What's the difference between General Stock, Container Stock, and Batch Stock?

From a product's location entry, open "Manage Stock" to track how much of a chemical you actually have on hand. There are three ways to record quantity, and which one fits depends on how the product is packaged and used:

1 General Stock

A single running total amount per chemical and location, recorded in liters or kilograms. You can type in a batch number and expiry date on a General Stock entry, but these fields are informational only — they aren't tracked or used elsewhere. Best for bulk or loose materials where you just need to know "how much do we have," such as a shared drum or a bin of loose material.

2 Container Stock

You define a container type and container size (for example, a 10 L can or a 200 L drum), then track how many containers of that type/size you have — the total is calculated as containers × container size. Container Stock has no batch number and no expiry date field. You get one entry per container type + size combination, so a 10 L can and a 200 L drum of the same chemical show as two separate lines.

3 Batch Stock

Works the same way as Container Stock, but each entry also carries a batch number and an expiry date. Use it when you need to trace individual deliveries — for example if a supplier issues a recall on a specific batch — since Batch Stock entries can be reported on and are included in expiry warnings, unlike General or Container Stock.

You can switch between these modes per product/location combination in the Manage Stock view — pick whichever matches how that particular chemical is stored and consumed on site.