How to Clean an Oily Bottle

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: September 16, 2021 References

Reusing bottles that held olive oil or other greasy substances is tough because it seems impossible to clean them out. And often, bottles are shaped with strange curves or lips that make it hard to reach every crevice. Learn to clean out clingy residue so that anything can be recycled for another use. By using soap, rice, or ash to fight the grease, you can repurpose any glass bottle to fit your needs.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Cleaning with Soap and Water

1
Soak the bottle in soapy water. Fill your kitchen sink with hot water and add in a few generous squirts of liquid dish washing soap. Submerge the bottle and let it soak for at least a couple of minutes.
- Hot water does a better job of loosening grease and oil and also prevents streaking.^{[1]
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2
Scrub the bottle with a quality sponge. Look for a strong sponge that has a soft side and an abrasive side that won't scratch your bottle. Scrub the bottle thoroughly with your chosen sponge while keeping it submerged in the hot, soapy water.^{[2]
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3
Rinse and dry the bottle. Take the bottle out of the suds and rinse it well with fresh water from the faucet. After rinsing with clean water, place the bottle upside down beside the sink on top of a small towel or drying mat. Let the bottle air dry.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Cleaning with Rice

1
Fill the bottle a third full with hot water. It should be warm enough to cut through and break down the grease. This can come either from a faucet or from a pot of boiling water.^{[3]
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2
Put dish soap and a small handful of uncooked rice into the bottle. There should be enough rice so that it forms a thick layer at the top of the water.
- The rice acts as an abrasive and each grain will do its share of scrubbing the sides down, so be sure to add enough to clean the sides thoroughly.^{[4]
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3
Shake the bottle vigorously. The water, soap, and rice should wash over every part of the interior surface. Make sure to swirl the rice so that it comes in contact with the bottle. Do this until every oil streak and bit of grease residue is gone.
- Make sure there is enough free space left in the bottle for allow the materials inside to pick up momentum within a few seconds of shaking.
- Look at the inside of the bottle after every thirty seconds of shaking to see which spots need the most cleaning, and then alter bottle movements in order to reach those places.^{[5]
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4
Empty the contents of the bottle into a sink and wash it out with warm water. Let it air dry afterwards. If there are any streaks of grease still on the inside of the bottle, repeat the process with more detergent and rice.^{[6]
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Cleaning with Ash

1
Fill the oily bottle with fine ashes from a spent fire. Make sure the fire is completely out before taking from it. Check the ashes and pick out any bits of plastic or garbage that might have fallen into the fire.^{[7]
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Place the bottle into a pan of cold water. The water should come halfway up the height of the bottle so that it boils quickly. You might need a larger pot if the bottle is tall or oddly shaped.^{[8]
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3
Heat the water until it boils. Do this gradually. Leave the bottle in the water to simmer for 30 minutes.
4
Turn off the heat and leave the bottle to cool. Once cooled, wash out the ashes under cold running water. Rinse it out two or three times to make sure there are no wet ashes left in the bottle.^{[9]
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5
Wash the de-oiled bottle in hot soapy water. Leave it to air dry after rinsing out the soapy water.

Warnings

Do not place a glass bottle onto the direct heat of the stove, etc.

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Keep an eye on the bottle during the simmering process.

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