Retest dates and a tote's working life

01What the dates are

The plate records the month and year of manufacture and, for composite and rigid plastic IBCs, the month and year of the last leakproofness test and the last inspection. The test and the external inspection fall due every 2.5 years from manufacture or repair. The internal inspection is at least every five years.

The retest date checker adds 30 months to the last test and 60 months to the last internal inspection, or to the manufacture date when no inspection is marked. The table shows the sums.

02What happens when the date runs out

A tote that passes its tests carries a new mark. A tote that fails goes to repair or to scrap. A tote that is simply out of date can be retested, reconditioned or rebottled, or used where the date does not matter. Rainwater is the usual example. The ticket’s retest question has an answer for that: Doesn’t matter for my use.

03Is there an age limit?

Separate rules in 49 CFR Part 173 set how long a plastic inner receptacle may carry hazmat liquids after its manufacture date, and the limit can differ from the test interval. Read 49 CFR 173.35 and ask your compliance contact about a tote’s age before you load it with a hazmat liquid.

The desk matches totes. It does not certify them, and a qualified tester decides what a tote’s plate should say.

04What the date means for price and use

A tote with a recent test has most of its 30 months left, which matters to a blender who refills often. A tote near its date is worth less to that buyer and about the same to a gardener. See what sets a tote’s price for how the date weighs against grade, size and count.

+More in Guides

• Retest date checkerEnter the test date stamped on a tote's plate and see when its 2.5-year leakproofness test and 5-year internal inspection fall due under 49 CFR 180.352.
• Reading the UN plateEvery mark on an IBC's UN plate explained: 31HA1, packing group letter, manufacture date, stacking test load and maximum gross mass.
• GradesEight grades of IBC tote, from new and rebottled to dirty and damaged: what each looks like, what it is fit for, and how it is bought and sold.
• What sets the priceGrade, retest date, last contents, size and count: what moves the value of a used IBC tote, for sellers and buyers, without a price list.
• RCRA emptyWhat 40 CFR 261.7 says about empty totes over 119 gallons, when a triple rinse is required, and what that means before a tote is sold.
• Three-state rulesWhich agency handles empty containers and rinse water in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, kept apart state by state.
• StackingHow many totes can stack, empty or full, depends on the tote: why the answer is on its UN plate and what else to check.
• Dimensions and weightsFootprint, height, capacity and empty and full weights for 275 and 330 gallon totes, with gallons, liters, pounds and kilograms checked.
• 275 vs 330How a 275 and a 330 gallon tote differ in height, capacity and use, and which one a plant, a farm or a gardener should ask for.
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