[Nhcoll-l] Tips for tiny jars?

Thu Jul 2 11:52:10 EDT 2026

Those jars are beautiful, but definitely not the best for keeping things wet with minimal maintenance! I wouldn't submerge a jar like that inside of another jar personally.

I would transfer any specimens that aren't mainly for aesthetic/display purposes. For specimens like the one you sent an image of, with specimens mounted on a glass plate, you might want to consider a French square jar with cone liner, or a 2 oz  or 4 oz straight-sided jar with f217 cap.

If the question is "without transferring the specimens to a different jar, how do we prevent evaporation from these old glass jars" , there was a paper published this year comparing jar sealants for these jar types here: https://nhcm.pensoft.net/article/188287/, and I think others have addressed the issue on NHColl in the past.

Best of luck!
-Nate

--
[The Ohio State University]
Nathaniel F. Shoobs
Curator of Mollusks
College of Arts & Sciences Dept. of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology
Museum of Biological Diversity, 1315 Kinnear Rd, Columbus, OH 43212
614-688-1342 (Office)
mbd.osu.edu/collections/invertebrates<https://mbd.osu.edu/collections/invertebrates>
From: Claire Smith <claire.smith at reading.ac.uk>
Date: Thursday, July 2, 2026 at 11:39 AM
To: Shoobs, Nate <shoobs.1 at osu.edu>; nhcoll-l <nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu>
Subject: Re: [Nhcoll-l] Tips for tiny jars?

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Thanks Nate — the jars are the older style of glass cylinder with a flat glass lid. Some are sealed with gelatine and some with silicone, but they all evaporate just as quickly. We can consider transferring them into alternative jars if that's the best option for keeping them safe.

[cid:0a1a4e35-21db-4855-9339-e0d6a24c8d8c]

Best wishes,
Claire

*******

Claire Smith (she/her), AFHEA

Postdoctoral Research Associate, Cole Museum of Zoology

University of Reading
claire.smith at reading.ac.uk<mailto:claire.smith at reading.ac.uk>

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________________________________
From: Shoobs, Nate <shoobs.1 at osu.edu>
Sent: 02 July 2026 16:33
To: Claire Smith <claire.smith at reading.ac.uk>; nhcoll-l <nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu>
Subject: Re: [Nhcoll-l] Tips for tiny jars?

External email: Treat content with caution.

Sorry, to be clear, if you glass vials and jars with lids/closures made from either polypropylene with an f217 foam liner or a phenolic resin + poly cone seal* you shouldn’t see aby evaporation for many years.

-
Nathaniel F. Shoobs, Curator of Mollusks
College of Arts & Sciences Dept. of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University
Museum of Biological Diversity
1315 Kinnear Rd, Columbus, OH 43212
614-688-1342 (Office)
mbd.osu.edu<http://mbd.osu.edu/>
________________________________
From: Shoobs, Nate <shoobs.1 at osu.edu>
Sent: Thursday, 02 July 2026 11:30:56
To: Claire Smith <claire.smith at reading.ac.uk>; nhcoll-l <nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu>
Subject: Re: [Nhcoll-l] Tips for tiny jars?

Hey Claire,
What is the type of closure?
If you’re topping off that frequently chances are the lids you’re using are bad. If you use vials/jars made from phenolic resin with poly-cone seals, or alternatively polypropylene lids with f217 foam liners, you shouldn’t have to top up narrow-necked containers for years or decades in most cases.

-
Nathaniel F. Shoobs, Curator of Mollusks
College of Arts & Sciences Dept. of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University
Museum of Biological Diversity
1315 Kinnear Rd, Columbus, OH 43212
614-688-1342 (Office)
mbd.osu.edu<http://mbd.osu.edu/>
________________________________
From: Nhcoll-l <nhcoll-l-bounces at mailman.yale.edu> on behalf of Claire Smith <claire.smith at reading.ac.uk>
Sent: Thursday, 02 July 2026 11:22:05
To: nhcoll-l <nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu>
Subject: [Nhcoll-l] Tips for tiny jars?

Hi everyone (with apologies for cross-posting),

We have a selection of small specimens in our fluid collection, in jars of around 10 to 25 mL, and they evaporate incredibly quickly. We have to top them up almost annually, which isn't great for the specimens. The rate of evaporation doesn't seem to be worse with a particular fluid, or with a particular sealant.

Do those of you who work with fluid collections have any tips for how to prevent these tiny jars from evaporating so quickly?

Best wishes,
Claire

*******

Claire Smith (she/her), AFHEA

Postdoctoral Research Associate, Cole Museum of Zoology

University of Reading
claire.smith at reading.ac.uk<mailto:claire.smith at reading.ac.uk>

www.linkedin.com/in/wetconservatrix<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.linkedin.com/in/wetconservatrix__;!!KGKeukY!wrr7VDbyZdDTKiuPwsF5Ev_eZ5YwTQS4gQgNmiMpRzl1wOnJ80eNk4o2Dfodk-XXhAfQvkkOBvF2C5GxqIzMLfhCFuxs$>
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