TLS Beakers
More Information
Beakers are essential laboratory vessels used for mixing, heating, and handling liquids during experiments and procedures. The Lab Stockroom carries borosilicate glass beakers in low form and tall form designs, with sizes ranging from 5ml to 10,000ml, for classrooms, research labs, and professional facilities.
What are glass beakers used for?
Glass beakers are used for mixing, heating, measuring approximate volumes, and holding liquids during experiments. Their wide mouth and pouring spout make them ideal for combining reagents, dissolving solids, and transferring liquids. Beakers are among the most frequently used vessels in chemistry, biology, and general science labs.
Low form beakers (Griffin style) are the standard — wider than they are tall, with excellent stability and easy stirring access. Tall form beakers are narrower and taller, better suited for titrations and situations where a smaller liquid surface area reduces evaporation or contamination. Both styles feature molded spouts for clean pouring and white printed graduations for approximate volume measurement.
What is the difference between low form and tall form beakers?
Low form (Griffin) beakers are wider relative to their height, making them more stable and easier to stir. They're the standard choice for most lab work. Tall form beakers have a narrower diameter and taller profile, which reduces the exposed surface area of the liquid — useful when minimizing evaporation or contamination matters.
For general chemistry and classroom use, low form beakers are the default. Tall form beakers are more commonly used in titration setups and applications where the liquid column height aids in measurement or observation. Both are made from borosilicate 3.3 glass and handle the same temperature and chemical conditions.
What sizes of glass beakers are available?
Glass beakers are available in sizes from 5ml up to 10,000ml. The most commonly used sizes in classrooms and labs are 50ml, 100ml, 250ml, 400ml, 600ml, and 1000ml. Smaller sizes (5ml–25ml) are used for micro-scale work, while larger sizes (2000ml–10,000ml) handle bulk mixing and storage tasks.
When stocking a new lab, a set covering 50ml, 100ml, 250ml, 600ml, and 1000ml gives you the range needed for most experiments. Class sets — enough beakers for every lab station — are the most common bulk order for educators.
Are glass beakers safe for heating?
Yes. Borosilicate glass beakers are designed for direct heating on hot plates, wire gauze over a Bunsen burner, or in water baths. Borosilicate 3.3 glass handles temperatures up to approximately 500°C and resists thermal shock far better than ordinary soda-lime glass.
When heating, avoid placing a hot beaker directly on a cold surface — use a heat-resistant mat or allow it to cool gradually. Never heat a beaker that is chipped or cracked, as stress fractures can cause it to shatter under thermal expansion. Beakers are not designed for pressure applications.
Plastic beakers offer a lightweight, shatter-resistant alternative to glass for mixing, measuring, and holding liquids. The Lab Stockroom carries polypropylene plastic beakers with molded graduations for classrooms, fieldwork, and applications where breakage is a concern.
What are plastic beakers used for?
Plastic beakers are used for mixing, measuring approximate volumes, and holding liquids in settings where glass breakage is a safety concern. They're lighter than glass, virtually unbreakable, and suitable for most aqueous solutions, acids, and bases. Polypropylene beakers are the most common — they resist most lab chemicals and can be autoclaved.
Plastic beakers are especially popular in elementary and middle school classrooms, field sampling, and any application where beakers are transported or handled by inexperienced users. They're not suitable for heating on a hot plate or use with organic solvents that attack polypropylene.
Can plastic beakers be heated?
Polypropylene beakers can withstand temperatures up to about 135°C, which allows use in hot water baths and with warm (not boiling) liquids. However, they should not be placed on a hot plate or exposed to direct flame — they will melt or deform. For heating applications, borosilicate glass beakers are the correct choice.
If you need both shatter resistance and heating capability, polycarbonate beakers offer a middle ground — they're impact-resistant and tolerate higher temperatures than polypropylene, though they still can't match borosilicate glass.
What sizes of plastic beakers are available?
Plastic beakers are available in sizes from 10ml to 5000ml, with the same common sizes as glass: 50ml, 100ml, 250ml, 600ml, and 1000ml. Molded graduations provide approximate volume measurement. For most classroom applications, the same size range you'd stock in glass works for plastic.
Plastic beakers are generally less expensive per unit than borosilicate glass, making them a cost-effective option for equipping multiple lab stations — especially in settings with high breakage rates.
