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How to Best Measure Partial Bottles?

post #1 of 12
2/16/10 at 7:44am
Thread Starter 
Will be putting my entire inventory up for sale soon. How to measure partial bottles, esp when opaque? Is there an accepted "standard"??

Thank you!

(Been really sick for a long, long time -- nice to be back....)
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post #2 of 12
2/16/10 at 8:03am
About opaque bottles: Is the bottle metal? It might be a different temperature above the fluid level. (For what it's worth, lips are very sensitive when it comes to discerning fine temperature differences.)

If you have access to full bottles, you can estimate the weight of a full bottle compared to the one you are selling. You can shake the full and the partial ones and get a feel for the difference in sound.

Sorry to read that you have been sick-- and that the entire wardrobe has to go!
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post #3 of 12
2/16/10 at 9:27am
I have found that you can almost always tell the amount, even if the bottle appears opague. You have to experiment with different lights and angles, but if you hold it up against light and gently shake the bottle you can usually see the juice moving back and forth. Even a dark black bottle that appears opague. This doesn't work for every bottle but you could probably eliminate some of the guessing on a few bottles.

You may want to move this to the regular forums to get more input.
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post #4 of 12
2/16/10 at 10:22am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by brrrry View Post

You may want to move this to the regular forums to get more input.

Mod, pls move thread, if possible.... thx!
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post #5 of 12
2/16/10 at 4:55pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by brrrry View Post

I have found that you can almost always tell the amount, even if the bottle appears opague. You have to experiment with different lights and angles, but if you hold it up against light and gently shake the bottle you can usually see the juice moving back and forth. Even a dark black bottle that appears opague.

Thanks for that confirmation, brrrry. I swore I could not tell the amount remaining in one of my CdG incense bottles--they are jet black--until one day, I held it right in front of a bright incandescent bulb. Voila! The level was plain to see.
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post #6 of 12
2/16/10 at 8:52pm
I've found that sticking an LED flashlight directly under the bottle works
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post #7 of 12
2/17/10 at 6:34am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hatman101 View Post

I've found that sticking an LED flashlight directly under the bottle works

Great idea!
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post #8 of 12
2/22/10 at 6:38pm
hmm i will have to try that with my bottle of kouros....putting it against the light does nothing!
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post #9 of 12
2/22/10 at 9:15pm
Thread Starter 
I also am a "flashaholic" and collect really bright flashlights! Hatman101, your solution should have been obvious to me. Worked great except for a stainless steel bottle, which is still a mystery. And I've rubbed my lips against it so many times, that my wife thinks I'm totally crazy. But it's only one small bottle.

Thanks for all the suggestions, folks!
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post #10 of 12
2/22/10 at 9:26pm
If you can see the liquid always turn the bottle on it's side, with the long side vertical (if the sides are not uniform). Often, a bottle with a strange shape can appear to have more or less than it really does, but if you turn it on its side there is no problem (if it's not opaque, of course). Also remember that they are not filled to the top, so if you can remember how much space there was in the bottle you might be able to estimate it well. Most bottles these days only have a little space, but some of the old bottles were not filled anywhere near to the top.
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post #11 of 12
2/23/10 at 12:33am
Take a strong bright LED light and place it behind the bottle and you will be able to see through most opaque bottles. I tried this with my bottles of Antaeus and Kouros and was able to see how much is left. Do remember to place the LED light directly against the bottle and not from a distance as that won't work. I have tried this method with other things like plastic moisturizer tubes, shampoo bottles and etc. It helps if u take note of the level of juice when the bottle was brand new. Btw, I use the LED light from my mobile phone.
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post #12 of 12
2/24/10 at 9:58am
Yes, that flashlight trick works wonders, even on really damn dark glass like Armani Code and Bond No. 9 Wall Street.
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