We decided to buy new food storage containers recently. We had a couple sets at that time, and there was an obvious difference in quality between them. We purchased a set from Ikea once upon a time because it was inexpensive. It lasted a while with most containers still usable today.
But we were ready to phase out those old Ikea containers because they were a pain in the neck trying to find lids for. Sometimes the lids would pop off in the freezer, some of them warped in the microwave, and sometimes food would stain the plastic.
We bought two Rubbermaid Easy Find Lids container sets years ago, and they are still in rotation. Years of microwaving, dish washing, and freezing, left some of our storage containers looking a little used and abused. This is to be expected with so much use. We were happy with our Rubbermaid, but we wanted to explore all of our options.
Exploring All Of Our Options
We researched different food storage container options including glass. We were concerned about stains, etching, odors, and plastic taste transfer. No one wants to taste plastic when eating. There were concerns about plastic containers warping when exposed to heat like in the microwave or dishwasher.
Breakage and BPA were concerns for us as well. All products researched claimed to be BPA free so that was a non issue. Although the only way to be absolutely sure a product is BPA free is to have lab test conducted. We decided to trust the manufacturer’s word.
We came across Snapware which had pretty high reviews they look cool but did not seem as durable as Rubbermaid easy lids. The Snapware have tabs that snap in place, hence Snapware. When I saw them at Costco I thought they seemed a little flimsy. The plastic certainly isn’t as thick as Rubbermaid.
Upon reading reviews we determined that the tabs could become an issue and decided not to go with Snapware. Although Snapware had an overall high rating, several bad reviews stated how it was hard to snap on the lids and how some of the tabs ended up breaking off over time.
Although it appears to be rare, we decided against glass storage containers because of possible shattering and small sharp chips, and glass splinters. This is caused by removing the glass from extreme cold to heat; such as removing freezer stored leftovers and placing the container into the microwave or oven (a benefit of most glass storage containers is being able to put them in the oven).
We were also concerned about the covers not fitting, accidents such as dropping a food filled container on the floor and it shattering. Accidents happen (some times a lot in our house). Should we have an accident or durability issue we knew we wouldn’t be able to replace just one container with out having to buy an entire set.
Why We Decided To Stick With Rubbermaid Easy Find Lids
Currently we do own Rubbermaid containers with easy find lids, and we are very happy with them. They are very durable, convenient, and good looking. The reason we decided to look into other options is because we noticed etching on the walls on the inside of some of the containers. We also noticed slight odor transfer from the food to the containers. This didn’t happen very often, but it happened nonetheless. These aren’t huge issues for us.
We’ve had the Rubbermaid easy find lids for at least 3 years. In that time we’ve never experienced any funny taste due to food being stored in these plastic containers. We’ve never had any containers crack in the freezer. All the lids fit perfectly. Because the lids fit easily inside one another, it’s very easy to locate them and store them in the cabinet. Some of them do look a little beat up, but they’ve been used quite a bit.
We didn’t want to break the bank and the Rubbermaid easy lid set was very affordable (glass was much more expensive). We found a 50 piece Rubbermaid set for about at an unbeatable price, and we already know they are durable.
From what we read, we don’t think there is a perfect tupperware set out there. For example, you’d probably want the benefit of glass being that there is no odor transfer, but you probably wouldn’t want to deal with the potential shattering. We trust the quality of Rubbermaid as we’ve had a couple sets for years and have very few complaints. We definitely recommend the Rubbermaid easy find lids.
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