There are certain situations where all you want is a hot meal or a drink but you don’t have the amenities to make one. Sometimes your only option is to have something cold but with the best thermos or insulated flask, you are able to enjoy something warm wherever you are.

Whether you are looking for the best coffee thermos or something to hold a hot meal, there are plenty of options out there. In order to get the best product for you, there is a lot to consider such as insulation, durability, capacity and design among other features.

Here we will explain all the key features that matter and we have also completed thermos reviews on the best products on the market. Whatever you’re looking for, once you’ve finished reading, you’ll know exactly what you need.

How To Choose A Thermos – Buying Guide

Type And Size

Naturally the first thing that you need to consider before getting a thermos is what you need it for and how big it is going to be. You need to ensure that you are going to be getting one that matches your circumstances and your needs.

One of the first questions you need to ask is will you be using it for food or liquid. Most of these products can technically be used for both but some are specifically designed with one or the other in mind. Food flasks tend to have a much wider opening, making it easier to eat.

Another question that you need to ask is, if you want a flask for liquid, whether you are going to be using it for warm or cold. Thermos, for example, make a mug specifically for cold drinks with a pop-up straw to make it as easy as possible. If you only ever want cold drinks then this would be a great product.

One obvious question to ask yourself is what size you will be looking for. If you want a standard cup of coffee then having a 16-ounce mug would be ideal but you may want a larger size than this. The perfect size for you will depend on your needs and other aspects such as how much space you have in your backpack.

Insulation

The most important part of these products is going to be the amount of insulation that they have. This is what is going to keep the contents at the right temperature and give you the food or drink that you are hoping for.

In terms of this insulation, you can see a couple of options on how of this is done with one of them being foam, but this is by far the inferior insulator when compared with a vacuum. If you want a product that is going to work for a very long time then it needs to have a vacuum.

As there is no air between the inner and outer wall of the vacuum, no heat is able to be transferred through it. The product will lose a little heat from the contact areas between the walls and the lid, but the best products keep this to a minimum.

Not all vacuum products are made the same and it’s a good idea to see how long contents are going to stay warm in each different products. For hot items, you will be looking for at least five hours of heat retention with some offering more than that.

Durability

Durability is a key issue, as these types of product are often used outdoors and in environments where accidents are more likely to happen. There is also the chance to hot liquid or food coming out of it if it was broken, which would be highly dangerous.

Another potential result of damaging the product is that it will lose its ability to retain heat, therefore rendering the product useless. Materials have to be strong to keep a vacuum together though and therefore most of the products on the market are well-made.

The vast majority of products that you will see are made from stainless steel. This is going to be strong enough to hold the vacuum but also able to withstand any bumps and accidents. It will also be highly resistant to rust, which is a key feature.

One area where durability can be quite different from one place to the next, this is due to it being very hard to design an insulated lid that is highly usable. The best lids in terms of this are the more simple ones but there are some great products out there this well-made lids that are still easy to use.

Leak-proof

Whether it is an insulated flask or any other type of product, I’m sure many people have been there when they have tried to go for a cheap product only to find that it quickly fails on them. For these products, that could mean a bag drenched with coffee or soup, which wouldn’t be pleasant.

Leak-proofing is important, not just to avoid accidents but it is also going to give you an indication of how less insulated the product it. If water can escape out of it then that means air can, and if air can escape, the heat that is inside is going to be lost.

That being said, some of these products are designed with a higher level of usability and therefore sacrifice a bit in terms of being watertight. This depends on the individual activity you are going to be doing and whether you are going to be putting it in a backpack, for example.

In the backpack scenario, leak-proofing is going to be absolutely essential. If you want a water bottle for a hike or simply a thermos flask for your morning coffee, then it is not going to be as important and you may like the added usability they might offer.

Capacity

The capacity is going to be a vital issue for you as not only do you have to think about how much you want to eat or drink, you also have to think about how much those contents are going to weigh and how bulky the product is going to be.

If you are backpacking then having a large cup will not only be heavy to carry but you will also need to find a lot of space for it too. If you want one for your car, then it could well be that you need to make sure that it is going to fit in a cup holder.

There are many different factors that can affect the perfect capacity of the product and you need to take this account. Often bigger is better but you want to see if your circumstances are going to be able to allow for a larger product.

Practicality and Features

There are a few key features of these products which could be appealing depending on your own specific needs. One of these is simply going to be how the lid is constructed and how you are going to be drinking it or eating it.

It could be that you plan to pour your coffee into a mug that you have and therefore don’t need a fancy lid or it could be that you want to be able to drink it on the go and therefore have an easy to use lid that is going to be able to give you your drink easily.

One aspect that can be quite different from one product the next is how you drink it. Some will have a wide mouth to make it easier, some will have a straw and others will have a smaller opening to try and maximize insulation. Food containers will be shorter and fatter so that you can easily eat out of them.

The grip is another important feature of these products and this is another aspect that can depend on your use. If you are going to have wet or slippery hands, then having a shiny stainless steel mug might not be the best idea. Often these products have rubber grips or finishes like a powder coat in order to increase grip.

Another feature that some of these products have is whether or not that have a carry handle or not. Most would prefer this without but others may find it easier to use. This will depend on your own personal preference.

Use

As we have referred to already, the use that you’re going to have for the product is going to play a large role in determining what type of product is going to be the perfect one for you and your situation. It could be that you plan to use it for one specific activity or multiple different ones.

If you are going to be simply taking it to work with you in your vehicle, then a simple thermos would be fine, ideally with the ability to fit into a cup holder or have a leak-proof lid to prevent any spillages while you would be driving.

It could be that you are planning on a fishing adventure and want a hot meal halfway through the day; in that case you’d want a nice wide food flask. If you are hiking then you would want a product that is going to be light enough while also being leak-proof. If you are at the beach, you’d want a model that can keep your drink cold.

As you can see, there are numerous different situations where these types of products would excel. It’s important to know what your use is going to be for it to enable you to get a perfect product to match your situation.

Construction

The overall construction of the product is going to be important and this links in with a few of the other sections that we have mentioned already. While it’s easy to look at these products and analyze them, a great way to check their construction is by checking the user reviews of people who have been using the product for a while.

While a company can make a claim out having a double-walled vacuum bottle, for example, there obviously have to be a point where that inner wall is connected to the outer wall. Too many connection points and the product will lose insulation and therefore one product can be very different from the next.

In terms of the overall durability of the product, it will always give you peace of mind to look for one that has a good warranty. This will be able to give you a good idea on the overall quality of the product and give you reassurances should it break.

Cap And Lid

The cap or lid of these products are possibly the most important factor as you always expect the walls of the product to have a good amount of insulation, but not always the lids, as this can be very difficult to achieve.

Each lid that you see is going to have a different level of design to them and that’s why it’s important to know the use that you are going to have. Some have push-button lids for easy access, some have screw tops to maximize insulation, some have a flip lid while others will have a straw lid.

All these different types are designed for specific reasons but can also be due to the fact that some people have different preferences than others. A cap will give you the maximum amount of insulation but some people will want a lot more usability than that.

Design

A lot of design has gone into these products in terms of the lids that they have and the insulation that they provide but there are other design features that are going to be important too as these products come in all different shapes and sizes.

One of the biggest design questions to ask is how slim or how wide you want the product to be. If you are planning on eating food then there’s a good chance that you will want the mouth to be quite wide and if you need to fill a specific space then a more slender design might be preferable.

Style is always going to play a part in whether or not people buy a product too. One of these bottles look great and can come in a whole range of different colors with some even coming with designs from TC shows and movies. You have a lot of selection to choose a product that suits your style or personality.

FAQs

Q: Why Should I Get A Thermos?

A: These products are going to be ideal for anyone who wants to keep food or drink at a certain temperature to consume later in the day. This could be a fisherman wanting a hot meal for lunch, an office worker needing fresh fruit for a snack or a driver wanting a coffee in a long commute.

There are many reasons why someone would need one of these products and all the products that we have reviewed here do an excellent job at keeping the internal temperatures hot or cold, depending on your preference.

Q: How Long Does The Drink Stay Hot In A Thermos?

A: This will depend on a few key factors, which isn’t always going to be about how well the product is made. Some sacrifice a bit of insulation for more usability while others will simply try and keep the contents as insulated as possible.

One of these products should be able to keep your contents warm for at least five hours with some able to keep the contents hot for longer than that. The importance of this depends on the use that you are going to have and how quickly you are going to be consuming the contents.

Q: How To Clean The Thermos?

A: Most of the time, these products are going to be able to be cleaned in the same manner that you would clean a mug of coffee, in terms of simply using a soft brush with some mild soap to clear away the previous contents.

If you’re not going to be using it for a long time, or have been using a lot, then it’s a good idea to give it an intense clean. This would involve cleaning any of the seals that it has where stains can build-up. It’s a good idea at this going to use boiling water to sterilize the product for added peace of mind.

Globo Surf Overview

Getting a great thermos is going to be a good idea for a number of different reasons. They can be used for a number of different uses and can leave you with food or drink at the perfect temperature, long after it has been made.

As we have seen here, it’s important to know the use that you are going to have for the product so that you are going to be able to perfectly match it to your circumstances. Once you know what you are going to be using it for, you will be able to narrow down your search to be able to get the one that matches you.

The size is also going to be very important and this links in with the use you will have for it too. Most of these products are going to be available in a number of different sizes but they will also have a number of different colors and designs too, enabling to pick the one that suits you.

After these key aspects, you will also want to consider what type of lid you are looking for, if you need it to be leak-proof and what type of design you are going to be looking for. Additional features such as grip can be an important consideration too.

Hopefully this guide has been able to give you all the information you need to be able to pick the perfect thermos for you. Once you have, then you will happily enjoy the comfort of being able to have your food or drink at the perfect temperature.