Cleaning hacks: 3 clever TikTok tricks for keeping your water bottles squeaky clean and smelling fresh

We take our water bottles with us everywhere. From home to work or school, often leaving them in the bag or car before refilling countless times without a second thought.

But how often do you actually empty your water bottle and give it a good wash?

You really should be cleaning your water bottle at the end of each day, otherwise you’re risking your health by allowing germs and even mould to fester.

And if you haven’t checked yours or your child’s water bottle all school holidays, this weekend is the time to do it before school starts back.

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According to testing by EmLab P & K reusable water bottles could have more germs than an average pet’s water bowl. What’s scarier is the cleanest bottle tested wasn’t much cleaner than an average toilet seat.

The easiest thing to do is wash your bottle with hot soapy water when you’re doing the nightly washing up. But if your bottle is too far gone though, with a yucky smell and mould build up you’ll need to go one step further.

Here are three hacks to help keep your water bottle in tip-top condition:

Remove bad smells

Carolina Mccauley is one of TikTok’s cleaning queens so of course she has a hack for making water bottles smell fresh again, which she shared in a video.

Watch the video above.

All you need to do is pop a denture tablet in your water bottle, fill it up with hot water and let it soak for 20 minutes. You can also do the same for the bottle lids by popping them in a bowl with the denture tablet and water.

Then finish by tipping them out, rinsing them and letting them dry.

And if you need any more convincing to clean your bottle, one of Carolina’s followers shared a warning in the comments of her TikTok video.

“Clean your bottles often! A friend got toxic shock syndrome and they linked the bacteria to her water bottle,” the woman posted.

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Get rid of mould

Seeing mould anywhere is awful enough, but it’s kind of horrifying when you spot at the bottom of a bottle you’ve been drinking out of.

It’s easier to clean than you think though according to professional organiser Anita Birges.

She uses uncooked rice to get right down into the bottle and scrub out the gunk.

“Pour half a cup of uncooked rice into your water bottle. Squeeze a small amount of dishwashing liquid, top up with half a cup of water, put the lid on and shake, shake, shake,” Anita explained in a TikTok video.

To get the rice out easily she empties the water bottle into a colander over the sink.

The final step is to rinse the thoroughly and you’ll have a “spotlessly clean water bottle”.

Dry water bottles thoroughly

No cleaning hack will work if you don’t let your water bottle completely dry before putting the lid back on and storing it in the cupboard.

But water bottles are as hard to dry as they are to clean because of their awkward shape.

The main thing you need to ensure is good air flow, which is tricky even with a dish drainer.

TikToker Liz Fenwick has a hack for that.

She uses an elevated wire storage rack like this $6 one from Catch.com.au, and turns it over so the legs are facing upwards. Then she pops each bottle on a leg, which allows it to drain easily and get plenty of air. It also means your bottles won’t fall over if knocked.

Tools you need for regular cleaning

Once your water bottle is in good condition again, keep it that way with daily washing. To help you get into all the nooks and crannies of a drink bottles, including plastic straws there are a few tools you need.

To clean the bottle, a bottle brush scrubber will help you really get in there and give it a good scrub.

For long mouthpieces and straws, invest in a small scrubbing brush, like the ones that come with reusable straw packs.

This cleaning set from Amazon is $14.99 for five different bottle brush sizes.

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