PP or PET for Household Storage Containers
The two plastics used across the Welfan range behave differently. Here is how to choose between them for a given product line.
Why the Welfan range uses both
Polypropylene is used for the food container sets, the bathroom sets and the wicker-effect storage baskets. PET is used for the transparent storage boxes. That split is deliberate rather than arbitrary, and understanding it makes range planning easier.
Both are widely recycled thermoplastics, but they give very different results in a moulded houseware.
What PP gives you
PP takes colour well, which is what makes a rainbow container set possible in the first place. Each body in item RB-003 or RR-002 carries its own tone without the wall becoming cloudy or brittle.
It also tolerates flexing. A lidded basket that gets lifted by one edge, or a container lid that snaps over a rim thousands of times, needs a material that bends and recovers. That is why the whole basket family and every food container set is moulded in PP.
PP is the material specified on the container sets that list one, described as food grade PP.
What PET gives you
PET's advantage is optical clarity. The transparent storage boxes TP-011, TP-012 and TP-013 are chosen precisely because a user can identify contents through the wall without opening the lid.
PET walls are also harder, which helps a box hold its shape when stacked. The trade-off is that PET scratches and clouds if cleaned with abrasives, so the care instruction for these items is a soft cloth only.
Choosing for a product line
If the storage sits in a living space and should hide its contents, specify the PP basket family and let the woven finish do the work.
If the storage sits in a wardrobe, stockroom or under a bed and contents need to be found quickly, specify the PET box family.
For food, the container sets are the relevant family, and the specification to quote is food grade PP.
Items Referenced in This Guide
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Welfan products are moulded in PET?
The three transparent storage boxes, items TP-011, TP-012 and TP-013.
Which products are moulded in PP?
The food container sets, the bathroom sets that state a material, and the wicker-effect storage baskets.
Why not use PET for the food containers?
PP holds colour and tolerates repeated lid flexing, which is what a graduated colour coded container set needs.
Questions This Guide Did Not Answer
Send the item numbers you are weighing up and we will reply with the specification detail behind them.