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Honored Contributor
Posts: 16,195
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

Maybe it's me but the older I get, the more frustrated I get with these pump bottles that most body lotions come in from drug stores!  Not only are a lot of them hard to get started -- that twistie, turny thing -- but once the lotion gets down to a certain point, you can't get any more lotion to dispense!  You can tell that there is quite a lot more in the container but forget trying to use the pump to get it out!  So, what do you do?  Take the lid off and pound and hit the container to disburse the lotion?  This you have to keep doing every time you want to get a bit of product until you feel the container is empty.  Time consuming and a pain!!!  

 

Or do you just get disgusted and throw the bottle out because you don't want to deal with it?  This seems like a waste.  I have done both things, depending upon my mood!  Just venting here!  Anyone else????  Should be a better way.  Of course, there are jars and tubes but usually the lotions I want are not in these vehicles!!!!  Thanks for reading!  

"A day without sunshine is like, you know, night." - Steve Martin
Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,071
Registered: ‎04-14-2018

So true!

 

I remember my mom or grandma asking me to help open these contraptions.

 

Now I am the one asking hubby for help.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,354
Registered: ‎11-24-2011

A little gadget called a Flip It. It's a little stand onto which you turn your bottle upside down and store it that way. You get every last drop out. If the Q doesn't have them I know Amazon does.

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,589
Registered: ‎04-18-2010

This has been a pet peeve of my for most of my life.  At my age now, I prefer pump containers but I get every drop of product out!  The manufacturers want us to throw out the containers before they are empty....more money for them.  I cut the container open and then put a piec of plastic wrap over the open end.  I even open up toothpaste tubes and get every drop out.  My thanks go to a teacher I had in high school who taught a class he called "Consumer Economics" and he taught us this kind of stuff. 

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,052
Registered: ‎08-25-2010

I buy most of my lotions online. They have a screw-on cap when they’re shipped and come with the pump on the side. I save the screw-on cap to use when the pump doesn’t work anymore. I then store the bottle upside down so the lotion’s easy to squeeze out. I find I’ve got almost 2 weeks worth of body lotion left in the bottle. That’s too much lotion to throw away! 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 14,752
Registered: ‎03-15-2014

Yes, I find both situations annoying - the new pump is hard to open / get started, and the pump can't get to the last 1/4" or so in the bottle.  For me, the guilty party is Softsoap.  I do as you do - remove the pump, invert the bottle, and shake.  Smiley Sad

Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,056
Registered: ‎05-17-2010

@AngelPuppy1 wrote:

Maybe it's me but the older I get, the more frustrated I get with these pump bottles that most body lotions come in from drug stores!  Not only are a lot of them hard to get started -- that twistie, turny thing -- but once the lotion gets down to a certain point, you can't get any more lotion to dispense!  You can tell that there is quite a lot more in the container but forget trying to use the pump to get it out!  So, what do you do?  Take the lid off and pound and hit the container to disburse the lotion?  This you have to keep doing every time you want to get a bit of product until you feel the container is empty.  Time consuming and a pain!!!  

 

Or do you just get disgusted and throw the bottle out because you don't want to deal with it?  This seems like a waste.  I have done both things, depending upon my mood!  Just venting here!  Anyone else????  Should be a better way.  Of course, there are jars and tubes but usually the lotions I want are not in these vehicles!!!!  Thanks for reading!  


 

@AngelPuppy1   I get it. Pumper containers get more confusing to get started...press and turn, but which way? Can’t see the tiny arrows 😳!! I save or purchase empty bottles w/ flip tops and that’s what I use. I prefer smaller sizes and transfer a month’s worth at a time. Many cleansers, etc. that came w/ a pumper are in plastic flip tops or screw ons next to my sink or in my medicine cabinet w/ other skincare...always transferred from larger sizes to eliminate too much dipping/bacteria.

 

Vit. C serum is the exception. I purchased a dark glass bottle w/ dropper (WholeFoods or online). I pour in 1/2 of the serum & refrigerate until I use what I have. My serum lasts twice as long before oxidizing. ***Once it starts turning yellow, the active ingredients are losing their strength. 

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Respected Contributor
Posts: 4,612
Registered: ‎04-05-2010

@AngelPuppy1  I keep a couple of flip-top lids (that came on other products) around for just this reason. When the product no longer pumps, I toss the pump, put on a flip-top lid and turn the bottle upside down. This usually works just fine. If the product is really thick, I might add a bit of water & shake it well to make it pour better.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 35,603
Registered: ‎05-22-2016

The problem with most pumps is that the tube going down is not long enough to reach the product when it gets low. So what I do is add a piece of plastic tubing to the end of that pump tube so that it extends all the way down to the bottom of the bottle. The difficult part of this is finding a piece of tubing that will fit. I found some tubing at hardware store and bought a few different sizes.  This is no guarantee that it will get every last drop but it will get a lot more out of your bottle than if the extension wasn't there.

 

vinyl-tubing-lotion-750x434.jpg

Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,580
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Funny you mention this because I almost went all Freddy Krueger on a new bottle of Cetaphil face cleanser this morning.

 

I tried twisting/turning the pump to get it started, the way I thought it should but nothing happened.  I had to get my reading glasses to see the stupid arrow on the bottle and make sure I was twisting in the right direction.  Yep.  I spun that thing what seemed like 75 times and the pump didn't release.  Luckily I still had the used up bottle so I'll just dump the cleanser into that.    

 

Then I got into the shower and am nearing the end of my 32oz. Living Grace body wash.  Can't get it out using the pump anymore. So I had to take the lid off and dump the product onto my bath sponge.