How To Clean An Ink Bottle

[cocojj]

For those who save and re-use ink bottles, how do you completely remove previous ink, in particular from the bottle cap? I have an old Quink bottle that I have washed, and I think the ink's gone from the bottle itself but the cap is problem as it has a kind of cardboard thing and it seems there is still ink between the cardboard and plastic but I can't get the cardboard off (and I'm afraid the bottle might leak without it). I have tried soaking it and yes, ink came out, but not all of it.

Edited October 4, 2010 by cocojj

[jmbd7h3]

I use an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner. Whatever doesn't come out this way shouldn't be a worry.

[watch_art]

rinse under water. soapy water. lid on. shake like mad but don't drop or throw bottle across room. rinse out soapy water. dry w/ paper towel. reuse. that's just me.

[pajaro]

If the cap liner stuff comes out and cannot be reused, you might try using a rubber o-ring, available at hardware stores in the plumbing section.

[watch_art]

CAP liner?? I always rip that out and throw away. It just comes out anyways.

[chud]

I'm afraid to say that I buy ink so much faster than I use it (and I use it steadily!) that I have yet to exhaust a bottle... :/

 

However, if I were not concerned with preserving the label (which I personally probably wouldn't be) then I would probably just run it through the dishwasher. The cardboard cap liner may not survive that too well, but as someone suggested an o-ring or rubber washer from the hardware store should do just fine; not cost-effective for the ink maker, but cheap in the quantities any one person would need.

 

If you really want to preserve the label and yet clean it thoroughly---especially if you need to do this repeatedly---then I think there's probably going to be quite a bit of careful manual work involved.

[tknechtel]

To replace the cardboard cap liner of old ink bottles, I've used a circle cut from a styrofoam plate. Works great!

[piembi]

I am running through many bottles of Pelikan blueblack (I use mainly vintage Pels) and use them for any ink that comes in non functional bottles...

 

I rinse the bottle, give it a circle in the dishwasher and finally rinse again with boiling water. If the cap liner comes off, I leave it that way.

[cocojj]

Very good ideas! I don't have a dishwasher, but I'll give it a spin in my ultrasonic cleaner and try the hot water if that doesn't work. I would have wanted to keep the liner in but not if it's going to be a pain (spewing residual black on whatever ink I'm going to put in that bottle) and with the styro idea (easier to find than o-ring), I have an alternative.

 

Appreciate all the help, thank you!

Edited October 8, 2010 by cocojj

[Chevalier]

I usually throw bottles away, because you can get nice bottles with eye dropper (or without) quite cheap, but I clean my ink wells every now and then, changing ink sometimes. Everything that could survive it will get into the dishwasher (lowest temperature), while cleaning the other stuff with turpentine and brush cleaning soap. Rinsing and cleaning the leftovers of the cleaning agent is pretty important, because they might react with the ink.

 

Most modern inks are much more than pigment/dye, binding agent and water, some have a pretty complex recipe including possibly reactive chemicals. In those cases cleaning is much more than getting the pigment/dye out of the bottle. Please keep this in mind, because a bottle with adhering chemicals might ruin a nice ink or ink mixture.

Edited October 11, 2010 by Chevalier

[inksmears]

To replace the cardboard cap liner of old ink bottles, I've used a circle cut from a styrofoam plate. Works great!

 

Great call!