9 May 2016

Made in China, sold in America — but made of what?

I bought this 550 ml water bottle at a local big box store last night. The bright yellow is perfect for some photographic experiments I’m planning.

And the bottle probably is perfectly safe for storing cool water for a day’s outing. There’s no odor.

The container with cap weigh 59 grams, and is stiff. It’s reasonably durable if handled with care, but it’s also brittle and could crack if dropped or knocked against a sharp object.

I suspect the material is polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a favorite for for liquids. But I don’t know for sure: there’s no resin code molded into the bottom to identify the kind of plastic used. That’s not good. All plastics should carry a resin code.

I prefer glass or stainless steel for my beverage containers, but I have several plastic bottles, and they work well and seem safe. Given I have better bottles, my yellow half-litre probably do much duty storing water, but I would not be afraid to fill it with tap water in the morning, refrigerate it for a few hours, and drink from it in the afternoon.

It’s certainly safer than the old aluminum army surplus canteens we used 50 years ago.