Saving the Environment – (or Too Much Time on My Hands)

Have you ever struggled with a problem for a long time, couldn’t figure out a solution, and couldn’t find a commercially-available solution? Do you hate to waste things? Are you cheap? (Or the politically correct version of the question: Are you frugal?) Are you seriously averse to buying something you can make for free? Have you ever been frustrated with getting that last drop of lotion or hand soap from a pump dispenser? If you answered “yes” to all, then this article is for you. And the best part is that it won’t cost you anything except a bit of time.

One of the great frustrations of life is that the pickup tubes in pump dispensers never quite reach the bottom of the container. Even though I can afford to throw away the last ¼ inch of contents, it just is against my frugal nature to do so. This is mostly a problem with thick contents like body lotion. After years of fussin’ over trying to prop a nearly-empty bottle upside down over the new bottle and many times having it fall and make a big mess, I have come up with a very simple solution.


The next time you hear the empty, sucking-air sound from a pump container, just set it aside until it happens with the next container of the same stuff. Now you have two empty, sucking-air sounding containers, and twice as much product in the bottoms of containers. Sometimes you just have to go backward before you can go forward. Unscrew the cap and pump assemblies from both containers.

Use a screwdriver or other pry tool to carefully remove the snap ring holding the pump assembly together. Usually the snap ring is on the top of the screw cap. Separate the plunger from the pickup tube and pump body, freeing the screw cap.

Discard both pumps and clean up the two caps with dish soap and water. Then using a few drops of super glue, glue the caps together, top-to-top. Clamp them in a vise, by wrapping them with a rubber band, or by balancing a book on the stack until the glue dries. Give it a couple of minutes. Remove the clamps, and for good measure, wrap the caps with wide tape. At this point, depending on how wide the tape is, you may have to cut off some excess tape. It should only be around the sides of the caps and not obstructing or extending over the screw openings of either cap.

Now temporarily remove the cap and pump from your new, third container. Screw the coupler you’ve just made to the top of the new container.

Invert one of the nearly-empty containers over the coupler, screw it on, and leave it for a few hours, or as long as it takes to fully drain those stubborn few drops of liquid from it. Don’t completely tighten the top bottle so that air can circulate.

Tip: Depending on how much fluid is left in the nearly-empty bottle, you may have to first use some from the new bottle so that it doesn’t overflow.

And in addition to removing an irritant from your life, you’ll help save the environment! And if you’re really cheap like me, you may save a couple of dollars over your lifetime.