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FAQ

I have a question about soulbottles
My soulmate and carbonated drinks – does that work?

If you just can't resist the fizz in you life, make sure you leave some room for the gases. We recommend for you to not fill it up further than the shoulders of the bottle. Our soulbottles are able to resist a pressure of up to 3 bar, which is more than commonly used glass for carbonated drinks. However, that only applies for intact bottles. If you've dropped your bottle before or it's had to handle some hits, we can't guarantee that anymore.

What about tea?

As with all glass products and hot drinks it depends on the difference in temperature. We recommend for it to not be more than 40 degrees. What you can do is place your bottle in warm water to temper it before filling it up with tea. That also means that in order to fill it with boiling water, you would have to heat it up to 60 degrees...which is pretty cozy.

How do I best clean my soulmate?

Your soulmate loves water and even more enjoys rides in the dishwasher. Feel free to take your bottle apart for that. This video shows you how to best do that with the lid. Oh, your bottle has gold or silver printing? Since you don't want the shimmer and shine to go away, your soulmate is waiting for your touch. Or that of a brush with vegan tampico bristles made from agave...oh hang on, our soulbrush is made from them!

Spare parts

Your soulmate can be disassembled into all its individual parts. Every one of those you can exchange and renew. They are all available in our online shop.

My lid has a rough patch – is it defective?

No, that is the place where the lid was placed down after glazing it. The ceramic is open-pored here but afterwards it was kilned at over a thousand degrees. So no worries, it's all safe and sealed.
For our newer models we optimized that process together with our suppliers, so that now we have a ring on which it is placed after glazing.

How are soulbottles produced?

Our motto is: as local and sustainable as possible. We do not only pay attention to the materials and their origin, but also that we work together with suppliers that share our views and philosophy. Ones who we can rely on and keep developing and optimizing our bottles with. For example the glazing of our lids or the origin of the raw rubber material.

What happens with the 1€ donation for every soulbottle sold?

Because not all people have the luxury of clean water directly from the tap, we support drinking water projects worldwide. That is why for every soulbottle you buy, 1€ goes to Viva con Agua de Sankt Pauli e.V. and the WASH-Project (water sanitation hygiene) of the Welthungerhilfe.

What about the different designs?
Where do all the designs come from?

For our collection we work with designers from all over the world. Some designs have come from design contests, through request, or through friends and connections. We are always open for your ideas and suggestions. Send us an email!

Does the design rub off?

The ceramic silkscreen print on your soulbottles is burned on to it at around 700 degrees. It is acid-, leach-, and scratch-proof. We guarantee up to 500 washes in the dishwasher. Our metallic bottles with gold and silver are excluded in that guarantee.

Can I buy a plain soulbottle?

No, our soulmates always have a design printed on them. That is because we want every soulfriend to find their perfect soulmate and we spend a lot of time selecting the designs. Sometimes they're printed with all of the colors of the rainbow, and other times they have very simple designs. For example "einfach nur wasser". Maybe that's the one for you!

Why can't I find older designs on your website anymore?

The goal of our selection of designs is to offer a large range of different options to cater to everybody's needs. We have a high minimum order for our collection which is why we are restricted in the amount of designs that we carry. That is why from time to time older designs are replaced by new ones. It gives us the chance to share an even more varied collection of beautiful soulbottles with the world.

Why aren't all designs available in both sizes?

Take a look at the question above. Because of the limited amount of designs, we would rather go for a new design rather than "just" printing it on a different size. But hey: if you find 50 friends who are just as in love as you are with a design, you can custom order them. For that, contact b2b@soulbottles.com.

soulbottles steel
What are the measurements of the soulbottle steel? Let’s talk about size, baby!

Our soulbottle steel is 25,5 cm tall, has a diameter of 7,2 cm and weighs 488 g (412 g excluding the Cap). Like her sister from glass she can carry 600 ml.

Double wall insulation: Get ready for hot tea and cold smoothies!

The soulbottle steel has a double wall vacuum insulation. That means that it can keep hot tea warm or keep it cool and refreshing whenever you need it. How many hours exactly she manages to do that we cannot tell you yet - our internal and external testing phase had some variations in the results, as it can sometimes happen when launching something new. Feel free to help us out here and send us your experience, testing reviews or wishes for the future, so we can continuously develop the soulbottle steel and make it even better in the next batch!

How do the designs of the soulbottles steel come about?

Basic: To obtain an even surface, the steelbottle is polished at the end.
Industrial: In this case, the polishing process was simply dispensed with in production.
Utopia: The rainbow effect is created by a special coating. The stainless steel bottle is coated on the outside using a PVD (Physical Vapour Deposition) process. For those who want to know exactly: This is the deposition of ceramic hard material layers in a plasma process.
Convinced? Then go this way to get your soulbottle steel.

Why is the soulbottle steel more expensive than your glass bottles?

soulbottles from steel and glass have different prices. Why’s that? Just the material cost of stainless steel is higher than glass and the production is quite complex. That’s also reflected in the pricing of other companies. For us ecological sustainability and social responsibility are indispensable in everything we do; of course we bear the “higher” price as a consequence. Outsourcing real costs by exploiting people or the planet is never an option for soulful business!
As the form of the soulbottle steel is quite unique, our supplier had to reconfigure the machines and make new molds. A double wall steel bottle means in fact producing two bottles, that are then joined together to create vacuum insulation.
The last component of our pricing is the transportation from China to Germany: out of care for planetary resources, soulbottles steel travel the whole distance via train.

Which kind of stainless steel do you use? What about harmful substances, heavy metals or other scary pollutants?

Keep calm! The soulbottle steel is made from 18/8 stainless steel - 304 quality for the material nerds amongst us. The production process involves pickling, a procedure that inhibits the migration of any harmful substances and keeps your drinking experience absolutely safe. And on top, the soulbottle steel has mastered a marathon of different tests and quality checks with glory: It fulfills all European guidelines and can be used for food and beverages. Don’t worry, be soulie!

Do soulbottles steel have any internal or external coating?

Out of love and care for your health and the wellbeing of our planet, we said “no thanks” to any additional coating except for the one creating the rainbow-effect of the Utopia . As another layer of coating protecting the print would involve polymers (liquid plastics) and chemicals, so we rather keep it simple. A few scratches are only marking the memories you lived through with your steelbottle, right?

How should I clean my soulbottle steel?

Your soulbottle steel is quite a wellness lover and best appreciates a soft hand wash, possibly with our vegan soulbrush so you can reach every little corner. Why you should not put your steelbottle in the dishwasher? The high salt content in the dishwasher could corrode the stainless steel and thus permanently damage the surface. In addition, foreign particles can cause contamination and flash rust during the washing process in the machine.

Carbonated drinks and sparkling water – will they get along with my soulmate?

We’ve put the soulbottle steel through an extensive bubble test: Filled with sparkling water it was put into a circular vibration machine and afterwards stored sideways and upside down. The result? soulbottles steel are reliable partners in carbonated crimes.

Juice, coffee, milk: Can the soulbottle steel handle acids?

You guessed it: there is a test for this, too! The soulbottle steel was filled with 3% acetic acid on temperatures of up to 70°C and handled it like a pro. Even if we do not recommend repeating those experiments at home, you can easily sit back and sip your iced coffee or fresh orange juice from your soulbottle steel!

Why is the soulbottle steel partly manufactured in China? How responsible can the production there even be?

Believe us: If it was possible to manufacture the soulbottle steel in Germany, we would have done so ages ago. But the producers of stainless steel products have moved to different continents ages ago and after months of research we had to admit to ourselves: If we want to make a good bottle that can accompany you on rock climbing adventures, bike tours, kindergarten birthday parties or other simply too thrilling moments for glass bottles, we need to dare the step to new continents. And our mission and social business approach comes along! We have examined suppliers of various sizes until finding a partner that shares our criteria for responsible production and has been very motivated to engage in a program of continuous impact improvement with us from now on.

What do you mean by “continuous improvement”?

We are closely working together with our supplier to improve our production step by step. At the beginning of our collaboration, we assured the basics: Do all employees have valid and fair contracts? Are working hours and break times decent and appropriate to guarantee the employee wellbeing? Are we covering all basic safety standards? And what does all of this include, anyways?! We have consulted external experts on the matter and are collaborating with Sustify to put our impact improvement program into place. We have already improved concrete issues regarding safety at work and have various next steps scheduled. For example, soulbottles will cover the costs for replenishment and renewal personal protection equipment such as safety boots, ear protection, gloves, masks etc. In fall 2019, we will visit the production again with Sustify and implement weekly modules on topics like fire prevention and education. As before, your ideas and recommendations for even soulier work conditions are more than welcome!

Energy use and raw materials: How sustainable is the production of the soulbottle steel?

We have assessed all different production steps for environmental sustainability and carefully calculated the footprint of the steel bottle together with our supplier, external experts and partners. The sum of raw materials, direct emissions of the production and electricity per ton of stainless steel products on average creates about 3.81 tons of CO2 according to the information we currently have available. We do our best to keep this number as small as possible: stainless steel is easily recyclable and as with our glass bottles, about 60% of the input materials are recycled. This improves the environmental footprint significantly and reduces the CO2 emissions stated above. Furthermore, we chose the most environmentally friendly mode of transportation as you can read below.

As an experienced soulie you know it already: we compensate all of our CO2 emissions resulting from production and transportation with our partner myclimate. So in the end the soulbottle steel is climate-neutral!

How does the soulmate steel come to Germany and to my home?

Also for the transportation we checked all possible options. It was clear that flying is no option – but should the new addition to the soulfamily be transported to Germany by trucks, trains or ships? Container ships are after planes the second worst option concerning the environmental impact. Trains on the other hand partly use renewable energies, do not have any tire abrasion and can transport up to 400 truck loads in just one train ride.
Taking all of this into account, we don’t mind waiting three weeks until the soulbottle steel arrives in our Berlin headquarters. To your home the soulmate goes known paths: a climate-neutral shipping brings it to your doorstep.

soulbottles steel light
What’s the difference between the soulbottle steel and soulbottle steel light?

Our new light collection reduces the soulbottles steel to the essentials: they are single-walled instead of double-walled and are particularly light by dispensing with insulating properties. The lid is now made of stainless steel instead of porcelain for that extra bit of lightness. 1 euro from every soulbottle sold goes to WASH'n'soul, our new drinking water and sanitation project with BORDA and Viva con Agua in Zambia.

In which sizes is the soulbottle steel light available?

There are three new sizes (0.5 l, 0.75 l, 1.2 l) in two designs (classic steel and Utopia) and all have a super light weight (210 g, 260 g, 360 g). Our handy 0.5 l soulbottle steel light has a height of 19.4 cm and a diameter of 7.5 cm. The 0.75-litre version has the familiar shape of our 0.6-litre soulbottles, but offers 25%. It is 25.5 cm high and has a diameter of 7.5 cm. The 1.2l soulbottle steel light has the same silhouette as our 1.0l soulbottles made of glass, but offers more space for drinks with less weight. It is 29.5 cm high and has a diameter of 8.5 cm.

Complaints and returns
Complaints

We send out a lot of soulbottles every day, so from time to time things may go wrong. The bottles are hand-packed (by actual humans) after all. If something happens to be missing or you have a complaint regarding your order – please don't be mad at us and send us an email with the following information (if you have them): contact information, customer number, invoice number and date of purchase, article name and a quick description of the problem or even a picture that shows the defect. Of course you can also call one of the soulies that work in customer service. You can reach us under 030 5096 6512.
The fun small print:
We are not liable for defects that are subject to poor use, handling or poor care.

Returns

We provide you with a return label if your delivery was wrong or defective. If you want to make a return based on your liking or cancelling the order you will have to pay the shipping costs.
Please return the goods to us in their original packaging and an a suitable box. Ideally it would be our box. Please pay attention to cushioning!

Order and shipment
How long does it take my soulmate to get to me?

Our pack*women are doing their very best in order for your soulmate to be with you as quickly as possible. For PayPal purchases and if the item ordered is on stock, we usually send your order out after one work day. If you decide to pay through prepayment, we wait for the payment to arrive here. The next step for you: keeping your fingers crossed for a fast mail*woman! Usually the parcel will get to you 2-3 work days later. If you live in Berlin you can choose the option "self pick-up". It saves you the shipping costs and the world some CO2.

Where do you deliver?

Since our soulmates love to travel, they are always open to new adventures. However they often come across the fact that the further the destination, the more expensive the ticket gets. What the delivery to your address costs is shown to you during ordering.

I have a question regarding my order or I would like to change it.

For questions feel free to contact our customer service through hello@soulbottles.com.
Changes regarding your delivery can only be made the same day as the order was made. That's how fast we work here!

What about your packaging? Is it also 100% plastic-free?

Our padding is completely plastic-free and even recycled! We purchased some crazy machines that shred and fold our paper waste so that your soulmate has a soft and cozy padding to travel in.

Shipping costs

The shipping costs don't just consist of postal charges but also insurance, personnel costs of our soulies working in logistics and all the packaging material. For more details check Shipment.

Can I buy my soulmate and the replacements offline?

Yes, we have retailers almost everywhere. You can check here where the closest retailer to you is located. Unfortunately, we can't tell you which designs and other soulproducts are available at what location. But experience has shown that our retailers always sell something worth your while.

I am a business client
I am interested in customized soulbottles.

Individuality creates a bond with employees and customers. That is why soulbottles are also available with custom prints and engraving. You're interested? Then send an email to b2b@soulbottles.com.

I would like to sell your bottles in my shop.

Yay, we're always happy to welcome a new member in our soulfamily. Send an email to retail@soulbottles.com. Next step: welcome as a soulbottles retailer!

Contact
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