I’m going to spare you a picture but if you’re using Elite Fly water bottles please be sure to fully remove the tip when cleaning. As far as I knew the tip could not be removed from the main cap part (it didn’t come off when pulled). I religiously cleaned the bottle and top, running water through, using soap, scrubbing, etc. Everything looked squeaky clean.
Then I learned you can pull the tip off if you pull hard enough… OMG it was beyond disgusting with mold. It was the sort of thing nightmares are made of.
Even running them through the dishwasher (which I do) there is no way to get under or reach under the lip. You have to pull it apart to really clean them…
I don’t have the elites but I have yanked out the tops of my trek and polar water bottles. I have a dedicated set of long handle brushes and straw cleaners because I’ve also come across some nasty bits in there. If I had a dishwasher I’d run them in there too, but nothing like taking them apart and really getting in there.
the bottle caps are usually the harder to clean and the most prone to mould growth. The good news is they are cheaply replaceable from Elite. The bottle itself outlives its cap so it’s cheaper to buy a bunch of caps
The problem is likely your cages, not the bottles. Look into known, secure cages like the Specialized Rib Cage or the X-Lab Gorilla cages. Another option are the Ti cages from Silca or King Cage, which will let you bend the cages to achieve a more secure fit.
My sample size is very small for the Silca - but on my first ride, I very lightly bunny-hopped an expansion joint and my Elite bottle ejected and the top shattered (the spout cracked into the bottle). I do this same bunnyhop all the time with my King cages (all with 950mL Elite bottles), ride chunky gravel and singletrack and never an ejection. Sticking with King from now on.
I bought the Silca to replace the Kings because I wanted some up-and-down movement to fit a small frame bag. But the Silca bottle holder couldn’t do its first job - hold the bottle.
I use the ‘sport nipple’ from SmartWater, and once happened to look down at one (I reuse them often as the sport nipple only comes on their smaller bottles) and happened to see mold in the circle recess inside the top. Since then, I try to keep the tops dry between use, and limit the number of times I use them. I don’t know if they would survive a trip through the dishwasher. (I need to find something better)
I have some older Elite Corsa bottles (damn those things just last forever). In any case, I just realized this year that the rubber nipple part of the cap can be pulled out and the cap splits apart.
Now I just take it apart and toss the parts in the dishwasher basket.
Interesting. I have 3 Silca Ti cages and have ridden some crazy hard/fast/rugged terrain and have never lost an elite fly bottle.
I am glad I found this thread, instantly went and pulled the caps off (didn’t know they came off), and found that 2 of the 5 were in dire need of cleaning/replacement. We have a 6 month old at home so my wife donated a bottle cleaning scrubber and it works just fine. She often washes my bottles for me after long rides, and she took the discovery of gross caps pretty hard lol. I had to reassure her that it wasn’t her fault and I also didn’t know the caps came off, and to just keep up the good work!
I find it’s easy to clean the caps. They pull off pretty easy. The original caps are fairly transparent. Never had one eject. I do use the elite cages. I rinse after every use.
Tale of two brothers:
Took a trip to see my brother. Decided to go for a ride with him. Asked if he had a spare bottle or I needed to buy one. He said ya he had some , OH MY. His bottles were pretty crusty, moldy. I was not sure I want to use any of them. Poured some boiling water in one and gave it a rinse. Didn’t get sick. Next time I bring my own spotless ones.
Since then, I try to keep the tops dry between use, and limit the number of times I use them. I don’t know if they would survive a trip through the dishwasher. (I need to find something better)