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SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – From Stanley’s and Owala’s to Hydroflask’s and Camelbak’s — they’ve all been dubbed ’emotional support water bottles.’ But something many people have in common is how often they clean…or don’t clean…their reusable water bottles.
“Clean? No. I’ve never cleaned it before,” Joel Fredrickson of Sioux Falls said.
“My boyfriend always does it for me but probably once a week,” Madison Walford of Sioux Falls said.
“I’d say twice a month if I’m being like diligent,” Lauren Rowe of Hill City, said.
“I would say I rinse it out probably once a day but cleaning with soap and water is probably like, I don’t know, an every two-week thing,” Joslyn Schrank of Sioux Falls said.
To further our research we took that same question to X, formerly known as Twitter, where half of the 28 voters in a poll admitted they maybe clean their water bottles around once a month.
So what is the right answer — how often SHOULD we be washing our reusable water bottles?
“Well, if you’re using a water bottle, consistently, I really would recommend trying to wash it every day,” Stacy Stoterau, a nurse practitioner with Sanford Health, said. “Knowing that it’s probably not actually going to get washed everyday and maybe you’re going to hit it every other day.”
Stoterau says dirty water bottles can transfer harmful bacteria to the person using it.
“The actual risk of getting sick from your water bottle are probably pretty low but like anything else, the chances are never zero. So just making sure that you’re taking care of your water bottle is really going to help,” Stoterau said.
A good reason to give your water bottle a little extra TLC.
Stoterau says using your bottle for more than just water can lead to even more bacteria build-up, but it’s important to wash them even if you’re only putting water in.
