Freezing water bottles-- do you have to dump some water out?

[kpgclark]

Whenever I freeze water bottles (my kids love to drink them as they melt) I always dump some water out to make room for the ice. Have you ever frozen water bottles without emptying some out? Does the plastic shatter? I've noticed that when I freeze bottles they often do not stand up because the bottom has expanded and is no longer flat. I want to freeze a bunch of water bottles before we go to the shore and I'm interested to know if I need to discard some of the water first. Any experience?

 

[raammartin]

I do have to dump some of the water out first before freezing because it expands so much. We freeze bottles of water or koolaid for the kids if they have a field trip later in the day at school or summer camp.

 

[Kimmielee]

I don't let any water out... but I don't freeze them for HOURS either... just long enough.... ya know?

 

[Kath2003]

Water expands by 9% when frozen, so you need to leave 9% of the space free.

 

[Alaska Catdog]

I keep a case of water in the back of my jeep all year round. In the winter it gets as cold as -20 and the bottles have never shattered. The plastic always remains whole but the water does expand and cause the bottles to become stretched, you can pop the bottom back into place once the ice turns back into water and the bottle will stand up again. I wouldn't dump any out.

 

[KathyTX]

Water expands as it freezes, so you do need to leave some extra space (about 10 percent) unless you want the container to bulge or crack.

 

[chyam]

I always dump a little out also, I freeze them and then when I take my 6 mile walks, they thaw as I walk...giving me cold water for the whole walk........hey it's hot here in Florida! I also do this when the weather looks bad (like hurricanes etc) I figure it's like having an extra ice pack.

 

[Pop Daddy]

Water expands by 9% when frozen, so you need to leave 9% of the space free.

I hearby proclaim you "knower of all things"