Deep reference · not in the main menu
What the plate
on your cage
is telling you.
Every composite IBC carries more identification than most owners realise: a design type, a packing group, a build date, a capacity, a test pressure and — if anyone has kept up — a retest date. Here is where to find each of them and how to read it.
The short answer
Look for a riveted or bonded plate on a long side of the cage, roughly two thirds of the way down. It carries the UN design type (usually 31HA1/Y), test pressure, build date, country of approval, manufacturer code, maximum gross mass and capacity. The bottle usually carries its own moulded date near the neck, which on a rebottled unit will be newer than the cage.
From the yard
Finding it
Four places to look
- STEP 01
The cage plate
Riveted or bonded to a long side, about two thirds of the way down, usually near a corner post. This is the authoritative marking and the one that governs compliance.
- STEP 02
The bottle moulding
A raised date clock or date string near the neck or on the shoulder. Tells you when the bottle was moulded, which on a rebottled unit is not when the tote was built.
- STEP 03
The cage stamp
Some manufacturers stamp a code into the tubular frame near a weld. Useful for identifying the manufacturer when the plate has gone.
- STEP 04
The pallet base
Composite and plastic bases often carry a moulded manufacturer identifier and sometimes a date. Least reliable, but occasionally the only thing left.
Reading it
Field by field
A typical plate reads something like: UN 31HA1/Y/0426/USA/M1234 · 1250 kg · 1040 L · 100 kPa
| Field | Example | Meaning | Why you'd care |
|---|---|---|---|
| Design type | 31HA1 | Composite IBC for liquids, plastic inner, steel outer | Confirms the container class you're dealing with |
| Packing group | Y | Approved for PG II and III materials | Determines which regulated materials it may carry |
| Build date | 0426 | April 2026 — month and year of manufacture | Drives retest scheduling and tells you the cage's age |
| Country of approval | USA | State that issued the design type approval | Rarely operationally relevant |
| Manufacturer / approval code | M1234 | Identifies the manufacturer or approval holder | Useful for sourcing a matching bottle when rebottling |
| Maximum gross mass | 1250 kg | Container plus contents, in kilograms | The load limit — 1,250 kg is about 2,756 lb |
| Capacity | 1040 L | Nominal capacity in litres | 1,040 L is 275 US gallons; 1,000 L is 264 |
| Test pressure | 100 kPa | Hydraulic test pressure applied at qualification | Relevant to compliance, rarely to daily use |
| Last test date | 0929 | Most recent leakproofness or requalification test | The field that decides whether it can ship loaded today |
Age
What the build date actually tells you
Less than people expect for condition, and everything for compliance scheduling.
| Age | Cage expectation | Bottle expectation | Practical note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–3 years | As new, galvanizing intact | Likely original, sound | Premium used stock |
| 3–8 years | Sound, some surface marking | Original, condition depends entirely on contents | The bulk of good used inventory |
| 8–15 years | Sound if maintained; check base welds | Often on its second bottle | Rebottling candidates; inspect carefully |
| 15–25 years | Approaching end of cage service life | Second or third bottle | Assess individually; many are still fine |
| 25+ years | Assume end of life unless proven otherwise | n/a | Usually material recovery |
When the plate and the bottle disagree
On a rebottled tote, the cage plate shows the original build date and the bottle moulding shows a recent date. That is not a discrepancy — it is the expected signature of a properly rebottled unit, and it is one of the quickest ways to identify one.
What should concern you is the opposite: a recent plate on a visibly old, corroded cage. That suggests a plate has been transferred or applied without the corresponding work, and it is a reason to walk away.
Missing or illegible plates
Extremely common on used stock, because plates get painted over, scraped off in transit or corroded away. For storage on your own property it is irrelevant. For regulated shipping it is disqualifying until the unit is requalified and remarked by a registered facility — which is part of what happens during rebottling.
Reading a date clock on a bottle
Many blow moulders use a circular date stamp: an outer ring of years with an arrow or notch, and an inner ring of months. Read the arrow against both rings. It is crude, it survives weathering better than printed marking, and it is often the only date left on an old tote.
Recording it for your own fleet
If you run more than a handful of containers, record the design type, build date and last test date against a cage tag at intake. Retest intervals expire silently, and the moment you need the data is the moment you are least able to go and read forty plates. Managed fleets track this as standard.
Questions people actually ask
+How old is my IBC tote?
+Where is the plate?
+Does the bottle have its own date?
+What if the plate is gone?
Quick reference
Numbers worth having open in another tab
The figures that come up in almost every conversation, whichever page you arrived on.
275 gallon · 1040 L
48×40×46
- Tare
- 130 lb
- Gross, water
- 2,425 lb
- Stack full
- 2 high
- Stock
- Always in stock
330 gallon · 1250 L
48×40×53
- Tare
- 160 lb
- Gross, water
- 2,915 lb
- Stack full
- 2 high
- Stock
- Always in stock
264 gallon · 1000 L
48×40×46
- Tare
- 125 lb
- Gross, water
- 2,325 lb
- Stack full
- 2 high
- Stock
- Usually in stock
350 gallon · 1325 L
48×40×56
- Tare
- 175 lb
- Gross, water
- 3,095 lb
- Stack full
- 2 high
- Stock
- Order in
From the yard notes
Longer reading on this
32 articles written by the people who wash, grade, weld and dispatch. No marketing copy in any of them.
- Industry · August 30, 2022 · 3 minThe Permian Has a Container Problem, and It Is FixableProduction chemical programmes consume containers continuously. Historically most of those empties were stacked, forgotten and buried.
- Sustainability · November 16, 2022 · 3 minWhat 92% Water Recovery Actually MeansWashing containers could easily be a water disaster. Here's the plant that stops it being one, and the honest reason the number isn't 99%.
- Buying · April 14, 2021 · 5 minWhat a Used IBC Tote Should Actually Cost in TexasNobody publishes prices, and there's a reason for that. Here's what actually moves the number, in the order it moves it.
On the yard this week
More answers
While you're here
Pulled from the full FAQ, which runs to forty-plus answers across buying, grades, food safety, sizes, selling, compliance, delivery and care.
- Where we are
- 3505 Montopolis Dr, Austin, TX 78744
- Yard hours
- Mon–Thu 7:30a–5p · Fri 7:30a–4p · Sat 8a–12p · Sun closed (Central Time)
- Coverage
- 68 Texas counties on scheduled routes, from one Austin yard.
+How high can I stack totes?
+What about allergen control?
+What's the difference between Grade A and food grade?
+Do you offer volume discounts?
+How do I stop algae growing in a water tote?
Photograph the plate and send it.
Good light, straight on, close enough to read. We decode these several times a week and it costs you nothing.