Reconditioned IBC totes: used, cleaned and certified
A reconditioned tote is a used bottle and cage, both cleaned, inspected and tested for reuse. It is the workhorse of the ladder: sound, certified and priced below rebottled.
01What this grade is
Reconditioning is a shop job. The tote is emptied and washed, the bottle and cage are inspected, the valve and fittings are replaced where they fail, the tote is leakproof tested and the plate is marked with the date. Nothing is replaced wholesale, which is what separates reconditioned from rebottled.
The tote may have held anything. The reconditioner’s record of what it held, and the wash it received, is what a buyer needs. A reconditioned tote with a documented food-safe past is the one growers most often ask the desk for.
02What to look at
| Part | What you should see |
|---|---|
| Bottle | Used but sound: may be slightly yellowed, with no cracks or soft spots |
| Cage | Clean and straight, with no rust through |
| Plate | A recent test mark and the original manufacture date |
| Smell | None, or faint; a strong smell means a heel |
03What it fits and what it rules out
| Fits | Rules out |
|---|---|
| Repeat fills with the same product the tote last held | A buyer who needs an unused inner surface: that is rebottled |
| Water use: irrigation, rain, farm water, with a known history | Drinking water: no used tote is sold for it |
| Chemical use after the buyer’s own cleaning | Nothing further |
04Which way it trades here
Both ways. Plants with a reconditioning contract post lots; growers, blenders and gardeners post NEED tickets.
It is the grade the desk matches most, because the supply and the demand are both steady.
05What to put on the ticket
- Size, count and where they stand
- What they last held and the wash they had
- The retest date on the plate
06What a reconditioner does
A reconditioned tote has been cleaned, inspected and tested again so that it can go back into service. The steps usually run in order: drain, wash the bottle inside and out, inspect the cage and the valve, replace the gasket and the fill cap if worn, pressure test the unit for leaks and mark the plate with the new test date.
The test date matters because a leakproofness test is due every 2.5 years from the date of manufacture or repair, and the plate must show the month and year of the last test and inspection. A tote reconditioned last month has nearly the full 30 months, while one reconditioned 28 months ago needs a retest before it can carry hazardous liquid again.
Reconditioned is not the same as food grade. The cleaning does not erase last contents, and a buyer who needs a food or pharmaceutical use should ask for the paperwork on the previous product too.
?Questions on this page
What is a reconditioned IBC tote?
A used bottle and cage, both cleaned, inspected and tested for reuse.
Is it food grade?
Only with a documented food-safe history. Cleaning alone does not make it food grade.