Zojirushi

I was looking for something to keep my water cold at night. To this point I had been using a carafe filled with water and ice cubes , but the ice… Read more

cubes would melt in less than an hour and then by early morning the water was warm.

I nearly went for the el cheapo solution but then after much searching and reading I found a lot of these bottles, even the well regarded name brands simply did not work that well .

In the end I spent the bucks , did my thorough research and ended up with this one.

Being Japanese and from the most expensive manufacturer of rice cookers in the world I really did expect something out of the ordinary.

When it arrived there was a strong perfumy/musky odour, not only in the bottle but in the box. I washed the bottle out a few times with a mild detergent and that seemed to do the trick. The box on the other hand, even after a few days , still had that strong smell. Maybe that was added at the factory .

Anyway, I filled the bottle with ice and water, placed the lid on , shook it for a while ,held it upside down and shook it and no leaks . Next I timed it to melt down . I filled it at 8pm checked it at 1am then 3am at 6am and again at 12pm. The bottle was still cold and there was still ice rattling around inside.

I was pretty happy with that and will probably try it with hot coffee later on.

Just a word of warning though. It comes with a California's Proposition 65 warning on the side.

"Right to Know" Law: The primary purpose is to allow consumers to make informed decisions about their exposure to potentially hazardous chemicals.

The coating in question here is PTFE which is the non stick coating on the inside of the bottle which is PFOA free. In other words , that label is mandatory in California and appears on just about every product you can buy . Just wanted you to know in case you freak out and go into panic mode.

Highly recommended

Great thermos/bottle for daily use and travel – I was looking for a good quality thermos bottle (with lid), and I came across with this Zojirushi Stainless Steel Travel Mug, retailing for $38 on… Read more

Amazon Australia. I current already have a thermos, but that was lined with non-stick coating; and I am not really a big fan of this for keeping hot beverages for a long time (some concerns about the safety and longevity of such coating). And I was glad to see a decent product from a reputable Japanese manufacturer with stainless steel interior (at a reasonable price).

After a few weeks of usage, I quite like this product. And here are some of the pros and cons of this thermos/travel bottle:

Pros: 1. Build Quality: Zojirushi has been a well known manufacturer in Japan, and unsurprisingly the build quality of the bottle is quite good. All parts fit together well, even after repeated uses and dishwasher cleaning (even with the lid, I know, I am not supposed to put the lid in dishwasher).

2. The lid assembly: It was very nice to see that the entire lid can be dis-assembled and cleaned very thoroughly! This is a great feature, eliminating any hard-to-clean spots unlike other thermos on the market. And most important, no leakage! This design does not compromise the leak-proof nature of the bottle.

3. Insulation: I guess this is one of the most important features of this bottle... The insulation is superior to most other bottles/mugs I have had, and for this price, I do not think there is any competition. It will easily hold a hot drink over night (I tried one night without the lid, and the water was still warm 8 hours later....).

4. Price: For less than $40, you can't even get a frank green bottle, which has worse thermal insulation and arguably worse build quality.

Cons: 1. Made in Thailand: Despite being a Japanese brand, this bottle is not made in Japan, which is a shame.

2. No tea strainer: Really? For a thermos, with stainless steel interior, and not even providing a tea strainer?

3. Mouth piece: It is a great feature not to burn your lips, but this thing is plastic, thus defeating the purpose of having stainless steel interior; and you will burn your mouth and throat instead of lips... but thankfully you can remove this piece.