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How to Remove Print from Plastic Containers

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69 Comments

We’ve all been there.  And by “there” I mean standing in front of an open fridge trying to decide which of the eight different containers of “butter” actually contain butter spread.

Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could remove the print from the tubs, making it obvious which are leftovers and which still contain said butter spread?  Oh yeah, we did it, and it is much easier than you think!

How to remove print from plastic containers

How to Remove Print from Containers

What you’ll need:

*100% acetone nail polish remover
*gloves
*cotton balls

supplies for removing print

There are two ways you can go about this.  Either submerge the container in the acetone and let it soak for a few minutes (wrapped in an acetone-doused paper towel also works great!) or apply the acetone nail polish remover with a cotton ball in a circular motion.

Doesn’t that just sound waaaay too easy?  It really is!

I personally used the cotton ball method because it only takes as much nail polish remover as it does to remove your toe nail polish.  With the soaking method, you’re looking at at least half of the bottle.  It takes a bit more elbow grease, but I’d rather use less, myself (and tone my biceps).

What you’ll do:

Wear gloves if you like, your fingers will get dried out if you do not (but no more or less than when actually taking off your nail polish).

Take your cotton ball, and douse it with 100% acetone nail polish remover. In a circular motion, work it over the print on the container.  It will take a few seconds to get going, but it will start to come off.  Keep working, applying pressure and working your way around.

I did notice that the lid took a little bit extra elbow grease, but I just kept on going and voila! I have no more print whatsoever on my cottage cheese tub.

Removing print from containers

How cool is that?!

Now, I wouldn’t go through this process every single time I empty a tub of butter spread BUT you could save them up and do several of them at a time.  Throw them in the dishwasher and BOOM! You’re done.

These can now be used for leftovers, for planting seeds for your garden, for organizing the pantry or the hall closet, the medicine closet and just about anything else you can think of.

You’ll want to check out these posts: 

Clean Your Microwave Using NO Chemicals {or scrubbing}
How to Make a Wax Melt Warmer for Your Car (GENIUS!)
How to Make a Floating Cooler {for less than $5}
Make Homemade Baby Wipes
How to Create Personalized Wall Art {Using Only an Old Pallet/Fence Board, Screws and Yarn}
How to Remove Wax from Yarn
Clean Jewelry at Home – Using just ONE or TWO Household Items!

Comments

  1. MiniBooger says

    Thanks for the tip! FYI - More and more companies in the U.S. are making their containers and straws from corn which is biodegradable. Plastic is [slowly] no longer the threat it once was. Glass is expensive to produce and from a company standpoint, produces a higher scrap rate due to breakage. Corn-plastic does not have these challenges. So, this keeps the price of consumables down while providing a biodegradable container. So if you want to campaign with a specific company about their packaging, push for corn-plastic instead of glass and you'll make much more headway.
    Reply

  2. Vera says

    Prescription bottle labels come right off if you heat the label with a blow dryer, works really well and quick. Some sticky labels residue can be removed with baking Soda and cooking oil (equal parts) instead of goo gone.
    Reply

  3. Debi says

    I have found that a little bit of lemon essential oil on a cloth or paper towel works amazingly well. It smells nice and isn't toxic.
    Reply

  4. BonJon says

    Interested in trying this, as I've stopped buying plastic food storage containers. But then I realized, plastic is porous! example: if mold grows on food in a plastic container, food safety guidelines dictate the container be discarded, as spores enter the plastic. Not like nonporous glass. Going to have to do more research before using acetone on food containers. After reading above discussion, got to add my 2 cents: I'm genetically frugal. Never understood why consumers were so eager to accept liquid detergents: they add water to powdered product and charge more, change the packaging from paper to heavy plastic, which costs more, that cost being passed on to the consumer, too. 40 years ago, detergent came powdered in paper boxes, a bunch cheaper. Butter and margarine: they whip air and water into it, change from paper boxes and wrappers to plastic, increase the price 2 and 3 fold for 20% to 40% less product. Use their product to butter a pan or grease a skillet? you can't! It's full of water and extra air, it evaporates! Soft flavored cream cheese? Cream cheese, comes in a paper box, into your mixer bowl with some water and flavorings and whip it like whipping cream. Again, water and air. Liquid hand soap? Bar soap before it has hardened, add 50% or more by volume of water. Put into a plastic jug and charge triple. Foaming bottles are worse: 40% liquid soap, add 60% more water, put in jar with foaming dispenser top. In this country, we pay champagne prices per pound for water in daily products, in plastic containers. We had products that work just fine, in paper containers. It's not about convenience, it's about profits. It's not about good, healthy food, either. The plastic waste just makes me cry. I can't break my husband of the soft margarine habit. So I'm on here looking for ways to reuse his containers. FYI: I reuse plastic food packaging in my garden
    Reply

    • Linda says

      That's not how liquid soap or foaming soap are actually made. I am a soap maker. There's some very necessary things being left out but yes, there's water in liquid soap. It's liquid.
      Reply

  5. Ann says

    I also use them as containers for my craft supplies, I try to use clear containers so I can see what's in side. You can get small mayo jars with lids at a certain $ G store for$1. Mayo and nice clear little jar.
    Reply

  6. Ann says

    I only use veggie oil on my jars & bottles. Just rub on, let stand for 15 minutes or if stubborn, over night. Peels right off.
    Reply

  7. Bev says

    Mindful buying is not mentioned in these comments. I imagine if consumers refused to purchase items packaged in plastics or non-recyclable/reusable products, the manufacturers would have to respond by ditching the throwaway method and coming up with some way of returning to the "old" days when products were sold in a safe, reusable/ recyclable glass, tin or paper container.
    Reply

    • Carolyn says

      Currently with new recycling, our town has no way to recycle glass.... what a shame. We have alternating weeks of plastic and the next week paper,then back to plastic
      Reply

  8. Karen says

    Having been on the Conservation board for Daughters Of The American Revolution, recycling has been in discussion for years. Let's give more of our time and Recycle - conserve and save our Planet- be thankful we even have a place to live
    Reply

  9. Gloria Gauntt says

    If you don't want to scrub off the print on containers, may I suggest using a marker on a piece of blue painter's tape on the lid to identify contents.. Cheap and quick method!
    Reply

  10. Kim Conover says

    I've read most of the comments and the fact that this continues to be a huge problem means that we can do more- we must do more. Every one of us should take 5 minutes to write to companies and ask them to please look for an alternative and more responsible container for their products. I believe the laundry detergent companies, and producers of other soaps and cleaning products should have refilling stations in grocery stores and places like Target and Walmart instead of continuing to sell more filled containers. I would be happy to take my empty Tide jugs to refill them- it would reduce the heavy duty plastic that will be around forever. I personally think plastic should be banned for most things. When you have a minute - google the difference in the types of plastic - the number on the bottom of a plastic container surrounded by arrows. I stopped reusing branded/labeled plastic food containers- they're supposed to be temporary and are not coded for safe food storage. I use glass containers and jars for left overs.
    Reply

  11. Nayaz says

    I want idea what means take a pet bottle of pepsi in bottle of pepsi in white print means m r p rate. In white not black giv me idea
    Reply

  12. Pam says

    Rubbing alcohol will remove some print, but not all. I would worry about using acetone on food containers. It’s pretty hazardous (and also quite flammable.) I just use stick-on labels to go over the print. And as another poster said, glass jars are awesome.
    Reply

    • Sandi says

      The print you are removing is on the outside and then you wash it throughly. The food would then go on the inside, therefore, no contact with the chemical. Correct?
      Reply

  13. Deborah says

    This will be very helpful to us. I am looking forward to a time when I do not add to the landfills. Reusing will essential. I look for as many products as possible that are packaged with less plastic but there are some products I do enjoy like the cottage cheese and butter with canola oil...
    Reply

  14. Patricia says

    I agree with everyone about reusing things. I already knew about removing the print with acetone. But I also reuse glass jars. I make soup to take to work for lunches. I make big pots and use glass jars I've collected. I fill the jars and take them to work with me and put them in the freezer. Right now I have five different kinds of soup in the freezer at work and all I do is take a jar out in the morning and then heat it up later. However, I have an issue with our throw away society. People keep purchasing cheap plastic shoes that when the heels go bad or they don't look so nice anymore they just go in the trash. Why don't we spend a little more on leather shoes that look nicer longer and can be repaired? The leather shoes don't make your feet stink and they give a cobbler a job to do! Quit buying disposable everything! I'm also a seamstress, When I'm finished with a garment that isn't going to Salvation Army or some other place that they can be passed on to others I remove the buttons and or zippers and use them again also. We need to stop throwing so much stuff away! Pass it on to someone who can use it or find a way to reuse it yourself!
    Reply

    • Olivia says

      Patricia, love your reuse/ reduce/ recycle methods which I practice as well. I have a tip regarding fabric that is of no use at all. Salvation Army does collect ANY fabric fibres that is destined to the garbage , bundle all, ship it to where these fabrics ( clothing, stuffed toys, etc) are then chopped to shreads and reused for insulation, anything marked "unknown fibres", stuffing, etc. I drop off a bag with our ripped socks, overly stained clothes, raggaty rags. Simply let them know and they'll know what to do.There was a televised program on this subject. That's how I learned about it. Let's all be part of the solution instead of the problem.
      Reply

      • Andrea says

        I’m so happy to hear there is use for the previously useless fabric items!! I donate or sell clothing and use Anything really worn as cleaning rags if possible. We had a Thrift Store that donated many clothes to impoverished countries when they were not selling... not sure on the logistics.
        Reply

    • Sandy says

      I also am a recycler. I take dresses, jeans, sweat suits and cut them into narrow strips and crochet things out of them. I reuse soda cans by making purses from the pull tabs and bottoms of the cans or you can make cute decorations from the whole can. Have a garden save your garbage. Have house plants save your eggshells. Have dishes you no longer want make garden art, bird feeders or bird houses. Have coffee cans and smaller tin cans make a tin man. Reuse the spice jars with home made spices or go buy fresh spices in quantites from specialty stores and refill those bottles with the same thing that was in them (leave old labels right on them). I love using those smaller plastic jugs that cat litter comes in, they work great as baskets. I use these baskets to organize my food items. Stuck for ideas look on the internet there’s plenty of ideas.
      Reply

      • Susan says

        If you buy soda for someone in your household, get aluminum cans if possible rather than plastic bottles. Aluminum can be recycled an almost infinite number of times, and since there is an ongoing demand for aluminum, the more we recycle, the less we must mine. Aluminum foil, unless very polluted, can also be recycled. Plastic is seldom recycled even once. Now that China is refusing to take our recyclables anymore, they mostly end up in landfills, so we really need to focus on reusable/recyclable/biodegradable packaging.
        Reply

        • Mary says

          Go to Earth 911 for tips on recycling. There are so many projects for glass thanks to www. The jars of glass & plastic like peanut butter jars can be used for buttons or other craft supplies. You can screw the lid under a piece wood or shelving in your craft room then twist the glass or plastic jar to the screwed on lid. It saves space & time seeing the item you need for your project. The tubs containers can also be used in so many ways. There are companies currently using recycled plastic. Rothy’s, Theory, Warp&Weft, Patagonia, Athleta’s, Nisolo, Tumi, Tortuga & others.
          Reply

  16. Martha says

    I wish we could work harder on more biodegradable containers. We did not have plastic for everything. Paper, glass and metals.
    Reply

  17. nancy Perdue says

    I really need to use something that does not cost a lot. I want to remove print from gallon ice cream container and then use them for easter basket for the children in our town.
    Reply

  18. Mike says

    I tried this method on some black plastic plant pots in order to remove the lettering so that they could be re-used at a plant sale. Yes, it does work, but too expensive. I use white spirit to remove sticky label residues, it works faster and is cheap - unfortunately it doesn't work with printed lettering. If only there was something as efficient as Acetone but cheaper.
    Reply

  19. Patty P says

    Ashlea, Thanks for the clear tutorial and for taking the time to share! I was determined to re-use a number of containers, but remove the print first. I'm so happy it isn't any harder than removing old fingernail polish (which I don't wear but have tried).
    Reply

  21. Michelle says

    I wonder if it would take less acetone (and maybe less elbow grease) if I sprayed it from a bottle to soak? Has anyone tried it?
    Reply

  22. Just Me3 says

    Have you ever thought how much and what it takes to produce acetone? Also you need to buy rags and gloves that you need trash after using them once. Better for the environment is to recykle that plastic container and use it as energy source.
    Reply

    • Lucinda says

      LOL! as if "recycled" items are actually 'used as an energy source.' They end up on huge barges headed for China where the poorest of the poor pick through and look for anything they can turn in for a tiny bit of money. Do a little research on how much of our recycling actually gets recycled and how much just becomes someone else's problem.
      Reply

      • Calum Mackinnon says

        Well Said, Better to recycle them into seed pots in this country than exploit the poor of other countries, If we all did that little bit more recycling rather that just dumping it in the trash, there would be less going to landfill and less plastic ending up in our oceans. It seems to me that them that moan about having to recycle should seriously think what sort of planet we are leaving behind for our children and grandchildren and indeed for generations to come, I personally would like to see a more sustainable planet being left behind that it was when I was born due to advances made during my lifetime, we call it progress but is it really better if we have a more throw away attitude to things instead of forcing manufacturers to make better and longer lasting products which can be 109% recycled. This in my opinion is the way to go n stop telling people lies about the destruction that is happening on a global level to our planet as once it’s gone it’s gone & there will be no return from the awful destruction we are causing to our world on a daily basis, we must reverse the decline in so many things like forests, lakes, animals, birds and other resources exploited to the point of irreversible destruction. Rant over, Thanks for reading..
        Reply

      • Diana says

        5% that’s all. Only 5% of the worlds plastic is recycled. And China is no longer accepting North America’s plastic. Most of our plastic ends up in illegal dumps in Malaysia. It’s pitiful!
        Reply

  23. Anonymous says

    After cleaning the print off, I wonder if a dry erase marker could be used to label it, then the marker could then be washed off to re-label.
    Reply

  24. Christina says

    This is a great DIY! I've been using my Greek yogurt tubs for sewing notions for a while now and it will be great to clean those off. Also, we're hosting Thanksgiving this year for my extended family, and I've been thinking about buying some inexpensive containers, making cute labels, and sending everyone home with leftovers in personalized containers, i.e. "We Loved Sharing Thanksgiving with You & Yours, Lezlee!"(my sister). It would be so great to send love (food) home with my family, and declutter my stash of dairy tubs (margarine, cream cheese, cottage cheese, feta, yogurt, etc.), and save a little money.
    Reply

  26. CarolynK. says

    LOVE this idea, & will definitely try the technique. HOWEVER, I highly recommend doing this outdoors. Be VERY careful that you are away from any fire or open flame, i.e. candles or pilot lights. Acetone is EXTREMELY flammable/ combustible. Word to the wise from a fireman's daughter!!
    Reply

  27. Kim says

    I think it's a great idea. I have been saving and reusing my empty ones for a while now (with the print on them) my husband will forever be grateful for your tip on how to remove the ink. He just said he is so tired of going for the cottage cheese only to find half of an onion. Also a great way to reduce waste in the landfills. Thanks!
    Reply

    • Richard says

      Haha sounds like me... I store my half onions in those plastic containers too and my family are expecting to see butter/spread in there instead too :-)
      Reply

  30. JunkyMonkey says

    Good FYI, I've been using cheap address labels on my good Rubbermaid lids, this hack will work for the food I want to send home with my Dad cuz never takes the labels off b4 running thru the dishwasher & they get really stuck on!
    Reply

  31. Carol says

    It's a nice hack, but I'd rather go to the dollar store and spend a dollar for 4 containers of that size than spend the time salvaging margarine containers.
    Reply

      • Gail says

        Saving money is better than spending it. I have a question I reuse my spice bottles in my craft classes for anything from jewelry supplies to glitter etc.... My problem is some labels come off so nice but others i have to soak n scrape but end up with sticky left on. Any suggestions for removing that??? P. S. If Carol wants to spend instead of saving I'll take the miney. Lol
        Reply

        • Andrea says

          for the residue from the labels, methylated spirits often works, or paste made with bicarb soda + cooking oil, or goo gone. By reusing/repurposing containers you often find great size & shape ones perfect for your needs ;-)
          Reply

        • Gayathri says

          Any cooking oil (coconut, olive, sunflower...) will work for the sticky ones. To remove stickers: Day 1- soak over night in water. Rinse and wash. Day 2- apply little bit of oil and leave it overnight. All the sticky glue can be wiped out with a tissue paper the next day.
          Reply

        • Susan says

          I find that pouring hot water from my teapot into the bottle will usually loosen the label after a minute or two. The bottle will be HOT so hold bottle with a potholder while pealing off the label. Remaining adhesive will usually dissolve with a coating of Goop Waterless hand cleaner, or cold cream. This also works with plastic bottles, but the heat will distort some bottles, so put a little cool water in 1st to lower the overall water temperature from boiling to just hot. If you find a local spice store, or a natural foods store that sells spices in bulk, they may even weigh your empty bottle so you can fill it in the store & just pay for the weight of the spice.
          Reply

        • Diane says

          Peanut butter removes all the labels I have tried, no problem at all, don’t need very much, just smear on, wipe off with fingers works great
          Reply

    • Nóirín Uí Chaomhánaigh says

      By doing that you add to the amount of plastic, something which the world has far too much of already. Recycling is the way to go if we want our oceans and soil unpolluted. What happens to plastic when you bin it? Where does it go really? How does this affect the planet we depend on to survive? Do check it out!
      Reply

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