About Alpha bottles

Alpha™ Van Dorn-style bottles have flexible, plunger-like blue polyurethane end seals for reliable sealing. Black latex tubing is used to close the bottle because it better resists decay in sunlight and in water than amber tubing. It is the strongest elastic material to our knowledge but may leach a very few heavy metals or other contaminants. The end seals may leach trace amounts of mercury into the water sample in the range of 20 – 450 ng/L (nanograms per liter), phosphorous, and potential other contaminants. Therefore, Alpha samplers are not suitable for chemical sampling.

When tripped by a messenger, their urethane end seals snap tightly onto each end of the cylinder, producing an almost leakproof seal. A small amount of sample is always lost until a slight vacuum forms inside as the sealed sampler is lifted out of the water.

As with our Beta™ bottles and Ekman grabs, Alpha™ bottles feature a 316 stainless steel trip head mechanism for durability and high performance. They also feature a nylon safety line connecting the end seals, so if the latex tubing breaks, the end seals often remain with the bottle.

Choose between completely transparent acrylic or the more durable, less costly opaque PVC main tubes. Acrylic allows full view of the contents during your field work.

Warning: These seals close with considerable force and could cause injury. Do not operate out of the water!