Use a PET bottle at 100–200 ml when the toner carries ethanol below ~30%; above that, glass or alcohol-rated PETG, because PET swells and hazes. Water-thin bulks take a flip-top or screw cap with a small-orifice PE/PP reducer plug, a disc-top for one-hand use, or a fine-mist sprayer at 0.1–0.2 ml per shot with an SUS304 spring. Plastic necks are 20/410 and 24/410; glass is 18/400 and 20/400. Stock bottles start from about 500 pieces undecorated and ~2,000 printed; made-to-order glass carries a 30,000+ floor.
Glass or PET: the ethanol and pH rules
PET is the cheapest clear bottle and the default for a water-based toner — light, shatterproof, with a well-established recycling stream. It fails above ~30% ethanol: the bottle swells, hazes and deforms, and standard gaskets soften. Below 4 pH (AHA/BHA toners) acid corrodes standard pump springs and etches some coatings. Those two rules, from the compatibility matrix, decide the material before the mood board does.
| Formula condition | Material | Closure | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water-based toner, ethanol below ~30% | PET 100–200 ml (economy); PETG for higher clarity; glass for premium | Flip-top or screw cap with small-orifice reducer; disc-top; fine-mist sprayer | PET is cheapest and clearest; the small orifice stops a water-thin bulk gushing |
| Ethanol above ~30% (astringent toners, essences) | Glass or alcohol-rated PETG (ethanol resistance written into the spec, e.g. ≥50%) | Screw cap with PE/PP plug; sprayer with PTFE-coated or solvent-grade gasket | PET swells and hazes; sprayer gaskets and dip tubes are checked against the alcohol level, not just the bottle |
| AHA/BHA toner, pH below 4 | Acid-resistant glass or PP | Flip-top or orifice reducer (lowest risk); if a pump, 316 stainless or plastic spring, or spring outside the fluid path | Acid corrodes standard springs and etches plating |
| Light-sensitive actives (vitamin C water, botanical extracts) | Amber or cobalt glass; opaque PET or PP | Any of the above | Amber blocks UV below ~450 nm |
| Facial mist | PET, PETG or glass | Fine-mist sprayer 0.1–0.2 ml per shot, SUS304 spring, 12.5–24 mm pump matched to the neck | Even mist needs the right orifice and dip tube for the bulk |
Glass adds 2–3× the unit weight of plastic and breakage risk in transit, so the premium choice carries a freight and packing cost; see glass bottles for toner and essence for grades and defect allowances.
Specification: sizes, necks and closures
| Parameter | Published value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Capacities | 100, 150, 200 ml standard; 30–50 ml travel; 300 ml value size (typical partner-factory range) | Brim-full capacity ±5%; fill line with headspace on the drawing |
| PET bottle necks | Ø18, Ø20, Ø22, Ø24, Ø28 in 400 / 410 / 415; toner usually 20/410 or 24/410 | The neck is formed at the preform stage and does not change during blowing |
| Glass necks | 18/400, 20/400, 22/400 | 400 = one thread turn; glass neck tolerances are wider — the closure factory needs the glass drawing |
| Flip-top | Lower cap, orifice, hinge, upper cap, plug pin and inner plug; one-piece, butterfly or three-axis hinge | Opening force 0.5–3.5 N·m; 100 cycles at 180° on bottle flip-tops, no fracture |
| Disc-top | Press-to-open disc over a small orifice | Opening force 0.5–3.5 N·m; one-hand use |
| Screw cap + orifice reducer | PP or PE plug cut to the bottle bore (I dimension); small hole for water-thin bulks | Opening torque 0.2–0.7 N·m; reverse ≥2.5 N·m |
| Fine-mist sprayer | 12.5–24 mm pump sizes; 0.1–0.2 ml per shot; SUS304 spring | Pump size chosen to the bottle neck, never the reverse; ≥1,500 actuations |
| Wall | PET wall uniform through the blow; glass ≥2 mm at the base | Thin-walled PET loses low-temperature impact strength |
Neck notation, the Z/A/T/E/I/S/D/X drawing symbols and why the liner, not the thread, does the sealing are on neck finish and closure standards.
MOQ, tooling and lead time by route
Toner bottles are among the most heavily stocked shapes in China, so the minimum is set by decoration, not by the bottle. Ranges are indicative via partner factories; the published single-factory floor is 5,000–10,000 per item. Cross-category tables are on the MOQ index and lead-time index.
| Route | Indicative minimum | Tooling | Lead time, factory gate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock PET bottle + stock cap, undecorated | From ~500 pcs (typical partner-factory range, by the carton) | None | 7–25 days |
| Stock glass bottle, undecorated | From ~500 pcs where a partner factory holds stock; low thousands on a public-mould run | None | 7–10 days in stock; 30–60 days if a glass run is required |
| Stock bottle + screen print or hot stamp | ~2,000 pcs | Screen or foil plate; glass screen ≈ USD 0.014 per colour | +5–7 days |
| Stock bottle + sprayed colour or frosting | 2,000–5,000 per shape | Colour-matching set-up | 30–40 days |
| Moulded-in colour (PET/PP) | 5,000–10,000 pcs | Material changeover and purge | 15–25 days + masterbatch 3–15 |
| Full-wrap label / shrink sleeve | From ~100–500 | None | Inside the bottle cycle |
| Electroplated cap | ~10,000 pcs | Racking only | 25–40 days including plating queue |
| Private PET mould | 3,000–10,000 pcs plus tooling | Blow mould RMB 25,000–70,000 ≈ USD 3,500–9,700; paid 30/40/30; brand-owned | Tool 45–60 days; programme 90–120 days |
| Made-to-order glass | 30,000 to 100,000–200,000 pcs | ≈ RMB 4,000 ≈ USD 555 per cavity; 4–8 cavity set USD 2,200–4,450 | 30–60 days from mould approval |
| Buffer | — | — | × 1.3; +15 days across Chinese New Year; sea 18–35 days |
First-order rule: a stock bottle, a stock closure in a stock colour and a full-wrap label or one-colour screen print gets a 100–200 ml toner to shelf from about 2,000 pieces. Move colour to the label when the order is under the spray floor.
QC thresholds a toner bottle is signed against
Water-thin bulks find every weak seal, so the leak rows carry the order. Gates and the golden-sample rule are on QC standards.
| Test | Method | Pass threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Seal, quick | Cap applied at 0.6–1.2 N·m; vacuum desiccator | −0.05 to −0.06 MPa for 3 min, no water ingress |
| Seal, static | Filled, capped, inverted | 24 h inverted, no leakage |
| Vacuum leak | Filled, lying and inverted | −0.06 MPa standard; −0.08 MPa for 15 min, loss ≤0.5% for alcohol toners |
| Compatibility | Bottle, plug, gasket and dip tube in the actual toner at 48°C for 30 days plus controls | No haze, swelling, deformation, odour or spring corrosion |
| Sprayer | Continuous actuation; dose weighed over 50 shots × 3 | 0.1–0.2 ml per shot, even mist; ≥1,500 actuations; priming ≤5 strokes for aqueous bulks |
| Hinge life | Flip-top cycling | 100 cycles at 180°, no fracture, no change in snap |
| Torque | Torque meter after application | Opening 0.2–0.7 N·m screw; 0.5–3.5 N·m flip-top and disc-top; reverse ≥2.5 N·m |
| Thermal cycling, filled | Oven and freezer | 48°C and −15°C, 24–48 h each, no cracking, leakage or colour change |
| Drop | Filled, capped, onto concrete | 1.5 m at 45°; no functional damage |
| Decoration adhesion | 3M 600 over print; 3M 810 over cross-hatched spray | No lift; 75% alcohol wipe, no coating loss; sprayed pencil hardness ≥2H |
| Acceptance | ISO 2859-1 general level II | AQL 0 critical, 1.0–1.5 major, 2.5–4.0 minor |
| Heavy metals | Third-party lab | Pb+Cd+Hg+Cr(VI) ≤100 ppm |
Vella is a Guangzhou-based beauty packaging solutions provider — a sourcing partner, not a factory — that specifies, sources, samples, quality-controls and ships toner, essence and mist bottles from vetted partner factories operating to ISO 22716 / GMP, against the thresholds above and a signed golden sample. The method is on how we work; the questions to ask any supplier are in how to evaluate a China packaging supplier.
Frequently asked
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