Water bottle at the office: how to drink enough at work
Coffee in the morning, then three meetings in a row, and suddenly it's 3 pm and the glass of water is still standing untouched in the kitchenette. A water bottle at the office solves exactly this problem: it stands where you work, comes with you into the meeting room and keeps your tea warm for hours. This guide is about the office away from home – from commuting with a laptop in your bag and the place on your desk to the question of where you actually wash the bottle.
Contents12
- Why your own bottle helps at the office
- The way to the office: bottle, laptop and papers
- The right place on your office desk
- Tea and coffee throughout the office day
- Dry air at the office
- The bottle in meetings
- Reminders that work at the office
- Hygiene at the office
- Which bottle suits the office?
- After work: straight on
- Conclusion
- Frequently asked questions
Why your own bottle helps at the office
In everyday office life, it's easy to forget to drink. The walk to the office kitchen is a small hurdle that you don't take during focused phases. A bottle within reach lowers this hurdle to zero. There are also a few practical advantages:
- No glass to knock over: A tightly closed screw cap protects your keyboard and papers.
- Your own drinks: Your favourite tea or coffee from home instead of vending machine coffee.
- Fewer trips: 500 ml lasts quite a while before you need to refill.
- Temperature for hours: According to the manufacturer, our IZY bottles keep drinks hot for up to 12 hours and cold for up to 24 hours.
The way to the office: bottle, laptop and papers
Before the bottle stands on your desk, it has to get there – often in the same bag as your laptop, charging cable and papers. Two things are decisive:
Leak-proof
A screw cap that closes tightly is a must. According to the product description, both of our IZY bottles have a leak-proof screw cap. Tip: before packing, quickly check that the lid is screwed on straight, and carry the bottle upright in a side pocket.
Dry on the outside
Cold drinks in single-walled bottles “sweat”: condensation forms on the outside and makes paper wavy. With our IZY bottles, according to the manufacturer, the insulation prevents condensation on the outside. For the “La Dolce Vita”, the description expressly states that it stays dry and pleasantly tempered on the outside and can also go in your bag next to your phone or papers.
The right place on your office desk
- Not right next to the keyboard. Put the bottle on the side of your drinking hand, a little away from the laptop and cables.
- In sight. What you see, you drink. In the drawer, the bottle gets forgotten.
- Always closed when you're not drinking. Especially when colleagues stop by and papers are passed across the desk.
- A fixed place in the open-plan office. With changing workstations, the bottle is one of the things you unpack first in the morning.
Tea and coffee throughout the office day
An insulated bottle replaces the vacuum jug in the kitchenette. This is what a typical day might look like:
| Time | In the bottle | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Morning at home | Freshly brewed tea | Remove tea bags or leaves after steeping, then fill |
| Mid-morning | Tea, still hot | Pour into a cup and let it cool briefly |
| Lunchtime | Finish the rest, refill with water | Rinse briefly before you switch |
| Afternoon | Water, perhaps with lemon | Stays cool in the insulated bottle |
| End of the working day | empty, take it home | Wash in the evening and let it dry open |
If you have two bottles, you can fill one with tea and one with cold water in the morning. That saves switching at lunchtime.
Dry air at the office
In winter the heating is on, in summer often the air conditioning. Both result in rather dry room air in many offices, which can feel unpleasant – for example dry lips or a scratchy feeling in the throat. A bottle within reach reminds you to drink something in between. A warm herbal tea is often found pleasant on cold days, cool water on hot days. If complaints persist, seek medical advice.
The bottle in meetings
Meetings are the moments when people drink least. Simply take the bottle with you:
- It is closed and doesn't tip over on the conference table like a paper cup.
- You don't have to get up in between to fetch something.
- A sip between two contributions is hardly noticeable.
- In video calls, it stands out of shot next to the laptop.
Reminders that work at the office
How much someone should drink is individual. For health questions about this, talk to your doctor. To make sure you reach for the bottle regularly at all, small anchors in your daily routine help:
- After every round of emails take a sip.
- Before every meeting lift the bottle once – is it still half full?
- Every time you go to the toilet, refill in the kitchenette on the way back.
- At lunchtime empty the bottle completely once and refill it.
Hygiene at the office
A bottle that is only topped up for a week will start to smell at some point. And in a kitchenette with many hands, order and cleanliness matter all the more.
- Your own bottle, don't share. That applies within the team, too.
- Wash it daily. The easiest way is to take the bottle home in the evening and wash it there.
- Wash it by hand at the office. The dishwasher in the kitchenette is off limits for our IZY bottles: the manufacturer recommends hand washing with warm water and mild washing-up liquid, so that the surface and the insulation stay protected.
- A small bottle brush in your desk drawer makes washing on site easy.
- Don't leave it over the weekend. Empty it on Friday evening, take it home or leave it open on the draining rack.
- Make it recognisable. An eye-catching design helps so that the bottle doesn't get mixed up in the kitchenette.
Which bottle suits the office?
A medium size has proven itself for the desk: big enough for half a day, small enough for your bag. Our two IZY bottles hold 500 ml each and, according to the manufacturer, are double-walled, made of rust-free stainless steel, BPA-free and taste-neutral – so yesterday's coffee doesn't taste through in today's water.
- IZY x Pip Studio “La Dolce Vita” thermos bottle – playful Pip Studio pattern, comes in a round gift tin. A nice little something for colleagues, too.
- IZY Bottles Van Gogh Flowers thermos bottle – colourful floral design inspired by Vincent van Gogh. Brings a little colour into grey office life.
You can find both in our IZY collection.
After work: straight on
If you have plans after work, you benefit from the insulation: tea brewed in the morning is often still warm in the early evening. For a spontaneous trip to the sauna after work, you'll find ideas in our article on the after-work sauna. And when it's hot outside, our article on the water bottle in summer will help.
Related reading: A water bottle for working from home: how to drink enough at home · Water bottle for your handbag: slim, tight and dry · Drink more water: 10 tips that really work in everyday life
Conclusion
A water bottle at the office is a small purchase with a big effect on everyday life: it stands within reach, comes into meetings with you and keeps tea or water at temperature for hours. Look for a leak-proof closure and a dry outside so that your laptop and papers are safe. Wash it daily – by hand for our IZY bottles – and don't leave it standing over the weekend, and it will remain your reliable companion.
Frequently asked questions
What size makes sense for the desk?
500 ml is a good middle ground: enough for half a working day and compact enough for your bag. Refilling in the kitchenette is usually no problem.
Can I pack the bottle in my bag next to my laptop?
With a leak-proof closure and an insulated bottle that doesn't mist up on the outside, yes. Carry it upright and check the lid beforehand.
Can the bottle go in the office kitchen dishwasher?
Not our IZY bottles. The manufacturer recommends hand washing with warm water and mild washing-up liquid.
Will tea stay warm until the end of the working day?
According to the manufacturer, our IZY bottles keep drinks hot for up to 12 hours. How warm it actually stays also depends on how often you open it.
How do I avoid forgetting to drink at the office?
Put the bottle visibly on your desk and link drinking to fixed moments – before every meeting or after every round of emails.
Personally written by Martin – founder of BeachAndSteam and sauna operator at Lake Kulkwitz for more than 18 years.