I’ve had terrible luck finding a decent water bottle with a filter. I’ve tried several models, including some name brands, but without much success. The most expensive name brand leaked when it was tipped up, making it okay after a workout, but not so good at the office. And that’s really where I needed it the most: at the office. I had pretty much given up on finding a decent one that worked for me until I happened upon the Camelbak Groove at a department store last week.
It was about the same price as the other name brand I had found that worked except for leaking, so I decided to give it a try. I’m glad I did.
When I took it out of the box, I looked briefly at all the instructions and found all the main pieces came apart easily for washing. That, of course, is recommended, so I did disassemble the water bottle and it was as easy as described. The water filter is easy to deal with. You rinse it under running water for 15 minutes and then it plugs right into the tube that you can see in the center of the bottle. Everything screws back together and it’s water-tight.
It was the ease of use that I appreciated the most. The bottle is designed to be used being held upright, meaning you don’t have to tip it back in order to drink out of it. I have found this to be great on hot summer days here in South Carolina when I’m in my car driving home. I can keep my eyes on the road while sipping from the water bottle. The bite valve keeps water from leaking out but it’s easy to use to get water. I wondered how effective it was when I first saw it, but it works well. It also comes apart and is replaceable. Speaking of the bite valve, the bottle is designed so that you can both open and close the spout/bite valve with one hand. I can see it being useful on a hike with a walking stick.
Do note, the water filter is only to “improve the taste” of already treated water, like what comes out of the tap. It is not intended to provide purification or filter out bacteria, etc., so don’t use it for that. It does remove the chlorine taste from tap water and that’s what I wanted. I would definitely recommend it based on my experience thus far.
