impressive and durable.  One of our favorites.

More and more of our water bottles can also hold a full color image which is great to show a photograph or complicated personalization of a promotional water bottle.  With some of our new machines, we can do a full color wrap!  This can be done using an insert on some models or as a direct print on other models.  A common material this is used with is Acrylic, which is not a great material for long term use in our opinion.  It does scatch and can show cracking if heated and cooled repeatedly.

Bottles Caps and Lid

The caps and lids have changed significantly over the last few years.  From spill resistant to spill proof to built in straws, the new lids lead to easier access and better cleaning options for the sports bottles.

One of our favorite styles is a wide opening where you can easily clean the inside of the sports bottle.  Older bottles typically had a narrower opening which led to difficulty in cleaning the bottles.

Some of our new favorite lids include the flip lids where a short straw flips up for easy drinking.  This is typically very good on leak resistance and stops you from having to manually unscrew a lid.  This also comes in silicone which is softer and will not hurt your mouth.

The classic twist lid is still very functional but is better for hiking and such.  It can lead to a better seal.

The straight straw is better for desktop use as the bottle will leak if turned sideways.

The silicone lids are soft and comfortable for everyday drinking.

To choose your lid, you need to think about what the bottle will be used for.  If it is a hiking bottle, it needs to be spill proof.  If it is for desktop use, spill resistant will work.

Types of Events

What type of event can you use custom sports bottles for?  The main limitation of water bottles are there size.  If you need to carry gifts with you to give to clients, these are bulky and may not be best.  They are great for marathon, outdoor, fitness and desktop events.  They are also great as desktop items for our higher end vacuum insulated water bottle styles.

Please email us at sales@adcomarketing.com or call us at 888-332-ADCO (2326) and we can go over the options.  From stainless steel to Tritan - whatever your needs, we have the custom sports bottle for you.

To see our sport bottle selection, click here!