How To Clean A Hip Flask

You’ve got your SWIG hip flask to hand, and you want to make sure it’s shiny on the outside and spotless on the inside, so you’re going to need to know how to clean the thing. The good news is that because SWIG is a stainless steel hip flask, you can get it as good as new in no time.

For a quick rinse between alcohols, you can just swill the flask with boiling water but be super careful to avoid scalding yourself. For a real deep clean (which you should do if you’ve not used the flask in a while) you can do the following:

Firstly, an important warning, do NOT put the flask in the dishwasher, the chemicals in the detergent might react with the metal in weird ways and we really don’t want that. You’re going to have to look after your flask just like your granddaddy did before the invention of automatic cleaning machines, and use your hands.

     1. The Right Ingredients:

There are two basic elements you need for cleaning your hip flask: a material for scouring, and a cleaning solution. There are many variants on both those things but my favourites are uncooked rice and distilled white vinegar.

     2. Shake it like a polaroid picture:

Mix together a small amount (I’m talking a teaspoon or so) of the rice with the distilled white vinegar, about 50ml’s worth. Bung the lid back on and shake vigorously. Good shaking songs include Taylor Swift’s Shake It Off and Eye Of The Tiger by Survivor.

The rice will knock off any residue inside the flask and the vinegar gets rid of smells, tastes and bacteria. It’s really important to use ONLY distilled white vinegar, any other type will be disastrous. Alternatives to white vinegar include lemon juice, you can technically use some soaps but read their labels really carefully. Also avoid anything too sugary like fruit juice.

     3. Empty, Swill, Drain:

Now, pour out your rice/lemon mix and pour in some water to do a final swill. Once you’re utterly sure no rice remains, stand the flask to dry upside down so all liquid drains downwards out through the lid. While it’s drying like this, I suggest doing something productive like playing Fifa or watching a Netflix marathon.

Then, when you come to use your flask again, I recommend just putting fresh water into the flask and taking a sip to check it’s clean before you put any nice alcohol in there. As you can’t see inside the flask it’s always best to better safe than sorry.

Happy swigging!

P.S. if you want to protect your flask on the outside, take a look at my Pouch Collection for leather and Harris Tweed covers.