How to store lids for jars in bottles and not spend money on organizers
Over time, thrifty housewives collect useful little things that are a pity to throw away and have nowhere to store. Kitchen drawers and shelves are usually not at all suitable for storing plastic lids from glass and tin jars. But in 10 minutes you can make a convenient organizer from a bottle so you can neatly fold the caps and easily find the ones you need.
How to store lids
Most often, the lids are in bags or rolled around in bulk in a desk drawer. You can’t throw them away - when you take out winter preparations for tasting, you can’t do without them in order to replace the tin twists with nylon (polyethylene) twists. And for glass containers with threads, you can’t do without twist-off models.
If a useful item lies in a desk drawer, you will need to spend a lot of time searching for a lid that is suitable in size and type. For lovers of pickles and preserves, they take up a lot of space. You can buy a special storage organizer. But it will be easier and faster to build it with your own hands using a simple life hack.
To do this you will need the following items:
- plastic bottle;
- sharp scissors or stationery knife;
- nail with a wide head;
- burner for heating the knife.
It is recommended to make a hanging container holder for lids. Any clothes hook made of plastic or metal will do. Hang the hook with glue not only on the wall or door, but also directly on the ceramic apron in the kitchen or the side panel of the refrigerator.
It is better if it is on an adhesive basis. You don't have to drill into the cabinet door to attach this accessory.
Step-by-step instructions: lid organizer
For standard lids, you should take a 1.5-2 liter container. For a small diameter (table mustard, adjika, canned juice, etc.) a volume of 1-0.5 liters is suitable. According to the shape, you should choose a cylindrical container. Bottles that taper downwards will not fit standard caps.
First, remove the label, cap and plastic ring from the bottle. Then mark a cutting line for the top, where the bottle begins to taper towards the neck. Lightly heat the tip of the blade on the burner to make cutting easier.
Then carefully cut out a rectangle. To do this, make two cuts 5-6 cm long and at a distance of 2-3 cm. Bend the resulting “tongue” outward. Use scissors to trim off excess plastic in a circle.
Now you need to make a hole through which the organizer will be hung on a hook. The easiest way to push it through is with a wide nail head, after heating it on the burner.
If you have accumulated a lot of lids, it’s worth making 2-3 of these storage cases. You can divide the lids by diameter or by type of material (plastic/metal). To ensure that organizers take up less space, they should be attached in a row to the kitchen apron.
Questions and answers
Which lids should not be stored?
The shelf life of products with a rubber seal should not exceed 3 years. Over time, rubber breaks down, hardens, and begins to crumble. Twist-offs with screw threads on the neck are not limited in service life. But they quickly absorb strong odors. After sealing cans of canned fish, it is better to throw them away.Polyethylene products can be used for decades if their integrity is not compromised.
How to process the edges?
It is easy to get injured on the cut edges of a plastic bottle. To protect against possible scratches, you should lightly melt them over the flame of a lighter or candle.
A convenient organizer for storing jar lids is easy to make with your own hands. Homemade containers will allow you to keep the lids clean and tidy, and all of them will be visible to the owner. And such a container will cost very little; a bottle of the simplest drinking water will do.