A person who is looking to buy plastic beakers should consider a few different things before deciding which ones are best. Beakers come in different sizes and colors and may be made of out durable or disposable plastic. It is also possible to find beakers that are marked so that the contents can be easily measured. The best plastic beakers will be those that best fit the buyer's needs at the most reasonable price.
To select the best plastic beakers, the buyer should know whether the color of the fluid in the beaker is important. Beakers can be made out of clear or opaque plastic. Choosing an opaque beaker makes it difficult to determine the exact color of the fluid inside, especially if it is necessary to determine how light or dark a fluid is. There are colored beakers that can help the user easily tell one beaker apart from another, but these will make it impossible to see the color of the fluid inside.
Plastic beakers can also be graduated or free of markings. Graduated beakers are appropriate when the volume of the contents needs to be carefully measured. Graduation markings are usually in metric units, though it is also be possible to find beakers marked with the English measuring system or with both systems. A buyer who is choosing a plastic beaker should determine whether it needs to be graduated and in what units these markings should be before determining which beaker to buy.
Another consideration when choosing beakers is the quality of the plastic. Some beakers are made from thick, durable plastic that will hold up for many years. Others are made from thin, flimsy plastic. These beakers are often designed to be thrown away after use, something that may be appropriate when working with fluids that need to be kept free from contaminants.
The size of a plastic beaker is another factor that should be considered. These vessels come in a variety of different sizes from very small beakers made to hold .01 cups (25 milliliters) to large beakers made to hold 21.1 cups (5 liters) or more. The size needed will depend on what the plastic beakers are being used for, though, for most purposes, mid-sized beakers that hold about 2.1 cups (500 milliliters) are appropriate. It is also possible to buy a set of plastic beakers so that beakers of different sizes can be used when needed.