‘I’ve always wanted one,’ said sophomore Ben Gritzmaker in reference to Nalgene bottles.

Nalgene bottles are plastic water bottles that are different from the run-of-the-mill water bottle – they are extremely durable.

‘I have an orange Nalgene. It fell out of my car, and I rolled over it,’ said junior Lexie Beamer. ‘I figured I crushed it, but it survived.’

Beamer said that she doesn’t think Nalgenes are a craze even though a lot of students on campus carry them from class to class.

Sharon Weaver, a cashier at SBX, said the store doesn’t sell a large number of Nalgene bottles.

At the University Bookstore, Yvonne Stoner, the assistant director, said the Nalgene bottles are also not selling as well as they did 12 to 18 months ago.

The bottles have been sold at the University Bookstore for a couple of years, and Stoner believes the bottles to be more of a basic item to purchase than a novelty.

Caitlin Miekstyn, freshman, has a Nalgene with the University imprint. She carries a 32-ounce Nalgene because she drinks a lot of water and would go through a small bottle too quickly.

The only problem Miekstyn has with the large Nalgene bottle is that the mouth is really wide, so she frequently spills water on herself.

But Nalgene has created a fix to the problem – the Easy Sipper, which controls the flow of water out of the bottle.

The Nalgene bottle was created by scientists who were making polyethylene laboratory equipment. But in the 1970s, scientists from the lab started taking bottles out of the lab and using them for outdoor adventures, according to their Web site.

The trend caught on, and the Web site for Nalgene bottles provides suggestions for many uses. The wide-mouth bottles are suggested for leftover food, dry foods, soup, milk or fruit. The smaller bottles could be used for syrup, soap, pills or shampoo.

Even with all the uses for Nalgene bottles, Stefan Stolarchuck, sophomore, said he doesn’t see the need to have one.

‘I don’t have a Nalgene, and I’m doing quite well without it.’

But Stoner argues the bottles are well worth the price. The loop on the lid is a great addition so the bottle can be hooked onto a carabiner or clip and be attached to a backpack or messenger bag.

They are also much easier to be washed than a plastic bottle from a vending machine.

Nalgenes are also dishwasher safe on the top rack, as long as the top is kept away from the heating element.