From soup to shampoo, dish soap to diet soda, our homes are full of all kinds of liquid products designed for eating, drinking, cleaning, and washing with.
Most of these items come in their own bottles, tubs, jars, cans, and pouches. But there is plenty of need for us to keep a range of plastic, metal, and glass liquid containers at home for use with these items. Experts recommend that a single person should have around six to 10 storage containers only for food, while a family may need more than 20.
But what are some of the ways we use liquid containers? Keep reading to find out how we use liquid storage containers both at home and on the go!
1. Transporting Food and Drink Items
One of the main uses of liquid containers is for transporting food and drink items.
Before you head off for work in the morning, you might take some homemade stew or soup in a plastic liquid container for lunch. If you recognize the importance of drinking water, you likely have a reusable water bottle with you at all times. Or, if you’re a fan of colder-weather treks, you might consider a thermos flask of hot tea or coffee a backpack essential for keeping you warm and cozy.
We also rely on liquid containers to transport food and drink items back from the grocery store. In the past, liquids like soda and milk all came in glass bottles. These days, though, almost all liquids come in plastic bottles, making them lighter and easier to transport.
Pre-packaged liquids all come with sealed lids that prevent contamination and spillage. For the same reasons, it’s vital to choose liquid containers with lids that seal well when transporting food and drink items. An advantage of lids with clasps is the extra leak protection they offer. But, lids without clasps are thinner and easier to store.
2. Storing Food and Drink Items
Lighter, less breakable liquid storage containers made from plastic or metal are preferable for transporting food and drink items. But, when it comes to storing liquids in the home, many people believe glass liquid containers such as these bottles to be the safer option. This is because they avoid the possibility of any chemical leaching.
When storing food and drink items such as homemade soup or tap water for drinking, it’s a bad idea to reuse plastic bottles. Even if they’re considered to have a low risk of leaching, such as high-density polyethylene (HDPE), manufacturers make them for one-time-only use. In contrast, you can use glass bottles and containers an infinite number of times without worrying about leaching or how the glass reacts to sunlight or heat exposure.
That said, many people favor plastic liquid containers for storing foods as they’re lighter, easier to store, and tend to be less expensive than glass. And, unlike glass liquid containers, you can place plastic containers in the freezer.
3. Decanting Toiletries and Cleaning Products
Decanting spirits and wines into decorative bottles is an age-old practice. It improves the taste of the alcohol while also offering aesthetic benefits. But the process of decanting is becoming more and more popular for household supplies too. Not least because it can have the same elevating effect as that of a beautiful decanter of wine or whiskey.
Handwash, for example, has to be on display for ease of use. But transferring it from its original plastic bottle to a decorative glass liquid container complete with a pumping dispenser looks so much better in your bathroom.
For a uniform look in your shower, you might also want to transfer your shampoo, shower gel, conditioner, and face wash into matching liquid containers. Although, glass bottles in the shower could be dangerous, so you should stick to decorative plastic bottles here.
Cleaning products can also benefit from decanting. Stepping into a laundry room with rows of minimalist matching liquid containers will feel far more uplifting than seeing the gaudy liquid containers these products usually come in. For safety reasons, however, you should make clear labels for all your cleaning products, and avoid mixing different products or brands together.
4. Preparing Travel Miniatures
Following an attempted terrorist plot in 2006 involving liquid explosives, airplane passengers have only been able to take liquids in containers of 100ml or less in their carry-on luggage.
Since governments introduced this restriction, it’s a lot more common to see travel minis for sale in supermarkets, drugstores, and other retailers. Being able to buy everything you need in travel liquid containers makes it easy to stock up on a complete set of toiletries in preparation for an upcoming vacation. And, even if you’re not traveling by plane, having a kit of miniature liquids, such as shampoo and body lotion, saves space in your luggage.
Another way to prepare for an upcoming plane trip is to buy a selection of empty small liquid containers and fill them up yourself. These travel containers tend to be clear for you to identify your toiletries with ease. And some even come with small labels for faster identification.
It’s also a lot more affordable to buy a set of travel liquid containers than to buy all your toiletries in miniature. And, it means you can take the exact products you want rather than having to choose from a limited selection of miniatures.
Different Ways to Use Liquid Containers
As this guide shows, we use liquid containers in many different ways both at home and on the go.
Regardless of whether you prefer plastic or glass food and liquid storage containers, or whether you decant your cleaning products or not, liquid containers offer a constant and fundamental source of convenience for modern living.
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Gourmets Food 