Three-Minute Thermos

Like hot drinks and recycling? Make a tea cozy from rubbish in the time it takes to boil a kettle!

This is a pretty quick and simple instructable, so let's dive right into it.

You will need:
-A glass bottle with a screw on top, such as IBC rootbeer.
-A plastic 2L soda bottle
-Paper towels
-A knife and/or a sharp pair of scissors (If you are a young Do-It-Yourselfer, ask a parent or someone else who is responsible with sharp objects to do the cutting for you)

Optional: Aluminum Foil

If you like it, show your appreciation and vote!


Disclaim-o-Rama:
-Knives and scissors are sharp! Do not cut toward self. Do not lick blades. Do not ingest plastic trimmings.
-Hot beverages are hot. Wait till it is not scalding before drinking it. Do not spill hot drinks on your legs/arms/torso/crotch/etc.
-Use common sense! If some part of the back of your brain is saying "That's a bad idea," it probably is! Don't do it!

Step 1: Wash the glass bottle

You know what they say, cleanliness is next to godliness. If you are an atheist or a college student, you may skip this step.

Wash out the glass bottle with hot soapy water.

Comments

[nutsandbolts_64]

 How long does it keep warm, let's say, 2 cups of 100 degree Celsius (212 Fahrenheit)? 

[qwertyboy]

how do you wash it?

[cowscankill]

Take it a part and wash the pieces? How else?

[Gorfram]

Having personally studied the effects of low thermal expansion coefficients in brittle materials, sometimes right in my very own kitchen and to the accompaniment of loud percussive noises (not to mention loud and extremely percussive words), I'd suggest adding a note to step 7 about making sure that the glass bottle hasn't just been in fridge, freezer, or some other rather cold place. Maybe you might also want to suggest stopping to swirl the first couple ounces of just-off-the-boil beverage around in the glass bottle before continuing to fill.

[sumrandom1]

going for that 100 internet points, it would bring my overall total to 100, "you can use your snotty tissue here if you want more insulation, but a paper towel used or new works just as well, snot not shown in diagram" waiting patiently for internet points, is there partial credit?

[DeusXMachina]

You get 99 points because I'm using the same idea, modified slightly. Go tell someone they are wrong on the internet ;-)

[cyna920]

i did this and used plastic bags for the insulation. works great ! thanks for the tip.

[Rokko8652]

Nice idea! I love tea myself, but one thing i dont like, its just how much it would hold! I take large swigs of whatever drink, so that is like 5 gulps for me : D

[artquilter]

So it's not hot beer then? ;-)

[sgsidekick]

Very funny comments in the mouseovers and instructions. I like your "bottle nest" (going for the 100 internet points) This was fun to read.

[madhops0620]

"~~Do not~~ lick blades~~

[daniel!]

qoute "You know what they say, cleanliness is next to godliness. If you are an atheist or a college student, you may skip this step" un qoute. lol i need to tell that to this guy that like stalks me and my friends he is an atheist. qoute "Do not lick blades" un qoute. aww come on, now what am i supposed to do with all the machetes i ordered for this step?

[moN1Ker]

I'm atheist, and I still believe in being clean. What does god have to do with washing?

[gizmology]

You must've missed the "cleanliness is next to godliness" comment in the previous sentence? 'Twas a JOKE. :)

[Valche]

Shhh.

[PKM]

An Instructable that can be entered in the keep the bottle competition and the keep warm competition? Gasp! Eek!

I made something similar for making clear ice with, but never thought about DIY thermoses (thermi? thermes?).

[DeusXMachina]

Yeah...I wasn't even trying to do an instructable...I just wanted tea to take to class. :-P. I guess that's where most neat things come from. Tea is the driving force behind all of civilization, from international trade routes opening up the spread of information, to defiance against British taxation. Plural is thermoses. I know, it doesn't sound right to me, either.

[PKM]

Tea is the driving force behind all of civilization

Amen, brother.

[DuctTapeRules!]

Tea is the driving force behind all of civilization: thirded! Copy and paste into your comment to expose the tea behind the government(s)!
Anyway, do you have to replace the stuffing of that every now and then? Or is what you used waterproof? Be useful if I start to nod off in tests :p...good work!
P.S: Green tea (not Lipton, ugh), +2 teaspoons of sugar (perferably brown) + half a lemon's worth of juice= pure JEANIOSS!

[DuctTapeRules!]

Woops, didn't notice that step with the beer bottle :D

[starwing123]

This isn't a real thermos, it doesn't use a vacuum to insulate heat.

[imshanedulong]

Who cares? It keeps things warm and that's all that matters. Now when a nerd like me gets mad at you for correcting some one, you know it was unneeded.

[rimar2000]

If you use aluminum sheet to wrap one of the bottles, the reflective surface will aid to preserve the heat (or the cold). Good work, but don't wait that the effectiveness will be great.

[DeusXMachina]

That's a great idea! It's funny because I'm studying the effects of black-body radiation in one of my classes right now.