Tote grades, from new bottle to scrap
A tote can be in one of eight conditions, from a new bottle in a new cage to a damaged one worth its parts. The desk writes every ticket against this ladder, and every grade has its own page.
- 01NewAny fill the plate allows
- 02RebottledRepeat chemical fills
- 03ReconditionedChemical or water, after inspection
- 04RinsedWater and non-food use
- 05Triple-rinsedRCRA-clean empties
- 06Used, as-isSame-product reuse or washing
- 07DirtyWasher or recycler
- 08DamagedParts and scrap
01The eight grades
| Grade | What it is | Usually trades |
|---|---|---|
| New | A new tote is a new bottle in a new cage. | Buyers ask, sellers have fewer |
| Rebottled | A rebottled tote has a brand new HDPE bottle in a used, certified steel cage. | Buyers ask, sellers have fewer |
| Reconditioned | A reconditioned tote is a used bottle and cage, both cleaned, inspected and tested for reuse. | Buyers ask, sellers have fewer |
| Rinsed | A rinsed tote has been emptied and its interior flushed to remove the prior product. | Sellers post, buyers are fewer |
| Triple-rinsed | A triple-rinsed tote has been flushed three times with water or a suitable solvent after emptying. | Sellers post, buyers are fewer |
| Used, as-is | A used, as-is tote has been emptied by ordinary pumping or draining. | Sellers post, buyers are fewer |
| Dirty | A dirty tote still holds visible product or a heel above what pumping removes. | Sellers post, buyers are fewer |
| Damaged | A damaged tote is one with a cracked or punctured bottle, a bent or broken cage, a broken pallet or a valve that will not seal. | Sellers post, buyers are fewer |
02How the ladder works
The ladder runs from cleanest to roughest. A tote moves down it by use and up it by work: a dirty tote washed becomes rinsed, a rinsed one inspected and tested becomes reconditioned. A bottle that fails and is replaced makes a rebottled tote. The heel line drawn in each bottle shows how much product is left at that grade.
The ladder is also the form’s vocabulary. A seller picks the grade closest to the tote. A buyer picks the grade that suits the job. Most sellers have used, as-is, and most buyers want rebottled or reconditioned, which is why the desk spends most of its time in the middle of the ladder.
03What the grade does not tell you
A grade says the tote’s condition. It does not say its history, its retest date or whether it is food grade. Those are on the ticket separately. Read the plate for the date, and ask for the record for a food-safe history. The guide on rebottled versus reconditioned covers the pair most buyers compare.
04How a tote moves down the ladder
The eight grades are ordered by how much of the tote’s past a buyer must take on trust. A new tote has none. A rebottled one has a new bottle in a used cage, so the part that touched product is new, but the cage and plate have history. Reconditioned totes have been cleaned, inspected and tested again. Below those sit rinsed, triple-rinsed and as-is totes, where the bottle itself is the original and the question is what soaked in. Dirty and damaged totes sit at the bottom and usually go to a washer or a recycler.
A tote can fall a rung at any time. A cracked bottle drops a reconditioned tote to damaged, and a missing plate can stop a tote from riding a road even if the bottle is perfect. A tote can also rise: a tote that was rinsed can be washed and tested and re-enter the ladder higher up.