>From the Desk of:  David E. Lourie, PE
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Wednesday, March 10, 1999; 02:10 PM

For geotechnical soil samples, we have used both glass jars and plastic
containers (cups) with snap-on lids for our "disturbed" samples and we use
32-oz wide-mouth plastic containers for our undisturbed samples.  The
undisturbed samples are first wrapped in plastic wrap then in aluminum foil
before being placed in the 32-oz containers.

While glass jars have some advantages, we think their disadvantages outnumber
their positive points. Glass jars can break during handling and transporting
operations and they are relatively heavy to ship when compared to plastic
containers.  We also found glass jars to be more expensive than the plastic
containers we use.

The plastic containers that we use for the disturbed samples cost about $0.20
each, including the lid; we buy these in relatively small quantities (500 cups
and lids at a time), so the price should be better if larger quantities are
purchased at one time.  The dimensions of our cups are about 4 in. high by 3
in. in diameter at the top of the cup and 2.5 in. in diameter at the bottom of
the cup.  I think they may be referred to as 12-oz. cups.  We write on the
lids and when we are ready to dispose of the samples, we just throw the whole
thing away rather than trying to clean and reuse the cups and lids.

We have seen other firms use ziplock plastic bags, but we don't care for them
for many reasons.  One of the most important reasons is that they don't seal
well when they get soil particles in the sealing strip.  They also tend to
tear fairly easily.  Both of these problems can give rise to moisture loss.

Sincerely,

LOURIE CONSULTANTS

David E. Lourie, PE
Consulting Engineer



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