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Reusing old hot sauce bottles and other bottle ????

I like to reuse my old bottles and lids when they are empty or if I buy some sauce that I don't like. I thoroughly clean them inside and out with hot water and dish soap+ clorox and rinse well. Inside most of the plastic lids there is a round piece of waxy paper that seals against the glass when tightened. Can you leave that paper in and clean it with the rest of the bottle or should you discard it and find a place to buy new paper discs?
 
I ordered a dozen 5 ounce glass bottles from Amazon last night. They come with removable splasher discs. I like the idea of being able to dab my hot sauce a little spritz at a time however I don't know if I want it that watery. Has anyone experimented on how thick hot sauce can be and still pass through the small openings? It seems to me that if you can see any seasonings/spices whatsoever floating in your sauce that it would have issues clogging. Maybe the splasher bottles are designed more for tabasco style sauces and not "hot" sauces in general?
 
 
 
cmwr said:
I like to reuse my old bottles and lids when they are empty or if I buy some sauce that I don't like. I thoroughly clean them inside and out with hot water and dish soap+ clorox and rinse well.
No problem with that ^ at all

cmwr said:
Can you leave that paper in and clean it with the rest of the bottle or should you discard it and find a place to buy new paper discs?
I wouldn't even bother if I were you. You're better off just buying new caps, IMO. I'd get new caps coming from a safety standpoint too

cmwr said:
I ordered a dozen 5 ounce glass bottles from Amazon last night. They come with removable splasher discs
These are called "Orifice Reducers"

cmwr said:
Has anyone experimented on how thick hot sauce can be and still pass through the small openings? It seems to me that if you can see any seasonings/spices whatsoever floating in your sauce that it would have issues clogging.
No way to tell, except for trial and error, bud. Sorry
 
MikeUSMC said:
No problem with that ^ at all

I wouldn't even bother if I were you. You're better off just buying new caps, IMO. I'd get new caps coming from a safety standpoint too

These are called "Orifice Reducers"

No way to tell, except for trial and error, bud. Sorry
 

Thank you for that. I want to ask though.....Why get new lids every time? I spray Clorox cleanup on my bottles and lids, inside and out, so that should be good enough right? I don't mind paying for new lids. I am sure they are dirt cheap. Just the mail order process might be an inconvenience. I guess i could just order in advance and find a place to store them until needed lol.
 
cmwr said:
Why get new lids every time? I spray Clorox cleanup on my bottles and lids, inside and out, so that should be good enough right?
I can't say definitively. That's why I recommended getting new ones, lol. It might also have something to do with the heat transfer to the cap (shape?) using the "hot fill hold" method of filling bottles. It's just one of those things I've read over and over, through the years. Seems like good practice to buy new ones every time. Kinda like canning with mason jars; you're not supposed to reuse the lids because it changes the shape of the seal

cmwr said:
I don't mind paying for new lids. I am sure they are dirt cheap
They are, and it's not like they take up a ton of room to store them ;)
 
cmwr said:
 
Thank you for that. I want to ask though.....Why get new lids every time? I spray Clorox cleanup on my bottles and lids, inside and out, so that should be good enough right? I don't mind paying for new lids. I am sure they are dirt cheap. Just the mail order process might be an inconvenience. I guess i could just order in advance and find a place to store them until needed lol.
 
That waxy paper inside the cap is a seal.  Once the original sauce is put in the bottle and inverted the heat activates the cap liner and it seals much like a canning lid just as Mike said.  Since that is a one time only process if you reuse the caps then you're not getting that seal.
 
Reusing woozys is something we do around the house all the time, but I never reuse caps.  
 
Also you say you ordered woozies from Amazon.  I suggest checking out Fillmore container.  Their woozys (and caps and orifice reducers) are considerably cheaper when compared to Amazon in my prior experience.
 
Regarding the orifice reducers; I use them for only a few sauces that I make - namely my thinner sauces.  Anything with too much pulp is not going to pour well through the reducer.  So when I'm ordering bottles I'll order caps and then maybe 1/3rd as many reducers.  
 
Hope this helps cmwr, and welcome to THP.  :)
 
SmokenFire said:
 
That waxy paper inside the cap is a seal.  Once the original sauce is put in the bottle and inverted the heat activates the cap liner and it seals much like a canning lid just as Mike said.  Since that is a one time only process if you reuse the caps then you're not getting that seal.
 
Reusing woozys is something we do around the house all the time, but I never reuse caps.  
 
Also you say you ordered woozies from Amazon.  I suggest checking out Fillmore container.  Their woozys (and caps and orifice reducers) are considerably cheaper when compared to Amazon in my prior experience.
 
Regarding the orifice reducers; I use them for only a few sauces that I make - namely my thinner sauces.  Anything with too much pulp is not going to pour well through the reducer.  So when I'm ordering bottles I'll order caps and then maybe 1/3rd as many reducers.  
 
Hope this helps cmwr, and welcome to THP.  :)
Thank you. I am reusing one bottle right now that has a skinny neck with a wooden lid. The opening has no reducer but is small enough in itself that you have to shake to get sauce out. Even if bottle has water in it the water wont pour out without shaking. I wish I could find more bottles like this but havent yet.
 
cmwr said:
The opening has no reducer but is small enough in itself that you have to shake to get sauce out. Even if bottle has water in it the water wont pour out without shaking. I wish I could find more bottles like this but havent yet.
:shocked:

That sounds like a freakin' nightmare, lol! If you already have a hard time getting sauce OUT, how the hell are you gonna get new sauce back IN? :rofl:

Sorry, just doesn't seem like something I'd be keeping an eye out for myself. To each their own, I guess ;)
 
MikeUSMC said:
:shocked:

That sounds like a freakin' nightmare, lol! If you already have a hard time getting sauce OUT, how the hell are you gonna get new sauce back IN? :rofl:

Sorry, just doesn't seem like something I'd be keeping an eye out for myself. To each their own, I guess ;)
Lol!!!!i funnel into a squeeze bottle and then use a squeeze bottle to fill it.
 
cmwr said:
I like to reuse my old bottles and lids when they are empty or if I buy some sauce that I don't like. I thoroughly clean them inside and out with hot water and dish soap+ clorox and rinse well. Inside most of the plastic lids there is a round piece of waxy paper that seals against the glass when tightened. Can you leave that paper in and clean it with the rest of the bottle or should you discard it and find a place to buy new paper discs?
 
I ordered a dozen 5 ounce glass bottles from Amazon last night. They come with removable splasher discs. I like the idea of being able to dab my hot sauce a little spritz at a time however I don't know if I want it that watery. Has anyone experimented on how thick hot sauce can be and still pass through the small openings? It seems to me that if you can see any seasonings/spices whatsoever floating in your sauce that it would have issues clogging. Maybe the splasher bottles are designed more for tabasco style sauces and not "hot" sauces in general?
 
 
 

New caps every time. As for the bottles, go to a home brew store (or amazon) and get a bottle brush and some "One Step" or "Star San" and you are golden.
 
cmwr said:
Thank you. I am reusing one bottle right now that has a skinny neck with a wooden lid. The opening has no reducer but is small enough in itself that you have to shake to get sauce out. Even if bottle has water in it the water wont pour out without shaking. I wish I could find more bottles like this but havent yet.
 
This sounds like a Cholula bottle - don't know many more w wooden lids.  ;)
 
Some hot sauce makers have their bottles custom made w a reduced orifice.  There are also wide neck bottles available for thicker hot sauces available from Fillmore too. 
 
sirex said:
I'm going to second Redeemer and advise to get some sort of sanitizer that's specifically designed to use with dishes and food equipment.

That or sanitize with regular bleach. 2 teaspoons to a gallon Of water.
What does one gain by tracking down some special sanitation cleaner versus just using some household bleach that you already have laying around if they do the same thing?
 
cmwr said:
What does one gain by tracking down some special sanitation cleaner versus just using some household bleach that you already have laying around if they do the same thing?
 
Starsan is quick/no rinse so it's a one step process.  Handy if you're doing several cases of sauce at a time.  For your intended home use bleach is just fine.
 
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