diff --git a/src/components/drawing/index.js b/src/components/drawing/index.js
index 5eb5be186fa..deaf8b2441b 100644
--- a/src/components/drawing/index.js
+++ b/src/components/drawing/index.js
@@ -542,11 +542,11 @@ drawing.steps = function(shape) {
 };
 
 // off-screen svg render testing element, shared by the whole page
-// uses the id 'js-plotly-tester' and stores it in gd._tester
+// uses the id 'js-plotly-tester' and stores it in drawing.tester
 // makes a hash of cached text items in tester.node()._cache
 // so we can add references to rendered text (including all info
 // needed to fully determine its bounding rect)
-drawing.makeTester = function(gd) {
+drawing.makeTester = function() {
     var tester = d3.select('body')
         .selectAll('#js-plotly-tester')
         .data([0]);
@@ -579,16 +579,17 @@ drawing.makeTester = function(gd) {
         tester.node()._cache = {};
     }
 
-    gd._tester = tester;
-    gd._testref = testref;
+    drawing.tester = tester;
+    drawing.testref = testref;
 };
 
 // use our offscreen tester to get a clientRect for an element,
 // in a reference frame where it isn't translated and its anchor
 // point is at (0,0)
 // always returns a copy of the bbox, so the caller can modify it safely
-var savedBBoxes = [],
-    maxSavedBBoxes = 10000;
+var savedBBoxes = [];
+var maxSavedBBoxes = 10000;
+
 drawing.bBox = function(node) {
     // cache elements we've already measured so we don't have to
     // remeasure the same thing many times
@@ -597,12 +598,13 @@ drawing.bBox = function(node) {
         return Lib.extendFlat({}, savedBBoxes[saveNum.value]);
     }
 
-    var test3 = d3.select('#js-plotly-tester'),
-        tester = test3.node();
+    var tester3 = drawing.tester;
+    var tester = tester3.node();
 
     // copy the node to test into the tester
     var testNode = node.cloneNode(true);
     tester.appendChild(testNode);
+
     // standardize its position... do we really want to do this?
     d3.select(testNode).attr({
         x: 0,
@@ -610,9 +612,10 @@ drawing.bBox = function(node) {
         transform: ''
     });
 
-    var testRect = testNode.getBoundingClientRect(),
-        refRect = test3.select('.js-reference-point')
-            .node().getBoundingClientRect();
+    var testRect = testNode.getBoundingClientRect();
+    var refRect = drawing.testref
+        .node()
+        .getBoundingClientRect();
 
     tester.removeChild(testNode);
 
diff --git a/src/components/sliders/draw.js b/src/components/sliders/draw.js
index 50c2ef0f35e..3965237d2ce 100644
--- a/src/components/sliders/draw.js
+++ b/src/components/sliders/draw.js
@@ -117,7 +117,7 @@ function keyFunction(opts) {
 
 // Compute the dimensions (mutates sliderOpts):
 function findDimensions(gd, sliderOpts) {
-    var sliderLabels = gd._tester.selectAll('g.' + constants.labelGroupClass)
+    var sliderLabels = Drawing.tester.selectAll('g.' + constants.labelGroupClass)
         .data(sliderOpts.steps);
 
     sliderLabels.enter().append('g')
@@ -154,7 +154,7 @@ function findDimensions(gd, sliderOpts) {
 
     if(sliderOpts.currentvalue.visible) {
         // Get the dimensions of the current value label:
-        var dummyGroup = gd._tester.append('g');
+        var dummyGroup = Drawing.tester.append('g');
 
         sliderLabels.each(function(stepOpts) {
             var curValPrefix = drawCurrentValue(dummyGroup, sliderOpts, stepOpts.label);
diff --git a/src/components/updatemenus/draw.js b/src/components/updatemenus/draw.js
index 3c9c30968b2..558c4148a2d 100644
--- a/src/components/updatemenus/draw.js
+++ b/src/components/updatemenus/draw.js
@@ -504,7 +504,7 @@ function findDimensions(gd, menuOpts) {
     menuOpts.lx = 0;
     menuOpts.ly = 0;
 
-    var fakeButtons = gd._tester.selectAll('g.' + constants.dropdownButtonClassName)
+    var fakeButtons = Drawing.tester.selectAll('g.' + constants.dropdownButtonClassName)
         .data(menuOpts.buttons);
 
     fakeButtons.enter().append('g')
diff --git a/src/lib/svg_text_utils.js b/src/lib/svg_text_utils.js
index f6d4419dc0c..2c9e47d40b8 100644
--- a/src/lib/svg_text_utils.js
+++ b/src/lib/svg_text_utils.js
@@ -17,6 +17,19 @@ var Lib = require('../lib');
 var xmlnsNamespaces = require('../constants/xmlns_namespaces');
 var stringMappings = require('../constants/string_mappings');
 
+var DOM_PARSER;
+
+exports.getDOMParser = function() {
+    if(DOM_PARSER) {
+        return DOM_PARSER;
+    } else if(window.DOMParser) {
+        DOM_PARSER = new window.DOMParser();
+        return DOM_PARSER;
+    } else {
+        throw new Error('Cannot initialize DOMParser');
+    }
+};
+
 // Append SVG
 
 d3.selection.prototype.appendSVG = function(_svgString) {
@@ -27,8 +40,9 @@ d3.selection.prototype.appendSVG = function(_svgString) {
         '</svg>'
     ].join('');
 
-    var dom = new DOMParser().parseFromString(skeleton, 'application/xml'),
-        childNode = dom.documentElement.firstChild;
+    var domParser = exports.getDOMParser();
+    var dom = domParser.parseFromString(skeleton, 'application/xml');
+    var childNode = dom.documentElement.firstChild;
 
     while(childNode) {
         this.node().appendChild(this.node().ownerDocument.importNode(childNode, true));
diff --git a/src/plot_api/plot_api.js b/src/plot_api/plot_api.js
index ecb623db380..cf0c268d955 100644
--- a/src/plot_api/plot_api.js
+++ b/src/plot_api/plot_api.js
@@ -93,9 +93,9 @@ Plotly.plot = function(gd, data, layout, config) {
     d3.select(gd).classed('js-plotly-plot', true);
 
     // off-screen getBoundingClientRect testing space,
-    // in #js-plotly-tester (and stored as gd._tester)
+    // in #js-plotly-tester (and stored as Drawing.tester)
     // so we can share cached text across tabs
-    Drawing.makeTester(gd);
+    Drawing.makeTester();
 
     // collect promises for any async actions during plotting
     // any part of the plotting code can push to gd._promises, then
diff --git a/src/plots/plots.js b/src/plots/plots.js
index 4efb546fa1d..067eb0fb56e 100644
--- a/src/plots/plots.js
+++ b/src/plots/plots.js
@@ -1173,8 +1173,6 @@ plots.purge = function(gd) {
 
     // these get recreated on Plotly.plot anyway, but just to be safe
     // (and to have a record of them...)
-    delete gd._tester;
-    delete gd._testref;
     delete gd._promises;
     delete gd._redrawTimer;
     delete gd.firstscatter;
diff --git a/src/traces/carpet/plot.js b/src/traces/carpet/plot.js
index 9e62b3221c3..333f9f9c66e 100644
--- a/src/traces/carpet/plot.js
+++ b/src/traces/carpet/plot.js
@@ -59,8 +59,8 @@ function plotOne(gd, plotinfo, cd) {
     drawGridLines(xa, ya, boundaryLayer, aax, 'a-boundary', aax._boundarylines);
     drawGridLines(xa, ya, boundaryLayer, bax, 'b-boundary', bax._boundarylines);
 
-    var maxAExtent = drawAxisLabels(gd._tester, xa, ya, trace, t, labelLayer, aax._labels, 'a-label');
-    var maxBExtent = drawAxisLabels(gd._tester, xa, ya, trace, t, labelLayer, bax._labels, 'b-label');
+    var maxAExtent = drawAxisLabels(Drawing.tester, xa, ya, trace, t, labelLayer, aax._labels, 'a-label');
+    var maxBExtent = drawAxisLabels(Drawing.tester, xa, ya, trace, t, labelLayer, bax._labels, 'b-label');
 
     drawAxisTitles(labelLayer, trace, t, xa, ya, maxAExtent, maxBExtent);
 
diff --git a/test/jasmine/tests/plots_test.js b/test/jasmine/tests/plots_test.js
index b8ea16c9878..4634488c94e 100644
--- a/test/jasmine/tests/plots_test.js
+++ b/test/jasmine/tests/plots_test.js
@@ -428,8 +428,6 @@ describe('Test Plots', function() {
             expect(gd.undonum).toBeUndefined();
             expect(gd.autoplay).toBeUndefined();
             expect(gd.changed).toBeUndefined();
-            expect(gd._tester).toBeUndefined();
-            expect(gd._testref).toBeUndefined();
             expect(gd._promises).toBeUndefined();
             expect(gd._redrawTimer).toBeUndefined();
             expect(gd.firstscatter).toBeUndefined();