Plastics / Sampling

What is a liner-less bottle? When would you choose a liner-less design bottle?

Sample storage bottles are sometimes described as “liner-less” – this means that the cap does not have an inner lining.

This liner is usually present to improve the seal between the cap and bottle, but can present cross contamination risks in some cases.

lined and liner-less bottle caps
As seen above, sample bottles or storage bottles can come with lined (left) or liner-less (right) caps

Lined caps

  • Have a lining disc fitted inside the cap
  • The disc can be various different materials (including LDPE, PVDC, PE, cork or card with a foil cover)
  • For some screwthread designs this disc provides a tighter seal to prevent leaks

 

Liner-less caps

  • Do not have anything inside the cap – it is simply one formed piece of plastic
  • The screwthread design is usually slightly altered to ensure these bottles still prevent leaks as much as possible
  • The caps are easier to clean for re-use, since there is no liner to absorb or hide contamination

 

When choosing a suitable sample bottle or storage bottle, first consider the material of the bottle itself (to ensure it is compatible with your samples) but also consider if you will need to clean and re-use the bottles. In this case, a liner-less cap may be best.

For more information on sampling and sample collection bottles follow the links above or contact us with any questions;