You carry it to work. Take it to the gym. Leave it in the car. Refill it throughout the day.
But when was the last time you actually cleaned every part of your reusable water bottle?
What if you could actually reach the bottom?
Tricube separates so you can access the interior directly, no reaching through a narrow bottle opening.
One widely reported consumer test found that reusable water bottles contained an average of 20.8 million colony-forming units (CFUs) of bacteria—and, in that particular test, roughly 40,000 times the amount measured on a toilet seat. Water Filter Guru
That comparison makes for an alarming headline, but there's an important distinction: the testing was commissioned by WaterFilterGuru and wasn't an FDA study or peer-reviewed scientific research.
The broader issue, however, is supported by published research: reusable bottles can accumulate microorganisms when they're repeatedly used without being thoroughly cleaned. IAFP
And that raises a surprisingly simple question:
How easy is your water bottle to actually clean?
The Problem Isn't Just Washing Your Bottle. It's Reaching It.
Most reusable water bottles are built essentially the same way: a long, enclosed container with an opening at the top.
That's great for holding water.
It's not necessarily ideal when you're trying to reach every interior surface.
Depending on the bottle, cleaning the bottom and interior walls can mean maneuvering a bottle brush through the opening and hoping you're reaching everything.
Then there are the other areas that need attention: the lid, threads, seals, drinking surfaces and other components that regularly come into contact with your hands, mouth, water and the outside world.
Research published in Food Protection Trends examined reusable water bottles already in use and found notable microbial contamination. The researchers also found that contamination could be affected by factors including cleaning behavior, refill frequency, beverage type and bottle material.
In other words, owning a reusable bottle is only part of the equation.
You still have to be able to clean it.
What Happens When You Keep Refilling Without Cleaning?
Every time you drink directly from a bottle, refill it, touch the lid or carry it throughout your day, there's another opportunity for microorganisms to make their way onto or into it.
And a bottle is regularly exposed to moisture.
A 2024 study examined microbial populations inside everyday stainless-steel and PET water bottles. Researchers detected microbial loads in both types and found that washing significantly reduced those levels. PubMed
Research has also examined how cleaning frequency may affect bacterial levels in personal stainless-steel water bottles, although findings on the relationship between cleaning intervals and bacterial counts have not always been statistically significant. BCIT
The takeaway isn't that reusable water bottles are inherently dirty.
It's much simpler:
Reusable means reusable. It doesn't mean self-cleaning.
So, How Often Should You Clean Your Water Bottle?
If you're using your bottle every day, cleaning shouldn't be something you wait weeks to think about.
Regular washing with soap and water helps remove the buildup that can accumulate through everyday use. It's also worth paying attention to more than the main body of the bottle.
Clean the:
- Interior walls and bottom
- Drinking surface
- Lid
- Threads
- Sealing rings and other removable components
And allow components to dry thoroughly before reassembling when possible.
The exact care instructions for your bottle should always take priority, since materials and components differ from product to product.
There's Another Problem: Most Bottles Were Designed to Stay Together
This is where we started asking a different question.
Instead of designing another bottle and then figuring out how someone could clean deep inside it, what if the bottle itself could come apart?
That idea became part of the foundation for Tricube.
Rather than one permanently enclosed body, Tricube is constructed from separable sections.
Twist. Separate. Clean. Reassemble.
Taking the bottle apart gives you direct access to areas that would otherwise sit deep inside a conventional bottle.
No blindly reaching toward the bottom.
No wondering whether your brush actually touched that spot.
Just a bottle designed around the reality that something you drink from every day should also be practical to clean.
Designed to Come Apart
The ability to separate Tricube wasn't added simply to make the bottle look different.
It's fundamental to how the product works.
The modular construction allows you to configure the bottle in different ways, swap compatible sections between colors, use the lower section as a cup and importantly, take the bottle apart for more accessible cleaning.
It's one design decision solving several everyday problems.
Because when you're designing something meant to be used over and over again, how you clean it shouldn't be an afterthought.
A Better Bottle Starts With Better Access
Reusable bottles aren't going anywhere and that's a good thing.
But the conversation shouldn't stop at what a bottle is made from, how much water it holds or how long it can keep a drink cold.
We should also be asking:
Can I actually reach the inside?
For us, the answer needed to be yes.
TRICUBE
One bottle. More possibilities.
Patent Pending.