Pros: The Platypus Bottle is durable and dispenses water without a plastic taste.  It is inexpensive.  I don’t recommend the Platypus Tank for use in kayaks.

Cons: The Bottle is hard to fill, hard to clean and hard to dry out between uses.  It abrades and looks dirty over time.

Yackman’s Rating: Recommended, with reservations.

Kayakers need compact, durable watertight containers to carry water on multi-day trips.  This is especially true when paddling on saltwater where the ability to re-supply fresh water may be limited.  I have previously reviewed MSR Dromadary Bags (LINK).  They are tough, watertight and mold to a kayak’s bilge.  However, they leave a nasty taste in the water that even brewed coffee can’t hide.  Playtpus bottles and bags leave no taste in the water.  The 70-ounce (2-litre) bottle packs well in hatches and usually fits behind the boat’s seat.  There are several problems with the Platypus bottle however. 

My main complaint is that the very narrow neck opening of the Platypus bottle makes it difficult to fill and even more difficult to empty, clean and dry after use.  Over time, some of my bags have acquired dirt and mold that I can’t seem to get out, making their use as a clean water source questionable.  Also, the scuffing and scraping the bags get in my hatches abrades the outer surface allowing it to pick up dirt.  This is just an appearance item but it certainly makes the water appear less appetizing. 

Platypus has tried to address this with the 210 ounce “Tank”.  The side of the tank opens along a sturdy Ziploc like closure.  This should make cleaning and drying the inside of the Tank a breeze.  However, I have never been willing to use a Platypus Tank on a kayak trip because of the extreme problem a failure of the zipper would cause.  Reviews of the Tank do not suggest that zipper failure is a problem.  However, the lighter plastic attached to the zipper does fail.  I’m not willing to take that risk.

Since the Platypus Bottles sell for about $7.00, I guess one solution would be to use them till they get nasty, toss them and buy replacements.  That would work, bit it’s not very Green.  There must be a better solution out there somewhere.