8th March 2017

SIGG Bottle Temperature Test : HOT Test

frauhallo Product Reviews Product Review, SIGG, Thermal Imaging 1

PRODUCT IN TEST: SIGG Hot & Cold ONE Brushed 0.3 L

Back in December 2016, I was going out to meet a friend in Zurich city. It was definitely sub zero temperature when I waited for my bus in the cold. I yearned for a hot tea as soon as I boarded the bus. Then I knew that I wanted a thermos bottle – to hold hot drinks during winter and cold drinks during summer. Obviously I am not ashamed to say out loud what I really want for my birthday so I received this water bottle as a birthday gift. What can I say? I am a happy girl!

We used the bottle a few times since we have it. We are happy with the bottle thus far. One evening, I made tea in the bottle for Herr Hallo. He brought it to his appointment, came home and left the tea in the bottle overnight. The next morning, he opened the bottle and found the tea still warm. So, we decided to put the SIGG bottle to test because we have thermal imaging equipment in the office.

For this test, we used a simple thermal camera. The accuracy may have variance of ± 2 °C

THE BOTTLE

On the packaging box, it is written that the bottle could hold hot drinks (Coffee, Tea, Soup) for 9 hours and holds cold drinks (water, juices, carbonated & non-carbonated soft drinks) for 12 hours. The bottle is made of stainless steel, BPA free, it is leak proof, double walled vacuum insulation and comes with a removable tea filter. The bottle that I have is 0.3L but this bottle also comes with 0.5L.

Temperature measurement

Thermal image of SIGG bottle (water surface)

THERMAL IMAGING & SIDE NOTES

Thermal imaging is a non-intrusive temperature measurement. We did not insert a sensor in the water (which could influence the temperature of the water itself) during measurement. This contactless method comes at a price (not just moneywise). Every material has its own emissivity ε which you need to know if you want to measure absolute temperatures with a camera / IR-thermometer. Luckily water has a high emissivity (approx. 0.96) at 8 … 14 µm. And the the temperature can be measured without much effort.

A thermal image is nothing more than temperature values translated into color values.

With thermal imaging, we measure the temperature externally. Our camera only measures the surface of the water. Scientifically speaking, cold water sink in warm water because warmer water is less dense than cold water. During the test, we did not shake the bottle before measurement which means we were measuring on the hotter end.

NOTE: Scroll down for temperature graph.

Thermal Images

16 thermal images of open lid of the SIGG bottle (chronological from left to right, top to bottom ε=0.96)

Bottle was placed outdoor on test day. Temperature 4 °C

7th March, 2017 at 11:47

THE {HOT} TEST

This time around, we decided to do only the hot test. The cold test will likely be done during summer. As SIGG Switzerland boasted that the bottle could hold hot drinks for 9 hours, which is also the duration we tested the bottle. We will attach an interactive temperature graph at the end of the post.

We started the test on 7th of March at est. 10:22 until 19:59 at interval of around 30 minutes throughout this 9.5 hours. Measurement takes about 5-10 seconds each time.

CHRONOLOGY

10:22 – We filled the bottle from freshly boiled water. The temperature was 84 °C and bottle was placed indoor at room temperature of 18 – 20 °C.
11:26 – On normal days, we would be outdoor with the bottle. We decided to place the bottle outdoor to imitate a more realistic scenario. The outdoor temperature was 4 °C and the water temperature in the water was measured at 78.4 °C.
17:39 – The bottle was placed continuously outside from 11:26 until this time. The bottle was only brought indoor for measurements not more than 1 minute.
18:15 – 18:30 – Between this time, we finally got home from work and the bottle was placed indoor at room temperature of 18 – 20 °C.
19:59 – The last temperature measurement was taken at this time. The water temperature measured at 47 °C.

NOTE: Scroll down for temperature graph.

Water bottle was placed outdoor at 4°C to imitate a more realistic scenario.

THE VERDICT

Herr Hallo & I both agree that the bottle did a great job at holding the water temperature. Although it may seems like a huge temperature drop from the first measurement (84 °C) until the last measurement (47 °C). If you do the same test with a plastic bottle you will experience a much faster temperature drop. At 47 °C, it is the perfect temperature to drink your hot drinks that it doesn’t burn your lips. Given the fact that the bottle was placed outdoor for around 5.5 hours at 4 °C and the water in the bottle was still warm, this SIGG bottle does live up to what it says on the packaging box.

There is however a price to pay for good performance thermos bottle. Due to the double walled insulation, the size of the bottle is relatively big for the amount of liquid it could hold. The bottle measures at 25 x 6 x 6 cm and holds only 0.3 L of liquid.

I am happy with the size because it fits nicely in my day backpack. The bottle is of high Swiss quality. It looks good and easy to use. There is a locking mechanism which prevents accidentally spillage. In fact, we are planning to buy another one – the 0.5 L model.

Do play with the interactive graphs below. You could hover your mouse and check the temperature at the specific measurement time. Let us know what you think of this test/review – leave a comment below or email us!

x Frau Hallo