Polar vs Camelbak Podium Chill bottles

[Keith A]

Now that I have a Camelbak Podium Chill bottle, I thought I'd compare this to the Polar one to see which one stayed colder longer. So my wife and I did our little science experiment and used the exact same amount of ice and water in each of the bottles. Both theses are the smaller size, 20 oz and 21 oz.

While there wasn't a huge difference, the ice did stay a little longer in the Polar bottle compared to the Camelbak...and our digital thermometer showed the temperature was slightly colder in there too. So when "tasting" the water after the ice was gone in both bottles, the water in Polar bottle felt noticeably cooler in your mouth.

This was done inside, and we'll have to repeat this outside in the heat to see if there is a more of a difference.

[Willy]

You need to try the Camelback Ice - dramatic improvement over the chill model!

[Plum Hill]

Polar products are made right here in the US.
I'm probably the only one here that cares about that....

[stephenmarklay]

Polar products are made right here in the US.
I'm probably the only one here that cares about that....

Nope I care. I have used them over Camelback for that reason. However, with the sale several of us got in on I picked a few Camelback up.

[unterhausen]

I much prefer the lid on the Polar. If you need a lid, they'll give you one. Found that out when I tried to buy one.

[Rpoole8537]

+1 in the Camelback lid. However, the Camelback lid will fit a Polar bottle. Also agree that the Ice is a huge improvement, but $25 for a bottle, a bit much. I remember when bottles were $3 or less when on sale.

[stephenmarklay]

+1 in the Camelback lid. However, the Camelback lid will fit a Polar bottle. Also agree that the Ice is a huge improvement, but $25 for a bottle, a bit much. I remember when bottles were $3 or less when on sale.

Bed bath and beyond closed out the standard bottles for $5 and the forum bought them out :)

[SlackMan]

You need to try the Camelback Ice - dramatic improvement over the chill model!

I agree.

[Keith A]

You need to try the Camelback Ice - dramatic improvement over the chill model!The problem is that it doesn't hold as much fluids as the larger Polar or Camelback Chill bottles.

[Keith A]

Any idea how Specialized Purist insulated bottle compares with regards to keeping your fluids cool? BTW, Specialized website stinks...they're all about big pictures and showing videos, but don't even have the amount of liquid this bottle can hold :crap:

[stephenmarklay]

Any idea how Specialized Purist insulated bottle compares with regards to keeping your fluids cool? BTW, Specialized website stinks...they're all about big pictures and showing videos, but don't even have the amount of liquid this bottle can hold :crap:

23oz. You can get them on Amazon and without the specialized label.

[stephenmarklay]

I don't have to ride in really hot weather and I like a smaller water bottle. As long as it is wet I'm ok. I go in phases but in cooler weather below 70 )most of my 5:30am rides) I am good with one bottle. But the smaller ones are nice if you want 3 as the ride a little lower in my jersey center pocket.

[Keith A]

stephenmarklay -- Thanks for the info on the size. I did see this on Amazon too, but was surprised that this wasn't easily obtainable on the Specialized website.

There's plenty of hot weather in sunny Florida. Tomorrow's "feels like" temperature at the end (10:00am) of our group ride will be nearly 100° and I will have gone through one large and one small Polar bottle...which really isn't enough. So both capacity and cooling retention are important to me.

[satchmo]

Its been a while since I used a polar bottle. I stopped using them b/c on the inside of the bottle there are small dimples. These dimples made them harder to clean, by hand and dishwasher, thus the mold. The last few camel back bottles I purchased have smooth inside, no dimples, thus last way longer. I should try the ice version, as the East TN, humidity is bad this year. I, like others, hate paying the price for these products.

[MikeD]

I have a Polar bottle. In my opinion, these insulated bottles don't keep the contents cold enough for that long. Not worth it. I'd rather use a standard bottle that carries more liquid. On the other hand, a Camelbak with ice in it stays cold for a long time.

[Keith A]

Its been a while since I used a polar bottle. I stopped using them b/c on the inside of the bottle there are small dimples. These dimples made them harder to clean, by hand and dishwasher, thus the mold....Valid point, and I use a baby bottle washer/brush to make sure the dimples stay clean.

[Ralph]

Lately....I've been going thru 2 large Polar bottles (1 Gatorade and 1 water) and 1 refil from a water fountain on each 35-40 mile rides starting at 8 AM. It's hot this time of year.

Capacity is important.

[tumbler]

You need to try the Camelback Ice - dramatic improvement over the chill model!

+1 to this. I have the Chill and the Ice model. The "4x longer" claim on the Ice bottle is pretty accurate. The one downside is that it is about an inch taller than the Chill (both 21 oz), which makes it hang out of the cage a little further and occasionally sit askew. The extra length also makes it too tall for my wife's bike unless you insert/remove it mostly from the side, which isn't very easy. Just something to keep in mind.

[CAAD]

I gave up on insulated bottles. The camelbak bottles are to big and make them hard to remove from my cages. Polar bottles get mold fairly easily it seems. The insulation is nice but this time of year i drink so much water i end up refilling with tap water anyways with no ice. Now I just pick up a couple shop bottles (purist bottles preferred) here and there and replace when necessary.

[carpediemracing]

I have the first generation CamelBak Ice and Chill. I happened to buy large Chills and whatever Ice (they seem "medium" sized).

On really hot to me days, 90-95 deg, an Ice full of ice and topped off with water will last almost 2 hours before it's lukewarm. One of my Chills will last about 1 hour before the water is tepid.

Because the water is so cold I rarely use more than one bottle an hour in races. In one race I resorted to removing the cap off the bottle to try and increase the melt rate because so little ice melted that after just a few sips I had no water left to drink.

With the Specialized cheap cages (RibCage and Z Cage, about $15-20 each) I've had zero issues with the bottles dropping. In races I don't avoid things so I'm hitting some stuff quite hard. Riders around me have ejected bottles or moved bars/levers/etc but I've been okay with bottles. Moved my bars once and one lever once. The cages are tight at the beginning but loosen up just a bit and then they're really good.

[carpediemracing]

I have a Polar bottle as well. Not sure if there are grades of these bottles, I bought them at a supermarket because they were World Championship edition bottles (the supermarket sponsored Richmond Worlds and we were in the area). Although the cap is normal I'm not super impressed with the insulating properties of the bottle. They're easily worse than even the Chill, and absolutely no comparison to the Ice.

Just a couple days ago the Missus and Junior went to a local park/pond. 90 deg F, they were in the shade most of the time. They used my two Ices and the Polar, about 2/3 ice and rest water (versus me at hot races, as much ice as possible + water). When they returned about 3-4 hours later we put the bottles on the counter. They didn't really drink any water so all the bottles were all basically full. The Polar ice/water was totally melted. About 5 hours later (indoor temps 77-80 deg) I poured out the contents of one Ice bottle into a cup for myself because it still had considerable amount of ice in it. I'd been sipping from the other so it was empty.

[ojingoh]

Nope I care. I have used them over Camelback for that reason. However, with the sale several of us got in on I picked a few Camelback up.

Matters to me!

[dawgie]

I've used the Polar and Camelbak Chill bottles extensively. I prefer the Camelbaks because the drinking nozzle is much, much better. I don't notice enough difference in how long they keep water cold to care.

I really prefer cold/cool water and find that I hydrate much more effectively with it. I don't drink enough if my water gets too warm because it doesn't taste as well nor refresh me.

FWIW, either bottle will keep water cold longer if you freeze them with small amounts of water inside. Since water expands when it freezes, it's easy to overfill them.

[Seramount]

altho I have both Polar and Chill bottles, just use the Chills, they keep water fairly cold for ~1 hr in 100F and look far better on the bike.

but, I usually drain one before there's an issue with the content's temperature.

tried a 25-oz Chill last week, it's a little clumsy going in / out of the cage, but does a good job of keeping things cool.

[Joxster]

Drinking iced/chilled drinks on the bike can cause stomach issues, it can cause constriction of the blood vessels and in turn delays the delivery of fluid. Not a problem we have in the UK ;) Absorbtion rates are better when the fluid temperature is closer the blood temp. Marginal gains and all that ;)

[choke]

It's interesting that there doesn't seem to be a consensus on which brand is the better insulator.

FWIW, I have both Polar and Chill bottles. IMO the Polar is far better at keeping things cold and the Chill is just marginally better than a normal bottle.

[stephenmarklay]

I have been using the camelbak bottles from the Bed Bath and Beyond sale. I really like them. I got the smaller 21oz and I like the smaller size. The cap/nipple seems superior to the polar bottles I have used for years.

I also picked up a purist bottle for giggles. The watergate cap is similar to the camelbak.

The purist is a 22oz with no insulation. It is old school size and I really like that for putting in a jersey pocket on 3 bottle day.

[Keith A]

stephenmarklay -- Thanks for the feedback. I haven't used mine yet.

[mvnsnd]

I've used both but prefer the Camelback bottles. However I find that one has to thoroughly clean the nozzle after each ride, especially if one used an electrolyte drink.

[Fatty]

Polar products are made right here in the US.
I'm probably the only one here that cares about that....

I care about it. Thanks for pointing that out.

[Exonerv]

On a related note, I ran across a video that detailed how to get the mold out of the jet valve on the camelback bottles, prompting me to closely inspect ours.

As we store our bottles in the freezer, there was nothing to be cleaned.

[teleguy57]

On a related note, I ran across a video that detailed how to get the mold out of the jet valve on the camelback bottles, prompting me to closely inspect ours.

As we store our bottles in the freezer, there was nothing to be cleaned.

Do you have the link for the vid? (says the guy with weak google-fu, uh, ok, lazy....)

[Exonerv]

Sure man...
https://youtu.be/Er6GIEz11ck

[rnhood]

Good video, and good info on storing the bottles (or tops) in the freezer.

[efaust_o]

I had one a bought couple more on special...thanks..