EcoUsable Product Review and Giveaway

After the reusable water bottle challenge, a couple people asked me where I got the bottle my son is drinking out of. Well, here's your answer:

ECOUSABLE REVIEW

EcoUsable carries two types of bottles: standard stainless steel bottles in 10, 16, and 33 oz. sizes, and Ech2o Filtered water bottles in 18 and 25 oz. sizes. They also carry a wide variety of Water Wrapz - a sleeve that fits around the bottles for a comfortable hold and stylish look. Each standard bottle comes with a color coordinated carabiner so you can attach your bottle to your purse, bag, or backpack, and sports caps are also available. The Ech2o bottles contain a filter that will remove a variety of contaminants and can be used to filter up to 100 gallons of water. They come with a flip top.

Before I contacted EcoUsable about doing a review, we already had one of each type of bottle, so you can probably already guess that I like them. I especially like the standard bottles. With all of the stainless steel water bottles flooding the market, why do I like these bottles so much?

I think EcoUsable is a perfect stainless steel water bottle for kids. Here's why:

• They have a slim, easy to hold design.
• The 10 oz. and 16 oz. sizes are perfect for small and medium-sized kids.
  
• The loop caps attach with a "half loop turn," which makes them easy to get on and off.
  
• The sports caps are perfect for small kids that can't handle the loop cap.
• The bottles come in fun colors and patterns.
• The affordable Water Wrapz make it possible to spice up a bottle your child has fallen out of love with.
  
• The price is not exorbitant.
  

I'm less enthusiastic about the Ech2o bottles - not because I don't think they're great but because I don't have as much need for that type of bottle in my life, and they are very pricey. But I think you should give the Ech2o a look if you have any of the following needs:

• You don't like the taste of your tap water.
• You're concerned about the quality of your city's tap water and are often away from home.
• You camp/hike/backpack and need to filter water from rivers or lakes.
• You want a filtered water bottle for your 72-hour emergency kit.
• You want to keep a filtered water bottle in your car for emergencies.
  

Packaging

• The water bottles arrived at my door in a cardboard box stuffed with newspaper. The bottles themselves are encased in a biodegradable baggie. Personally, I'm not a fan of bioplastics and think the bottles would be just fine shipping without the baggies. The sports caps are individually packaged in regular plastic.
  

Materials

• All EcoUsable bottles are made of 304 food grade stainless steel and can be recycled at the end of their lives. Unlike aluminum bottles, stainless steel bottles do not leach and require no inner lining. The caps are made of #5 BPA-free plastic. On the bottom of each bottle is a non-slip pad made of non-toxic ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) - check out Healthy Child Healthy World for more info on EVA. The Water Wrapz are 70% polyester and 30% natural latex rubber.
  

Manufacturing

• EcoUsable bottles are made in China, although the Ech2o filters are produced in the U.S. Regarding manufacturing, EcoUsable says:

To keep prices affordable we responsibly produce our bottles in China. We have an experienced and dependable team in China that visits the manufacturing facility on a regular basis. Our factory staff are all over 19 years of age, paid competitive wages for the area, and have a safe working environment. We hand inspect each shipment to ensure that EcoUsable's high quality standard is maintained. You can rest assured that we work in a socially responsible manner to bring you the highest quality bottle at a reasonable price.

Quality

• Stainless steel is a long-lasting, durable material, and both the standard bottles and the Ech2o seem well-constructed. However, unless you are ultra careful, expect that your bottle will get dents and scuffs.
  

Affordability

• The standard bottles range in price from $12.50 to $18.50, a typical price for a good stainless steel water bottle. As I already mentioned, the 25 oz. Ech2o bottles are very pricey at $40 each. (Unfortunately, I don't have the price on the 18 oz. bottles.) I personally think the Ech2o is less of an everyday use bottle and more of a special occasion bottle for situations like camping, hiking, backpacking, and emergencies.
  

Availability

• EcoUsable bottles are available in 1,500 retail stores nationwide and of course online at ecousable.com. You can also purchase bottles branded with your group's logo for fundraising and promotional purposes.

Visit ecousable.com for more information and to purchase your own EcoUsable bottles!

GIVEAWAY

EcoUsable sent me everything but the kitchen sink for this giveaway. I have a 33 oz. standard bottle, two 16 oz. standard bottles, one 10 oz. standard bottle, one 25 oz. Ech2o, two 18 oz. Ech2os, five Water Wrapz, and two sports caps.

So that means, lucky readers, that there will be two winners of this giveaway! The first place winner will get his/her choice of four water bottles, three wrapz, and one sports cap. The second place winner will get what's left (including three water bottles, two wrapz, and one sports cap).

To enter:

• Leave a comment on this post stating why you use a reusable water bottle. If you haven't switched to a reusable bottle yet, you can say why you want to switch.
  

• You can earn up to two extra entries by sharing this post on Facebook or tweeting it on Twitter and then leaving a comment for each thing that you do. This is completely based on the honor system, and remember that each comment is a separate entry.
  

You have until next Thursday, February 18 to enter. I'll randomly select two winners and announce the results next Friday. Good luck!

Comments are closed. The 1st place winner is DownDoggin in MN, who wrote:

I use a reusable water bottle because it's better for the planet, easy, cheap, and I can't see any reason not to. Here's my two cents for the day; you can fill them 3/4 of the way, throw them in the freezer and use them to keep you cooler cold on camping trips, when the ice melts you have extra drinking water...and I fill my bottle up at gas stations using the soda machines, nine out of ten times there's a water tab on them. It's an easy way to continue using your bottle without having to fill it in the gas station bathroom and it's free :)

The 2nd place winner is Wonder-ful, who wrote:

I was just talking to my grandma about trying a reusable water bottle. I have a stainless steel one that when filled with water from the fridge, keeps is very very cold for a long time.

She uses plastic bottles and insists on having them kept in the fridge to ensure that the water is cold at any given point in time.

My arguement is that by getting her a bottle that miraculously keeps water cold for hours at a time we'd be saving a butt-load of money and our sanity (as we're the ones going back and fourth between her and the fridge)

I'm entering for her.

Congratulations to both of you! Please email me with your address to consciousshopperblog [at] gmail [dot] com.

If you don't win this giveaway, don't worry...all is not lost. You can use the coupon code ECO10 to receive 10 percent off of the purchase of your very own EcoUsable water bottle.

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• Disclosure: EcoUsable sent me several water bottles to be able to write this review but did not compensate me in any other way. Most of the information in this review comes from EcoUsable's website, but the opinions are entirely my own.