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Frequently asked questions - if you have a question not listed here please contact us and we will be happy to respond to your question(s).
Background Questions:
Where do you make your glassware?
All the products on this site are made in the beautiful Northwoods of Wisconsin.
Where do all the bottles come from?
Our bottles come from the waste stream and are sorted and supplied by our partner network. Sometimes, for large corporate orders, we have been supplied 'resort' glass which are those bottles that have failed quality control at a glass manufacturer and are destined to be crushed.
Are there any hazardous by-products from your manufacturing process?
None at all. The frosting process is achieved from sandblasting instead of the non-environmentally friendly method of acid etching. Sandblasting medium is alumunium oxide, which is totally inert.
Can the glasses be placed in a refrigerator (frozen)?
Yes.
I received a glass that leaks at the base, why?
Through our proprietary 'twisting' of the neck process, the neck is sealed off from the bowl of the goblet, however there are occasions, due to the differing characteristics of the bottle, that a small aperture is left in the neck which causes a leak. This is rare and we are happy to replace any leaking goblet immediately.
What does your patent actually cover?
The patent covers the goblet style but not the tumbler configuration. It is known as an umbrella patent in that the method of converting a bottle into a drinking glass is covered and since there is no 'prior art' on the product, the resulting product is itself covered which means that even if a different method is followed if the resulting product is similar to ours, there is infringement.
'My Uncle used to take a hot poker and oil……'
Yes, we have heard of those methods before, but the founders found them to be a little hazardous to put into commercial practice!
Shipping / Returns Questions:
When will my order ship?
In-stock products are typically sent out within 8 - 10 business days. Raw material shortages, seasonal sales spikes and other factors occasionally create delays.
We attempt to update our website weekly to indicate products that are currently ‘out-of-stock’. These items may be backordered and can take up to 4 weeks to ship. If any unusual delays occur, we will notify you via email as soon as we are aware of the problem.
How are shipping charges determined?
We charge a rate that is based on the weight of the package for shipping ground. This means that the total weight of your order determines what is charged for shipping. We will select the most efficient carrier for your order.
If you have any questions regarding shipping, please email us at shipping@greenglass.comor call 715-355-1897.
Are your shipping materials environmentally friendly?
Like our products, many of our shipping materials are re-used. You will likely see the label of other businesses on our boxes because we reuse most of the boxes that come into our warehouse. When we must purchase boxes, we choose those with recycled content. Many of our boxes are cushioned with biodegradable cornstarch ‘peanuts’. These completely dissolve in water within seconds. If you happen to see Styrofoam peanuts in a box you receive from us, don't worry – we didn't buy them, we are recycling them and we encourage you to do the same. If you can't use them, please take them to a local packaging store that can reuse them or ‘freecycle’ them.
What is The Green Glass Company’s return policy?
We hope that you are thrilled with the products you purchase from us. If you are not, please contact us so that we can fix the problem. If you are not fully satisfied with your purchase, we will be happy to provide a full refund less shipping costs within 30 days of purchase. We will also be happy to make an exchange or provide a store credit for any product you wish to return after the initial 30 day period. (If you are a wholesaler, please login to your account to view our wholesale return policy)
Technical Questions:
Is the frosting or logo effect permanent?
 Yes, no amount of washing or scrubbing will remove it. The sandblasting process actually causes micro-pitting in the glass surface, which is permanent. For clear glass, with a screen printed design, the design is permanently 'fired' onto the glass surface and cannot be removed.
I notice variations in the glass set I received? Is that normal?
Our reclaimed bottles may differ from one another to begin with, perhaps coming from different manufacturers or from different parts of the country. Other contributing factors, for example, may be the dimensions and glass distribution (wall & base thickness) varying slightly as each glass is individually produced, slight color variations, defects in the original bottle, different reactions of the glass when heat is applied. As they go through our process of becoming an extraordinary tumbler or goblet, these differences begin to lend themselves to the uniqueness of each individual glass, and we feel all of these things provide added character. We enjoy celebrating the beauty in imperfection…
Why do some of your glasses become extinct?
We rely on bottles from the waste stream and are subject to their availability and quality. Sometimes we experience difficulty procuring certain bottles of sufficient quality in adequate quantity to continue a line of glassware. As a result, with great sadness, we must discontinue that particular offering.
Are they dishwasher safe?
Yes
Some clients comment that the samples shown to them register their hand prints when handled. Is this permanent and is this effect prevalent on all glasses that come frosted?
When the glasses are freshly sandblasted and are handled by sweaty or greasy hands they do tend to mark. The effect is not permanent and washing with warm water, detergent and a Scotchbrite® sponge, or alternatively dishwashing them, cleans them back to their pristine condition. As they are regularly washed the 'marking' effect becomes less noticeable.
Other Questions:
Is the product guaranteed, can I return it if defective in any way?
Yes, please ship back to us and we will credit you for the glass and shipping or send a replacement glass.
If a beverage firm were interested in having their vessel converted in volume, where would enough raw materials come from?
Beverage houses have their containers produced by a glass container manufacturer such as Ball-Foster Glass. We ask that they authorize us to contact their manufacturer to secure their 'resort' bottles. Resort bottles are those that are rejected off the line as being unsuitable for filling but are perfect for conversion for The Green Glass Company. So instead of crushing the resort bottles and stock piling the cullet (broken glass), they would supply the bottles to us. In this way we get the volume we need drawing from their reject stream.
Regarding your Privacy:
This privacy notice discloses the privacy practices for www.greenglass.com. This privacy notice applies solely to information collected by this web site. It will notify you of the following:
1. What personally identifiable information is collected from you through the web site, how it is used and may be shared.
2. What choices are available to you regarding the use of your data.
3. The security procedures in place to protect the misuse of your information.
4. How you can correct any inaccuracies in the information.
Information Collection, Use, and Sharing
We are the sole owners of the information collected on this site. We only have collect information that you voluntarily give us via email or other direct contact from you. We will not sell or rent this information to anyone.
We will use your information to respond to you, regarding the reason you contacted us. We will not share your information with any third party outside of our organization, other than as necessary to fulfill your request, e.g. to ship an order.
Unless you ask us not to, we may contact you via email in the future to tell you about specials, new products or services, or changes to this privacy policy.
Your Access to and Control Over Information
You may opt out of any future contacts from us at any time. You can do the following at any time by contacting us via the email address or phone number given on our website:
- See what data we have about you, if any.
- Change/correct any data we have about you.
- Have us delete any data we have about you.
- Express any concern you have about our use of your data.
Security
We take precautions to protect your information. When you submit sensitive information via the website, your information is protected both online and offline.
Wherever we collect sensitive information (such as credit card data), that information is encrypted and transmitted to us in a secure way. You can verify this by looking for a closed lock icon at the bottom of your web browser, or looking for "https" at the beginning of the address of the web page.
While we use encryption to protect sensitive information transmitted online, we also protect your information offline. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, billing or customer service) are granted access to personally identifiable information. The computers/servers in which we store personally identifiable information are kept in a secure environment.
Registration
In order to use this website, a user must first complete the registration form. During registration a user is required to give certain information (such as name and email address). This information is used to contact you about the products/services on our site in which you have expressed interest. At your option, you may also provide demographic information (such as gender or age) about yourself, but it is not required.
Orders
We request information from you on our order form. To buy from us, you must provide contact information (like name and shipping address) and financial information (like credit card number, expiration date). This information is used for billing purposes and to fill your orders. If we have trouble processing an order, we'll use this information to contact you.
Sharing
We use an outside shipping company to ship orders, and a credit card processing company to bill users for goods and services. These companies do not retain, share, store or use personally identifiable information for any secondary purposes beyond filling your order.
Links
This web site contains links to other sites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the content or privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of any other site that collects personally identifiable information.
Surveys & Contests
From time-to-time our site may request information via surveys or contests. Participation in these surveys or contests is completely voluntary and you may choose whether or not to participate and therefore disclose this information. Information requested may include contact information (such as name and shipping address), and demographic information (such as zip code, age level). Contact information will be used to notify the winners and award prizes. Survey information will be used for purposes of monitoring or improving the use and satisfaction of this site.
If you feel that we are not abiding by this privacy policy, you should contact us immediately via telephone at +1 715 355 1897 or via email at info@greenglass.com.
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