Is it safe to reuse glass (Gerolsteiner) water bottles

[the11diesel]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

[123]

I think in many cases products and containers produced/used in Europe adhere to higher health and safety standards than those in the US. I wouldn't worry about them.

[Teague]

Back in the old days soda, milk, orange juice, and other things came in glass bottles that were sent back to the bottling plant, cleaned, and reused. It was the norm.

I know of no evidence that this practice caused harm or problenns with our metnal develobment.

[dbr]

You should probably research how to clean and sterilize glass bottles. Then you are good to go.

[barnaclebob]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

The first of the 3 R's is Reduce, as in Reduce consumption/need for new products. I would question why someone is buying mineral water in energy intensive glass bottles that have been shipped around the globe.

[OrderAndChaos]

It's done all the time in Germany, where Gerolsteiner originates. Bottles designed to be re-used are called "Mehrwegflasche" and are returned to a store to get your deposit (Pfand) back. These bottles (plastic and glass) are usually much sturdier than traditional beverage bottles designed to be recycled.

I doubt the bottles sold in the US are designed to be re-used on the same scale as the German variants, but for home use I wouldn't think you would have any issues.

[OrderAndChaos]

I know of no evidence that this practice caused harm or problenns with our metnal develobment.

Not sure if this is or

[wolf359]

I wash and re-use both glass and plastic bottles. I'm much more concerned about the plastic, and will dispose of those more quickly. Glass is much more durable, and I'm not worried about chemical breakdown in those. If it was originally used for food/drink products, it's probably okay for food/drink if you wash and occasionally sterilize it.

If it was used for pesticides, herbicides, or automotive products, don't drink out of it.

[whomever]

Lessee ... if you drop one, don't step on the pieces.

If they are made from leaded glass or whatever, then refilling them with water will have exactly the same risks as drinking from them originally.

As far as washing/sterilizing ... we just rinse and put new tap water in plastic soda bottles, our nalgene hiking water bottles, etc. We're going on five decades of doing so without any problems yet.

[iamlucky13]

It's not really different than re-using a drinking glass, except there is also a cap to wash.

When I wash bottles for re-use, if they have a narrow neck, I don't generally run them in the dishwasher. I put a drop of detergent in them, fill them half way with warm water, shake for 10-15 seconds with the cap on, then rinse them a few times to remove the soap.

I don't wash them every time if I'm just using them for water.

[UpperNwGuy]

When I wash bottles for re-use, if they have a narrow neck, I don't generally run them in the dishwasher. I put a drop of detergent in them, fill them half way with warm water, shake for 10-15 seconds with the cap on, then rinse them a few times to remove the soap.

+1

[Thesaints]

It is safe if you sterilize them from time to time (high temp wagter, or disinfectant). Simply washing them with soap (or never washing them) will eventually cause mold to grow on the inside.

[atikovi]

I buy gallon containers of Arizona Ice Tea and transfer it to their 42oz plastic bottle to drink from. Rinse it out maybe every tenth refill. Still alive.

[Watty]

It would be better to just get a wide mouth bottle that you can run through the dishwasher.

[Trader Joe]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

For myself, I would recycle or just toss in the garbage.

[bryanm]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

For myself, I would recycle or just toss in the garbage.

Yes, but you're just interested in driving sales.

[Starfish]

Only in America you get these questions....
Yes, any bottle can be reused, glass or plastic but especially glass which has infinite life. I find beyond ridiculous that people buy 10$ empty bottles while trowing hundreds of other empty bottles.

[Starfish]

You should probably research how to clean and sterilize glass bottles. Then you are good to go.

Do you sterilize you plates and glasses?

[mmcmonster]

[...]
Still alive.

Clearly survivorship bias.

[hicabob]

It is safe if you sterilize them from time to time (high temp wagter, or disinfectant). Simply washing them with soap (or never washing them) will eventually cause mold to grow on the inside.

I have been cleaning my Nalgene gym bottle 100's of times by shaking it vigorously(with h20 in) , rinsing it, then refilling it. No mold, no slime and water still tastes great. I just fill it with plain water though which is important.

[Thesaints]

Yep. That's precisely why nalgene is used (besides not shattering when dropped, of course)

[dbr]

You should probably research how to clean and sterilize glass bottles. Then you are good to go.

Do you sterilize you plates and glasses?

It really depends on the use. If I were just grabbing a bottle to carry water around in my car it would be overkill. If I were bottling homemade beverages or syrups or something I would. I think most people putting up jams and jellies and canning sterilize the jars. Reusing glass bottles and jars used to be standard in any kitchen including sterilizing the containers.

[Starfish]

You should probably research how to clean and sterilize glass bottles. Then you are good to go.

Do you sterilize you plates and glasses?

It really depends on the use. If I were just grabbing a bottle to carry water around in my car it would be overkill. If I were bottling homemade beverages or syrups or something I would. I think most people putting up jams and jellies and canning sterilize the jars. Reusing glass bottles and jars used to be standard in any kitchen including sterilizing the containers.

My bad, I completely agree: for bottling, pickles, preserves etc sterilization is absolutely necessary.

[DoubleClick]

I know of no evidence that this practice caused harm or problenns with our metnal develobment.

Hahahah. Nice!

[scintillator]

I've noticed that when reusing glass bottles that were filled with consumer mineral water (Perrier, S. Pellegrino), after a week or so the metal cap and the threads at the mouth develop a blackish residue. It may be mold, but it's pretty tenacious when trying to clean it off. You can scrape at it with your fingernail or rub it hard with a paper towel, and it will continue transferring residue after countless passes. I don't know if it's the cheap metal caps that cause this or what, but after noting that every glass bottle I used for more than a week developed this residue, I switched to cheap plastic bottles. I don't know that anything is safe, but your liver and blood–brain barrier probably provide some protection. Even metal bottles are probably made with cheap cadmium-leeching Chinese steel and you'd never know. You can't win.

[ByThePond]

Sure.
I have wine bottles that I have been triple-rinsing and reusing for 40 years.(cork type) Never a case of spoilage or illness of any kind. Some people do caution about reusing screw on caps, though, as they may not seal properly eventually.
Don't forget to clean the caps and bottle threads, especially if you drank from the bottle directly.

[hilink73]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

Wow, that's what I grew up with in Germany, although the bottles had a different shape 30 years ago...

(Edit) Found it: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normbrunnenflasche

Introduced by 142 mineral water companies in Germany in 1969. That's 50 years ago!
The bottle can be traded in in every store and because of the same shape, it can be used be all mineral water companies using this type of bottle.
The bottles are reused about 50 times.

Also, I do drink tap water, of which the quality is at least as good as bottled water (in Germany and Switzerland). No need to buy bottled water here. Until you need gas in it....

[ram]

You should probably research how to clean and sterilize glass bottles. Then you are good to go.

I do not see a need to sterilize glass bottles used for drinking water.

If they were to be used for storing a fluid that was going to be given through the veins then certainly sterilization is warranted.

[willthrill81]

You should probably research how to clean and sterilize glass bottles. Then you are good to go.

Do you sterilize you plates and glasses?

It really depends on the use. If I were just grabbing a bottle to carry water around in my car it would be overkill. If I were bottling homemade beverages or syrups or something I would. I think most people putting up jams and jellies and canning sterilize the jars. Reusing glass bottles and jars used to be standard in any kitchen including sterilizing the containers.

That's true, but nobody is going to put jams and jellies into a drinking water glass bottle. Jars are used for that purpose.

Many places in the world use glass bottles for other uses though.


https://c8.alamy.com/comp/B2C13C/typica ... B2C13C.jpg

[AlphaLess]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

The first of the 3 R's is Reduce, as in Reduce consumption/need for new products. I would question why someone is buying mineral water in energy intensive glass bottles that have been shipped around the globe.

BOOM!

There is such a thing as tap water, you know.

[Trism]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

The first of the 3 R's is Reduce, as in Reduce consumption/need for new products. I would question why someone is buying mineral water in energy intensive glass bottles that have been shipped around the globe.

I don't think it's complicated. S/he enjoys the water.

[Arlington2019]

I am a homebrewer and consistently reuse my 12 and 22 oz. glass bottles. I run them through the regular dishwasher with detergent and then run them again through the high-temp wash/rinse without detergent to sanitize them and ensure all traces of soap are removed.

[finite_difference]

Back in the old days soda, milk, orange juice, and other things came in glass bottles that were sent back to the bottling plant, cleaned, and reused. It was the norm.

I know of no evidence that this practice caused harm or problenns with our metnal develobment.

I see what you did there.

If it’s glass, I think it should be fine to re-use.

[Startingover2019]

You should probably research how to clean and sterilize glass bottles. Then you are good to go.

Do you sterilize you plates and glasses?

Hahaha

[Startingover2019]

Hey all,

I drink quite a bit of Gerolsteiner, so I have a bunch of empty bottles. I could recycle them, etc., but I'd rather reuse them (in the name of reduce, REUSE, recycle). I'm specifically talking about these bottles (I buy them from Trader Joe's for best price):

https://www.instacart.com/products/8728 ... er-25-3-oz

Is there anything safety-wise I should be concerned with?

I did some research online, but didn't find anything conclusive. Thanks in advance for thoughts/comments.

Best,
RJ

The first of the 3 R's is Reduce, as in Reduce consumption/need for new products. I would question why someone is buying mineral water in energy intensive glass bottles that have been shipped around the globe.

BOOM!

There is such a thing as tap water, you know.

Depends on where you live. Some tap water is outright disgusting.
That being said, I am a firm believer in buying the large five gallon reusable containers instead of individual plastic bottles for water. I wish I could get my family to stop buying and throwing away all that plastic which they refuse to recycle. Drives me bananas.

[LittleMaggieMae]

People reuse glass bottles all the time - home brewers, home made wine... and in the olden days soda - I remember going to the local "bottling" company with my Dad and a case of empty soda bottles - on the weekend to get a case of freshly bottled 1 quart sodas (various flavors) in bottles in a wooden crate. I liked Black Cherry soda the best We'd give back the empty bottles and crate and get filled bottles and a crate.

I would think the glass bottles are safe to re-use with this caveat.
if you are drinking directly from the bottle - you will want to thoroughly wash them - maybe "sterilize" them - your tap water may be hot enough to do it (don't get me started on waterheater temps...) OR you may be able to just wash the bottles and then run them thru your dishwasher.

You could probably google how home brewers sterilize their bottles for some extra tips or a better way to do it.