Overall Score
- Ease of Use 85%
- Durability 90%
- Seal 75%
- Maintenance 100%
- Insulation 20%
Key Takeaways
Ergonomic and lightweight
The design makes this larger, 32oz bottle easy to use and carry.
Functional Straw Design
Opening and closing the Wave is a simple and sanitary process.
Easy Maintenance
The bottle is dishwasher safe or can be easily hand cleaned with a bottle brush.
(No Badges)
Interested in Buying?
Overview
In the water bottle world, EcoVessel might not be as well known as Yeti and Hydro Flask, but based on our experience with The Wave, we think they have the potential to be considered among the top tier of competitors in the space. A little background on the brand: EcoVessel has been around for 10+ years. In addition to water bottles, EcoVessel sells other drinking vessels like mugs and tumblers as well as food storage containers. Our readers will appreciate that EcoVessel donates 5% of their sales proceeds to nonprofits and 1% to environmental causes through 1% for the Planet. These are meaningful gestures and say a lot about this company’s mission and brand.
The HydrationReview team had great feedback for the EcoVessel Wave. In one way or another, our reviewers gave praise for the bottle’s combination of size (32oz), narrow form and easy maintenance. If you’re someone who prefers drinking from a straw, this is a really great product to add to your collection. For those readers who don’t typically drink from a straw bottle, we highly encourage you to read on and give this bottle a chance. This could very well be the bottle that converts you over to a straw top.
Ease of Use
The EcoVessel Wave can be your hydration solution across a variety of use cases. At 32oz, this bottle falls on the larger end of the size scale making it perfect for extended activities. One of our testers quickly took a liking for this bottle and declared it her favorite bottle tested to date after only 2 days of use! She particularly liked the narrow form (made it easy for her to grab) and the larger size that came without the weight. She noted how easy it was to commute with the bottle to her office (it fits in a car cup holder), and how she didn’t need to stop and refill it often as she went from meeting to meeting.
But the office isn’t the only place you’ll enjoy using this bottle. HydrationReview testers had positive experiences using the EcoVessel Wave during activities ranging from a Saturday morning hike to an extended 200 ball round at the driving range.
The straw components on The Wave are well designed and made with high quality materials. Starting with the mouthpiece, our team found it easy to flip the straw up with one finger without making direct contact with the part that enters the mouth. This is a nice feature especially for those who might have dirty hands and want to avoid the spread of germs (gym-goers take note). The edge of the mouthpiece is reinforced with a blue silicon-like material that will absorb any bites if that’s your drinking style. It also adds a nice color contrast. Moving down, the part of the straw that enters the vessel is quite flexible and frankly, more durable than most other straws we’ve seen. While we don’t have hard evidence to confirm it will last longer than other straws, we’re fairly confident of this based on the material quality.
As previously mentioned, the lightweight plastic construction of this bottle makes The Wave particularly portable. While any size hand can easily wrap around the body of the vessel, users may also carry this bottle from the handle built into the cap. The handle comfortably fits 2 fingers and even comes with an ergonomic strip of rubber that acts as a cushion for the holder’s fingers. Has a 32oz bottle ever been easier to carry around?
Durability
Made of BPA-free Tritan, the EcoVessel Wave can put up with the most rugged lifestyles. Tritan is a lightweight, impact-resistant plastic that effectively extends the usable life of a product. As with other Tritan bottles we’ve tested in the past such as the Nalgene Wide Mouth and the Camelbak Eddy+, a firm grip of the EcoVessel Wave barely flexes the plastic. This stuff is strong.
Our testers reported that dropping the bottle from waist and counter height onto hard surfaces resulted in little to no damage. On one occasion, the EcoVessel Wave was “accidently” dropped down a flight of stairs (all for the purposes of a thorough review) resulting in only a few scratches to the cap. Over the course of the testing period, there were other minor scratches found on the vessel, but these were less visible once filled with water. Separate from the “accidental” drops, testers reported additional minor scratches and scuffs to the bottle top during normal use, none of which were highly visible thanks to the high density plastic material.
While this might be obvious, we wanted to point out that the EcoVessel won’t sustain any dents from dropping, a benefit you get when only from a plastic bottle. We speak from experience and know how annoying it can be when using a stainless steel bottle that wobbles after the bottom has been dented from a fall.
Seal
Like most other straw top bottles, the EcoVessel Wave requires additional user diligence to prevent leakage. As noted by the manufacturer, the bottle will leak if the straw is left open and the bottle is positioned on its side or upside down. We tested this ourselves; there’s a small opening on the cap that allows for air exchange (when a user is drinking water out of the straw) and even though it’s a small opening, with enough time you’ll find that most of the bottle contents can pass through. If you plan on stowing your Wave in a backpack or purse, be sure to make the straw check part of your packing routine.
For readers who avoid straw top bottles to avoid the risk of spills, here’s a helpful tip from one the HydrationReview testers about his experience using the EcoVessel Wave:
“I primarily get around the city on a bike and keep all my personal belongings in my backpack. For this reason, I prefer bottles with screw-on lids so I can tighten them up and not worry about my laptop and other stuff getting wet…When testing the EcoVessel I found I could keep the bottle in a secure, straight up position if I packed my other stuff around it. It’s a very tall bottle, so I could bury most of the bottle with my other stuff and feel confident that it wouldn’t shift around… Taking it out for a sip was easy with the big handle on top… I would slip it back into place in my backpack when done.”
This best practice should be followed any time you are packing a bottle in a bag. In this case, the tester felt extra comfortable securing the EcoVessel given its height.
Maintenance
The all-plastic construction of the EcoVessel Wave makes maintenance easy. The primary way this bottle was cleaned during testing was in the dishwasher. Our team found the vessel and straw cap would get a good cleaning in the top rack. A weekly hand wash with a bottle scrubber is probably a good idea, but not required. As with any straw bottle, make sure you put in the effort to thoroughly clean the straw. For this model, a narrow straw brush will do the trick.
Insulation
Like other plastic bottles we’ve tested, the EcoVessel Wave didn’t keep water cold for a long period of time. During the insulation test, the water inside the EcoVessel warmed from 33.4°F to 57.7°F in just two hours. At the four hour mark, the water was nearly at room temperature. Several of our reviewers got around this by adding ice to their EcoVessel before heading out of their homes. Be ready for some condensation if you choose to do this, but you get the benefit of cooler water later into your day.
Overall, our reviewers found the insulation shortcomings to be outweighed by the light weight, large capacity and other great features of this bottle.
Interested in Buying?
Go Deeper
Related Reviews
Yomious Water Bottles Review
A lightweight glass bottle great for around the house or office.
Corkcicle Sport Canteen Water Bottle Review
A surprisingly functional bottle with a number of unique features that actually work.
Yeti Rambler Water Bottle Review
A classic water bottle that deserves its reputation as a hard working and functional.
Stay Updated (and Hydrated)