Wish List Status: A Design-y Water Bottle That Cleans Your, Uh, Water

I know, I was skeptical, too.

When’s the last time you washed your reusable water bottle? If you’re anything like me, you maybe, probably shouldn’t answer that. Because while, yes, I know I’m supposed to clean my water bottle on the daily to keep gross bacteria at bay (I even own one of these doodads for that exact job), it’s just one of those things that falls into the same category as flossing and laundering my bras: I don’t do them as often as I, erm, should.

Evidently, I’m not the only one with this decidedly first-world issue as Larq is a thing that not only exists, but is thriving. A Kickstarter success story, the San Francisco-based biz makes reusable water bottles that aren’t only ridiculously beautiful (tall minimalist silhouette, stainless-steel no-slip exterior, five on-trend colour-ways!), but are self-cleaning, too.

Each vessel uses proprietary UVC-LED technology that, with the click of a button, is meant to clean the inner surface of the bottle while also purifying the water within to eliminate any harmful and funky odour-causing bacteria. This ensures you can access drinkable water no matter where you are—not all of us are blessed with B.C. taps—and that that water stays clean and fresh for longer.

I know, I was skeptical, too. (Can you be both attractive and successful in such a formidable task in this lifetime?) But after a week of putting Larq to the test, I’m a believer. The bottle is indeed keeping my H₂O fresher and tastier for longer, and even comes with an “Adventure Mode” that purifies your water for a full three minutes as opposed to the default 60 seconds. (This is handy for times you’re filling up from more questionable sources, like when you’re hiking or camping, though the Larq definitely isn’t designed to be filtering the murky contents of your local lake or anything like that.)

It’s insulated to keep cold bevvies cold for 24 hours and hot ones hot for 12 hours, and one percent of every sale goes to 1% for the Planet to help improve access to clean drinking water for those who need it. Plus, did I mention how nice the bottle is to look at?

At $125, the Larq ain’t cheap but, since it recently became available at Chapters Indigo stores across Canada, it’s an item worth adding to your birthday, Christmas, anniversary or whatever-occasion-in-your-life-calls-for-gifts list. Or you could treat yo’self with minimal guilt—trust me, this is something that, in the long run, will pay for (and clean) itself. (Though it’s worth mentioning that you do still need to wash the cap on your own.)