archived-collection

Collection information worth spreading Here in france, we have many differents ONG (we call them associations) such as "Les Bouchons d'Amour" which collect bottle caps. They position themselves as intermediates (also known as sorters) between consumers and recyclers. Most of those ONGs have a negociated contract with a Belgian Industrial recycler who buys them that plastic at a set price. With the money counterpart they collect, they fund wheelchairs, guide dogs for blind people and other very useful "products" or services for handicapped people. There is only one industry -correct me if i'm wrong- doing this (the owner is very sensitive to that process because one of his children is handicapped). He then produces transportation pallets out of recycled plastic. Since a couple months (or years, can't remember correctly), he has been confronted to bad returns from his clients saying his pallets' quality wasn't good enough (the pallets tend to break easily). His answer to that was he limited the types of bottle caps supplied by those ONGs. Result : these ONGs have now around 40% of the plastic they collect and sort that has 0 use. It is very disappointing for them to know that those 40% have no other issue than going to the bin. And that's where Precious Plastic enters the game ! I managed to setup an (unofficial yet) partnership with "Les Bouchons d'Amour", the deal being they give us all the bottle caps that the industry doesn't accept, and we supply them with "containers" to put at their collection points (i still need to finish my extrusion machine to finally finish the container prototype). I'm sure there are similar ONGs around the world doing the same thing ! (edited)

@Nick - PP France for you information the company taking the bottle caps seems stopping that business ... but someone is taking over that market a company called Eloy https://www.rtbf.be/info/regions/liege/detail_ne-jetez-pas-vos-bouchons-en-plastique-la-societe-eloy-va-les-transformer?id=9879943

Ne jetez pas vos bouchons en plastique, la société Eloy va les t...

Surtout, ne jetez pas vos bouchons en plastique! Vous étiez nombreux à les garder au profit d'associations. Des bouchons qui étaient revendus à une entreprise de la région liégeoise. Mais elle arrête ses activités. Un autre industriel pourrait...

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3:43 PM

Sorry for the French in the article guys

here is the link of what we shared on the forums so far of the collection topic V4 https://davehakkens.nl/community/forums/topic/v4-collection-system/ At the moment we focus on the basics of a collection system and organizing tools that we will launch of V4. The two main ways of collecting plastic that we work with are plastic waste streams from public and from businesses. The public will be a "drop off" situation and focus on a certain plastic-type. The businesses will be "pick up" way of collecting mostly a certain product. The bottlecaps in your examplel @Nick - PP Sartrouville is one of these focusses on a product. At the moment we do the same thing with the spoons from ice-cream places. We made a costum poster for this ice cream spoon. By the power of the community we could create a library by adding all different products to make it easier to collect for all of us. (edited)

julie

V4 Collection System - Dave Hakkens

hi people, interested in the collection system For every precious plastic workspace that you want to start, you will need plastic material. To get this material sorted, cleaned and ready - Dave Hakkens

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feel free to share your own way of collecting plastic, is it a company or from the public? do you go and pick it up or do they come and bring it? What do you use to transport your plastic?

We are organziing and facilitating people to buy and sell recyclables in Iran. We certainly bought more than 3 tons by now. I will explain further when I get fully initiated to pp.

6:26 PM

I'm calling for a development of web app(not a native Android, IOS) that people who want to recycle can Request a pickup Or Drop off at collection points Then Record a log of this transaction. For example Dave sold to Alistar 2Kg PP and 10Kg PET at this coordinate for 7 Euros.

6:28 PM

Ofcourse there are diffrent roles in this ecosystem, people who sell, people who buy and even who transports which can be implemented with Identity and access management concept.

https://excessmaterialsexchange.com/ perhaps this might be interesting in the future, they want to get more insight of the trash produced by companies and to offer it to others who are interested.

Rutger van Wijngaarden

Excess Materials Exchange

The Excess Materials Exchange (EME) is a digital marketplace where companies can exchange excess materials with each other.

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Hi there ! For those interested I've created an optimized version of the plastic labels PDF: https://github.com/drskullster/precious-plastic-labels

drskullster/precious-plastic-labels

Optimized version of the Precious Plastic label PDF found in the download kit. - drskullster/precious-plastic-labels

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5:09 PM

in this version there's one plastic type per page, which means that you don't have to print labels for plastic you don't plan on collecting, and I removed the big "small" and "medium" headers that take valuable space when printed on expensive label sheets (each page has 9 medium or 12 small labels)

5:10 PM

the size is way bigger than the original since I had to rasterize the files (it's a bit quick and dirty) but if there's an interest I can refactor the PDF to a vector version (edited)

5:11 PM

if there's a better place to put the file than my personal github, please let me know !

5:11 PM

also, I hope v4 doesn't have an optimized version of the label PDF, that would be frustrating :3 (edited)

nice ! great stuff, i link it in the wiki as well

5:21 PM

vector would be cool, yeah. that way people could laser it on somewhere, no label = less footprint

yeah engraving on scrap cardboard or something is a good idea

Is there any info on the differnt costs/value of processed shredded plastics ?

hi @commissionit it really depends on where you are. There's an app that I use to work for where you can browse different sellers and types in your area to get an idea. Website is scrapo.co

@Joseph thanks, thats a great help. Any idea who made the cool chair on the new homepage? Its not in the bazar..

Hello, i would like to start the project

what is a fair price to offer people per KG of plastic they bring to me?

Hi all, I also have a question - about drying plastic waste. The is a very nice washing system with a pre-wash, water filter, and final wash. How do we go about drying? There is of course natural heat - which could work well in a hot country like where I am in Ghana, or drying machines with those who have the infrastrucutre to support the use.

8:15 AM

What do other people think about this?

8:16 AM

In a country with little to zero recycling asking members to wash their plastics will be a difficult task to accomplish

Like you said, it really depend on the place you live in. I would say that you can go with a "low tech" solution, but just be careful that plastic is really sensible to UV and moisture. Ultraviolet, sun light, can degrade the plastic, so you shouldn't dry it directly in front of the sun, but more in a "closed space". Moisture and humidity, the quantity in water in the air, means that even if the plastic is "not wet", if the humidity is high in your region (like in the rain season/tropical climate), drying it directly in the air is not the best idea because it will still absorb a lot of water, thus not being dry. I don't think you have to ask everyone to wash their plastic before it comes to your space, you can do it yourself, just be careful about these parameters.

@Kattapa-JU you could make something like this to dry the plastic https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XID-nxU5K0

Bigelow Brook Farm (Web4Deb)

Solar Food Dehydrator

yes, its good though the scale would have to be increased. I was thinking of a table with mosquito netting on the bottom and the top. The top would also be able to open to load and unload plastic. This video looks like it was filmed in a temperate climate, while I am in west Africa, So the open air concept may work with our environment and also save some costs

The way it works is by using heat from the sun which passes through a dark or tinted type of glass /plastic therefore creating heat. It has openings that allow air to pass through it and then drys whatever is inside of it. Your right about the scale I have seen these in all different types of configurations and they have all worked quite well even in winter.

Any tips whats the best/simplest technique to remove these very thin films? Can´t peel it, also after laying in hot soap water for some time very awkward...

Many types of glue for stickers are affected by heat, I had good results with the hairdryer

I think the people who bring their plastics to collection points or to a workspace won´t do these work an for a workspace needs a simpler/faster technique, right?

@Thomas Peterberns | Johannplasto for sure. Just shared my experience

@Thomas Peterberns | Johannplasto Isn't an hairdryer quite fast? Maybe we could use some industrial hot air gun...? (The hardest part being not burning the plastic maybe). Never tried tho.

At the risk of stating the obvious: Time is money. Energy is money. I understand that the focus until now, had to be on the manufacturing machines, so that we actually have something to do with the plastic that we manage to collect. (A purposely and understandably "backwards" development process.) It's time now to gradually shift focus back to the base material: post-consumer plastic. We need to find ways to clean and prepare it on a large ("semi-industrial") scale. The more time and resources and energy that takes, the less profitable a workspace is. (edited)

If we're really talking efficiency, my thought were : Can't we just shred it with the film, and remove it post shredding in a batch? Like, having a process that remove all the impurities.

2:48 PM

(While I do agree with your point @Frederik C (ZA) , depending of your scale, removing that "one in a while" plastic film could be easier that spending 1k on a machine that does that all the time)

It might differ from country to country. I've noticed in my country, most products that have thin LDPE film over the container material, is loose and only needs to be cut with scissors (or wall-mounted blade, and the like) and it comes off. But, generally, you want a process that does two of more things at once. Cleans and removes labels. Or removes labels and shreds. Just as a basic principle. I know it's easier said than done.

2

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I think these very thin films are (Advanced) In-Mould-Labels. See here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In-mould_labelling I think they are the same material as the the plastic thing, so we don´t need to get them off, right?

In-mould labelling

In-mould labelling is the use of paper or plastic labels during the manufacturing of containers by blow molding, injection molding, or thermoforming processes. The label serves as the integral part of the final product, which is then delivered as pre-decorated item. Combinin...

3:10 PM

https://www.sonocoeurope.com/en/news.aspx?article_id=97 "The result: almost completely recyclable packaging solutions ... recyclability level of up to 98 percent, with small deductions for printing colour and finish."

All of the margarine containers I remember seeing, locally, have no separate labels at all. The branding graphics are inked directly onto the HDPE. You have to scrub it with a scouring sponge for minutes before it even begins to come off. And that's probably just because you are scratching the plastic. So, I'm not even sure if I'll run into a similar problem. But I can only imagine that sticky LDPE must be a total bitch to deal with. Maybe such products should just go in the "not recyclable by us" pile, for now. (edited)

@Frederik C (ZA) I think these containers like margarine containers are PP most times, am i wrong? Do you think it´s printed on the containers? If it´s also In-Line-Labeling it should be the same material and you can shred&recycle it with the label? Any experts on this topic here?✌️

The only samples I currently have, are labeled PP5, yes. Probably the most common material. I often get confused between PP5 and HDPE2. Similar feel and weight.

The effect is the same as the non-label printing I've commonly seen on pill containers. (These are usually HDPE2 in my country.)

industrial scale operations use a batch of caustic soda wash that will burn labels off of the plastics

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From: https://discordapp.com/channels/586676777334865928/598887203443048489/666644330508713984 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In-mould_labelling It says in the article it was invented by Procter & Gamble (P&G) for shampoo bottles. So, I had a look at a shampoo bottle (P&G) manufactured in France, and body wash bottle (Unilever) manufactured locally. The transparent film on them is labelled "Other 7" (Yeah... real helpful

). But it doesn't tear, and doesn't leave a sticky residue on the bottle. The film itself is sticky as hell. So, you can get that off without tools. But for larger operations you'll probably want to invent a tool that can strip it in a few seconds. The transparent film is a lot like those flexible, sticky touch-screen protectors. Like the film you have to peel off of a new phone's screen. So, I assume the labels that flake, are mostly made of paper. Maybe with some micro-thin layer of something on top. (edited)

It seems to me a way to dissolve the industrial glues, without trashing the environment, is something to aim for.

Hey collectors: I'm looking for those large plastic bags they use at recycling centers (the ones used in the video that they use to collect and weigh the plastic in) what would those be called? Where have you found them? Thanks

@h0neycrumb try Googling "woven polypropylene sack"

I've been wondering about it too. What is the main industrial use of those bags? I've never seen them in real life. (edited)

Thanks @lechatblanc

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@Frederik C (ZA) I see similar ones mainly at construction sites. So, 'construction waste bag'?

Okay. I thought maybe it was for bulk shipping of dry goods, or something like that. In South Africa, I think we have similar bags for shipping raw sheep's wool. But not as big, I think. I've opted to go with rainwater tanks, instead. Just because making steel / wood frames actually costs more, here. We actually had a chat about it, but it seems to have been deleted with the server "reshuffle" earlier this month. https://discordapp.com/channels/586676777334865928/598888879126478849/618096814473740290 https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/598888879126478849/618096814473740289/Photo0039.jpg (edited)

If I start a collection point at a university, would it be difficult to get ppl from outside the university community to come and deliver their plastic?

3:48 PM

Or should I focus first on getting everyone on campus to bring their plastic waste?

if you get everyone on campus to bring their plastics you'll be drowning in it XD

3:49 PM

not a bad idea.

True, a university is a huge community itself

3:50 PM

Not only students, but also teachers and the restaurants operating on campus

@Ottawamember do you have a plan what to do with the collected plastic?

I would shred it and sell it as raw material

3:51 PM

I haven't researched for other selling points than the Bazaar

@Ottawamember so who do you think will buy it from you? (Genuinely interested)

I'm not sure yet actually, I just got the idea of starting yesterday so I still need to do research on that

3:54 PM

Perhaps to be used in 3d modelling in our uni and other universities and workshops in the area

3:54 PM

Or try and connect with manufacturers

well, first off, to begin selling like that, you have to have really stringent quality control

@Ottawamember I've heard that manufacturers with big expensive machines are reluctant to use secondhand plastic as it might violate warranty and or damage machines

and second, most machines are designed to run with pellets, so extruding and chopping is also probably needed

So what do collection points sell to then? Other than on the bazaar

collection points are places for people with machines to get the plastic.

3:57 PM

usually for free.

@Ottawamember nobody knows lol

the money comes from actually turning it into a product, and selling that. (edited)

Wait so it's not a business model to be a collection point?

3:58 PM

Only if you are a workspace

3:58 PM

?

a collection point is only as much of a business model as "owning a store"

it's a bit more in depth than just having a location with stuff

As far as i know some collection points even pay people who collects plastic for them...

you need to develop a way to both support yourself and make a profit, and possibly give rewards to those who sort their plastics before giving them to you.

But how do I earn profit if I can't sell except to ppl with machines

you can't really, that's why you need some machines!

Are there machines other than the pp shredder that can be used to make pellets?

yeah, the extruder makes filament... of iffy quality. but perfect to chop up and sell as pellets

@Ottawamember shredder doesn't make pellets

By chop up do u mean shred? Or by hand like with a knife?

though the shredder can lead directly into an extrusion machine

Pellets - short cylindrical pieces [of filament]

knife, blender, spinning motor with a brick over the extruder, your choice

Usually there is some sort of automated knife at the end of extruder which chops filament into pellets

all that matters is that the pellets aren't long enough to get stuck in machines

Makes sense

4:05 PM

So I need a shredder, and an extruder , preferably with the knife that cuts into pellets inbuilt

@nubnubbud they also have to be quite uniform as some machines are calibrated to the size/weighr to measure output and other parameters

I see

And then what about the quality control so that o can sell to manufacturers?

@Ottawamember honestly no idea what kind of standards are used for that

I'm thinking if I just shred the plastic and sell to large manufacturers it will still be valuable to the as they have the machines to do the rest, right?

4:07 PM

So no one in the PP community is selling to manufacturers?

4:07 PM

That's surprising

@Ottawamember supply chains are established long ago, it's hard to butt in for a small guy

4:08 PM

You won't produce hundreds of tonnes

https://youtu.be/76AFNIxYjUE?t=101

davehakkens

Precious Plastic - at work

4:09 PM

^ pellets

4:10 PM

if you can make them a bit thicker and shorter than that, you'll be in business... sorta

Hey marvelous, Im building a business plan with V4 machines and came across a little doubt: is it better to wash first, sort it out and then shredd or sort first, shredd, and then wash it and deal with shredder maintenance with best time spawning? considering an average kind of dirt from city life, most organic matter, no sand and some dust...

building our Philippines v3 shredder here https://youtu.be/RaJUiUfCuA8

metzindustries

Precious Plastic Philippines Shredder

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we wash immediately after collecting. As all our plastic is sorted straight off the trash truck, there is probably a high incidence of unsafe fecal bacteria among other things in it. We pre rinse the dirt with a garden hose while the plastic is in a crate, then wash 10 kg at a time with bleach and a little bit of soap. We use a manual controlled clothes washing machine that we purchased local new for about 100usd. We then do a quick rinse and then spread in a mesh table to dry with a fan. we can process around 100 kg in a day with 3 people. We either sort and shred or shred mixed color, depending on the need. We also sometimes color our plastic with carbon black, carbon fiber, graphite, and will be experimenting with titanium dioxide powder and graphene in the future.

What do you do with difficult to remove labeling?

Be careful and slow. Or use a heat gun. Or fill the container with hot water to soften the glue. Pros and cons to each.

Would a steam cleaner be more energy efficient than a heat gun (which usually run at 1500 - 2500W)? I have no experience or data on it. It just came to mind. Also, are there any household chemical options? (To save on energy cost.)

@Butte (PP Philippines) hey! I've got a friend in Quezon City, who is researching recycling. Where in the Philippines are you based?

I am in Antipolo City. About 10km from Quezon city, or a 3 hour drive cuz of traffic.

Ok cool. I'll message him, and let him know about you. He might get in touch.

2:45 AM

We were just talking about Phillipines sending trash back to Canada yesterday.

2:49 AM

@Butte (PP Philippines) from that conversation; https://imgur.com/a/ufjaewe

that canada trash thing was BS.

Oh how so?

Filipinos were buying the plastic to re-process

2:56 AM

someone wanted a bribe

2:56 AM

no bribes paid

2:57 AM

blackmail and media circua

2:57 AM

circus

2:57 AM

has happened again last year.

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2:57 AM

Plastic recycling factory in Cagayan de oro

2:58 AM

Guy builds a factory in the free trade zone to process plastic waste for export

2:58 AM

15 tons a day capacity

2:58 AM

He is supposed to process plastic from Cagayan de oro (CDO)

2:59 AM

but lazy officials will not sort plastic as per the law so his factory is not running full and he has orders to fill. so the guy buys a bunch of plastic from Korea.

2:59 AM

Some idiot decides they want some $$$

Virgin plastic?

same game.

2:59 AM

used plastic

But sorted and cleaned I suppose?

they mix everything together extrude it into big chunks, sell it to China for pyrolsys

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3:00 AM

no need to sort for pyrolsys

3:00 AM

plastic to fuel

In a lot of these stories the quality of the waste seems to be one of the big issues. On the ground here in Australia, there is basically zero enforcement of what goes into the "recycling bins" so we've repeatedly had our trash rejected by other countries because it's too low quality.

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3:01 AM

But the government still doesn't really bother to ask us to change behaviour.

basically they just re-refine the hydrocarbon

3:01 AM

the government here is a joke. more like a gangster org.

Haha, well. Yes. I've heard. Here we have war criminals and climate change deniers.

only way to really fix the waste issue is to make it more profitable to recycle vs throwing it

Agreed.

3:02 AM

Got to undermine these systems. That's why I'm here.

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todays meme I made for out FB page

Mind if I PM you?

ok

@Ottawamember we have a problem with manufacturers trusting the cleanliness and consistency of the product.

well, assure them that as far as cleanliness is concerned, only things that could survive volcanic conditions could persist in the plastic-it gets often twice as hot as boiling water. (edited)

12:47 PM

beyond that, you could separate them further to increase purity, like when shredding, only running plastic milk jugs that are very similar and such. it's not hard, over here, to just collect a few hundred of the same brand of water bottle.

I'm afraid some sort of certification might be needed so machine owners don't run into warranty issues with their machines is something happens to them with your plastic inside

however, if you can make enough of your product to stock in a local store, that's another story. people tend to trust things they can see and feel.

@nubnubbud wait i thought the discussion is about raw plastic / pellets?

it is, but then again, that post was more for the business thread probably, but it's something to think about if the pellets aren't trusted- use them yourself. but if you want to gain trust, I might try offering test batches.

Well, I wouldn't put some noname stuff into my 3d printer, not to mention multi-thousand-$ industrial injection machine (if I had one) (edited)

yeah. in any case, there's something to be said for keeping plastic in the public hand for reuse.

1:04 PM

perhaps you can sell it in bulk to larger recycling programs? they definitely have what they need to test for purity and stuff.

I'd put any thermoplastic into my printers if I had the time. But I usually don't. I buy from a reliable filament maker because it stops me from having to do maintenance as often.

@Mortar Art (Melb, AU) I've used weed wacker nylon. 'cause it has nice colors and the right size (1.651mm, as apposed to filament's 1.75). if you build a machine right, it should be very reliable, and even a little abusable. good machines work, great machines just don't care.

Sure, but you haven't seen the shitty filament that I have. Smaller is one thing. But I've had filament that varied from as low as that to over 2mm on the same spool.

That... is actually impressive.

I've still got a spool of it. Because well, not much I can do with it.

3:12 PM

Though, admittedly that was by far the worst one. Blobs every meter or so.

oof. then again, I don't expect the purity was the issue there (what we were mainly discussing earlier). might've just been a new intern in the extrusion room for you. I literally buy the cheapest stuff I can every time without issue. (edited)

Hey everyone!!! I have a question, in our project in Lisbon we need to create a collection point and I saw the stickers that we could give to people that join our collection circle, I wanted to do a sticker of our own but I want of course to put the preciousplastic logo on it!! But I can't find the new one with the yellow around it can you gus help please?? Thnaks!!!

️

️ (edited)

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@Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal you could add something about the outcome, eg: 'the biggest open source driven plastic recycling movement', this might add some more users to the club than just a short & unknown mystique name. same here, we're still unclear how to promote this boat

yeah!! nice our project is going to get bigger very soon so we are prepering for this part about the comunication and i dont want to do wrong with the precious plastic name!! that is an awesome idea!

1

@Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal As I understand, the official logo is reserved for PP HQ projects. You're actually not allowed to use it without permission. Also, I would suggest business cards (printed on recyclable paper) rather than stickers (unless they are biodegradable.) Student clubs at universities can do a lot of the footwork for you, if you can convince them. PP is sort of a "youth vibe." Obviously, it should point to a very well thought-out, online landing page. And maybe the V4 and/or V3 launch video.

1

Hi everyone!! I'm Marlon from Cells Waste Bank Indonesia... This is my first post in this group...

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Hi Marlon!

@MortarArt#3010 hi

@Frederik C (ZA) heyyy, thanks for the sugestion im actually going to ask first before using anything that's why I send the other message asking about the logo, I want to mention PP in all of our information systems, but yeah that's up to the team of PP to decide. We are not USING the logo for our benefit we want to use the official logo in all of the mentions, that usually what we do when we want to say that someone or some place helped us or inspired us

12:00 PM

@Frederik C (ZA) oh and please tell me what kind of sticker paper PP used for their collection point in the video

hey @Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal you can make you own PP logo

https://community.preciousplastic.com/academy/universe/yourlogo If you talking about the all project, the community etc.. for example in a presentation and not about a specific workspace, it's ok to use the PP main logo.

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

1

@Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal I'm afraid I don't have specific information on eco-friendly stickers. But most stickers almost surely have plastic in them. So, I figure promoting PP by putting more single-use plastic into the World, sends sort of a "mixed signal." So, personally, I would go with business cards or flyers. (Maybe even a small, free PP product — like a keychain or something.) Just a thought. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ EDIT: See below: https://discordapp.com/channels/586676777334865928/598887203443048489/674364848611655680 (edited)

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You could make your own stamp out of plastic/wood and then stamp business cards (made of scrap paper) with your own eco friendly inc. Difficult, but probably the most resource efficient

10:25 PM

https://www.purelabels.com/

Compostable, Recycled, and Eco-friendly Adhesive Labels | PureLabe...

Compostable Adhesive Label Stickers. Compostable, Biodegradable, and 100% Recycled. Largest Eco-Friendly Label Printers. Pure Labels are ideal for sustainable, organic and natural products.

1

10:25 PM

Pure labels has compostable stickers

Curious on how people are addressing the micro plastic issue from shedding and sanding. Me and my partner are having a tough time with it

https://discordapp.com/channels/586676777334865928/598888903994376201/674496135334985728

@Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal I think you refer to the collection system sticker for partners and businesses. It is in the download kit ready to be used. Or are you trying to design your own? In which case, we envisioned the collection system to be a global recognisable movement. For this reason it would be great if you could use the one provide. If you really want you can add your logo sticker next to it

is there a washing machine? or how do you clean dirty plastic?

do you use bleach to prewash?

@MJ after shredder

im looking for some tools to get rid of the stickers on the bottle ,before i shred it. any suggestion?

@ShrednMelt_Xu you have to boiled it in a hot washing line

that's too much work for workshop...

2:26 PM

household workshop

where do you wash ariel?

2:38 PM

in a washing machine? by hand?

2:38 PM

any pictures?

I use a two stage process with NaOH and CH₃COOH in an agglomerator

@ShrednMelt_Xu https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to/wash-plastic-washing-machine https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to/wash-plastic-sand-filter- https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to/wash-plastic-pre-wash [FAQ] [washing] (edited)

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@Frederik C (ZA) Thank you!my friend

I'm pretty sure the motorized pre-washing barrel is overkill, though. Get a big stirring paddle (like for a canoe) or hand-crank the barrel.

3:23 PM

I use a two stage process with NaOH and CH₃COOH in an agglomerator

You use a what in a what with a what ⁉

(edited)

thanks @Frederik C (ZA) i was searching for that yes

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5:21 PM

do you use that?

5:22 PM

i need to test it on 95’ celsious and without any chemicals

5:22 PM

if it will do the job

Haven't tried it yet. I'm currently hand-washing and everything goes to municipal recycling. (I hope.

)

But on the edges of the city our landfills are literally forming small mountains. And the government's "solution" is building more incinerators.

yeah, our government also build a lot incinerators

If you want a good dose of depressing reality, go see the "trash mountains" of the Cape Flats. And we are not even that densely populated, compared to other major cities in the World.

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wow

11:40 PM

sad

@Frederik C (ZA) After many jar tests we discovered that the best method for removing contaminants; from the sea (such as algae, shells, etc), or from household plastic waste (proteins, carbohydrates, left overs from food and some labelling. The best method was to washed using a process of deproteinization and demineralisation. We are testing this now in an agglomerator we build. The results are optimal and no traces are left as one process neutralised the residues of the other. Then discharges liquid "supernatant"is filter at different diameters, using a filter press. The water from the last process is used again in the first process. It's a bit complex, when we are satisfied with the results and the looks we will post a video with the whole process.

7

Thanks. Would like to see.

12:46 PM

anyone know is this HDPE plastic bottle cap or what is that B?

12:46 PM

or ehat this numbers mean?

everything I can see online is all about numbers as codes not letters @MJ. Might be a country specific thing for your local area? the numbers might be date or batch codes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recycling_codes

might be date or batch codes That would be my guess, also.

thanks!!

@MJ plastic producer have many codes refering to many parameters. So for example, you can't assume a random 2 to be the reference for HDPE. Only numbers in recycling symbol will give you certainty.

ok thanks!!

2:41 AM

now i understand

@MJ there is a special machine for that. Or you can built a boiler and heated with cng/coal

does anyone know what these big bags for sorting the different plastics are called?

I think "big bag" is the right word

https://lmgtfy.com/?q=big+bag&t=i

LMGTFY

For all those people who find it more convenient to bother you with their question rather than search it for themselves.

1

wool bag, bale bag?

well, i tried to look for it, but i didn't find it under that name

and by wool bag it means the bag they put wool in to transport not a bag made of wool

okay, i will have look. thanks @CartlinRecycling

2:04 PM

bulk bag! Thats the one

ok, I found them as Heavy Duty Polypropylene Bulk Bags but they can also be called FIBC Jumbo Bag

Hey, just read the washing threads someone posted here.

✌️

Just one question. What do you do with chemical contaminated plastic?

12:26 PM

Do you sort it out and dont mix it with consumer products?

Any kind of residue on shredded plastic should be avoided or removed before trying to work with it. It should also be thoroughly dried. Makers have reported bursting moulds because of moisture turning into steam inside.

Hi guys I'm having some trouble to put my pin on the map. Anyone with this issue?

@cluquep please post that in the feedback channel with a short description whats wrong

@Fritz @easymoulds thanks... I'll do that

Somewhat related topic - theres an app (and desktop version) called TrashOut that lets you mark litter for collection or update an area as being cleaned up. This could be used as a source of plastic for some or a way to show local issues of why the Precious Plastic universe is inportant.

1

Hi there..im collecting plastic number 2 from beauty salons. I want to sell this shampoo and cleaning containers, if you have some.ideas it will.be great. Or at least to decide how to make profits from a collection point.

I’ve got a local school in my area collecting plastic for me. They collected almost 12,000 plastic items in a month (coffee cup lids, plastic bottle caps, bread and milk tags, etc.). Definitely a good way to collect plastic waste.

8

2

@Nicolas Lamoureux (PPYQG) I am planning to do the same, do you mind telling us a bit about how you went about convincing them? Do they do it as part of a class, do you pay them or how does it work?

2

@Emil I live in a very small community so I think it might’ve been easier for me than in larger areas but word travelled about what I was doing and I started doing little pop up events and a teacher at the school who ran the eco-club asked if I could do a presentation there and the collection stemmed from that. Many schools have these environmental clubs and I think most would be keen to help if you approached them. In Canada all high school students need to have 40 hours of volunteering before graduating so my plan is to get them involved as well. I’m working by myself so this helps tremendously.

The 40 hours seems like a great idea! Seems like something we should implement in Denmark, it must teach them a lot. Would be smart to get them involved. Thank you for your help

1

@Emil It definitely has its benefits for the community. It’s unfortunate that we have to make volunteering mandatory but it helps get people involved when they might not have without this rule. All the students I have helping me are really excited and happy to be helping out. It’s a good place to reach a lot of people with this cause too.

@Nicolas Lamoureux (PPYQG) We have similar stuff in Danish schools, but it isn't mandatory. They can have time off in return for working, and then the money they make goes towards a charity. I might look at that

Are you making stuff from the plastic yet? Do you involve the students in that process?

@Emil Oh cool! Yah definitely worth looking into. Right now I’m only making small basic items like tiles and clips but my goal is to start making larger items and incorporating them into my architectural practice. A few high schools in my area have tech. departments and I would love to get the students building their own machines and acting as collection points / making their own products. Lots of safety and legal hurdles to jump through to get to that point. I’m optimistic though

@Nicolas Lamoureux (PPYQG) Yeah, that is my worry as well. I want to build it at a school, and i don't want any child to lose too many fingers. I hope it will be okay as long as the machines are built to EU standards, and as long as the kids are supervised though. Which machines do you have? I myself would like to build/ buy the 3 pro machines

@Emil It will definitely be a challenge to introduce but I think once you got through the first school you’d have a good chance to expand from there. Bringing collection points to the school system presents so many great opportunities too since many small communities have schools. I have a shredder and the injection machine (from the previous versions). I bought mine as I’m unfortunately not skilled enough mechanically to build them yet.

@Nicolas Lamoureux (PPYQG) Yes, exactly! Would be a great way to help people. I will likely buy mine as well, i am in talks with some local metalworkers. I am considering if i should buy the injection machine as well, but i am hoping that the extrusion machine can replace it

1

@Emil I think you’d be fine with just the extrusion machine.

@Nicolas Lamoureux (PPYQG) sweet, happy to hear that! Thank you!

1

Hello! I am new to the Precious Plastic community. I'm interested in stating a collection point, but to start with, I was thinking of just collecting specific items like ice cream spoons, bottle caps, straws, and bread tags. Is that too small?

You can do what you want, but I would recommend making it clear on your webpage / profile what you have available, so that people don't bother contacting you for plastic types or quantities that you don't supply. Whether or not you will be awarded a map pin, is up to the PP HQ admins.

Hello! nice to meet everyone! Are there any success cases of collection points? (organizations maybe?)

A question for @Collection point Also use the map (https://community.preciousplastic.com/map) to find collection points and do a survey (manually or online, with a free survey compiler). (edited)

Hello!!!! What kind of plastic is this? Are glasses of yogurt https://imgur.com/a/KMurHoY

Doesn't say anything about the plastic as far as i see?! It has an CE-Symbol, so it might be an electric device? Most electronic devices have plastic symbols only on the inside (if at all) for aesthetic reasons, and because often multiple materials are combined together. It would be very misleading to place plastic types next to the type-sign and the CE mark of the product, due you would expect then everything is made out of the same material.

9:01 PM

@iwanttobefreak

Are food. Glass of yogourt

Haha okaaay - yeah, then its just a bad example. I have seen everything already from missing information, unreadable marks, all the way to clearly wrong labels...

9:12 PM

if it makes bright-sounds and if it breaks easy it is PS, otherwise it will be PP for sure

C E = China Export according to China

give the company a call

@iwanttobefreak most of the yogurt containers around my area are PP

Hey guys, I am new to the universe of Precious Plastics, and I am excited to build machines and having a workspace. But I think that a big first step will be to start small with a collection point? Considering there aren´t many other Precious Plastic points in my country, basically no source of shredded plastic. What you think?

@Caleiton an option might be to buy plastic from the bazar. https://bazar.preciousplastic.com/index.php

Precious Plastic Bazar

Plastice to sell products, machines, and plastic. Empowering our recycling ecosystem around the world.

7:55 AM

If you have enough initial investment, you can try to start a mix workspace.

Ryoma, Thank you, you are absolutely right. I thought on that, but I was also thinking on the footprint of bringing recycled plastic from other countries while there could be a good opportunity with local trash.

1

Also, this is not the right time to do shipping

7:57 AM

Things delay

7:59 AM

Usually, mix workspace is the first one to start a local recycling network.

8:01 AM

Mix workspace can be independent, it's a thing to note.

So if you build it they will come

I mean you have to inspire them

8:03 AM

It's up to you.

ok thank you for your advice, I didn´t thought on that.

https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to/set-up-a-mix-workspace

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

8:04 AM

Here is a how to

8:04 AM

Do you have a team already?

Me, myself and I

Wow 3 people

8:06 AM

Ask your friends, neighbors...

Yes, that´s why I thought on the collection point first

I don't know if that's a solution

8:07 AM

You just collect, how are you going to recycle them?

8:07 AM

well the plastic does not have an expiration date, and I am also considering how much plastic is needed to make large beams for example

8:08 AM

so if I want to make construction material, like to make benches and shelves, I will need a good amount of plastic

well the plastic does not have an expiration date

You just mentioned the biggest problem

but yes, I think this is something every person question himself when considering to begin in this world of recycling

8:10 AM

where to begin

here

yes !!! I am happy I am here

1

discord

but you know what I mean... where to begin from the multiple options, at least I do have that dilema

8:11 AM

but you have been a great help thank you

Back to the problem,

8:12 AM

I don't know if people will start a workspace because there is a collection point

8:12 AM

It's an option tho

yeah, but again it will come to where to get the plastic from, I mean I think you can collect a lot from friends, family and neighbors, and for example if I build the shredder, I wont have plastic to shred

8:14 AM

without collecting a lot first

1

So what is your goal?

8:15 AM

Final goal?

8:15 AM

Do you want to collect?

8:15 AM

Or do you want to shred?

8:16 AM

or more?

to help the world by recycle. Final goal is to try and make furniture, benches, maybe school desks and chairs

2

So are you planning to start a work space?

8:17 AM

Or are you planning to help others start a workspace?

8:17 AM

Both are fine

8:19 AM

That's what I meant by goal

8:19 AM

A worst choice would be not setting a goal

Definetely, I would like to start a workspace. But sometimes it is better to start from small to big. That is why I was thinking to begin with a collection point and then expanding into a workspace. Or these are my fears talking and saying you cannot begin BIG !

1

8:21 AM

Have you seen both collection point and workspace in the same place ?

LEVEL 1 complete. Proceed to next level.

Have you seen both collection point and workspace in the same place ?

@Caleiton Workspace is kind of a collection point

8:22 AM

Collection points are just focused on collecting

Ah I see now

I had two logos, but now I have one

8:23 AM

RIP collection point

so you have a workspace?

Yeah, but it's closed now...

8:26 AM

Once it's over I might re-open

I understand

That might explain why I am here to talk

1

lol

8:28 AM

And I got your point totally on the mixed workspace. I was thinking very small. If I make the mixed workspace I can encourage others around me to begging more collection points

Do you have enough resources?

8:29 AM

"resources"

8:29 AM

||

8:29 AM

money

If you mean money I have some, but not enough to build all the machines at once

How many machines can you make?

I was thinking on two, the shredder I think is a must, and then I was also thinking on the extrusion one

I thought the same

8:32 AM

Do you think you can build on your own?

8:34 AM

Or do you need a machine shop?

8:35 AM

Shipping will delay tho

I think I can build my own. I still need to get very well into the details of the construction. And where to get some of the materials locally. I need to locate a laser cutter around me, I know there are some though.

8:37 AM

But I have most of the tools and skills to build them

2

Then build it!

8:39 AM

https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to/set-up-a-mix-workspace start from step 8 I guess

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

Allright, thank you very much, this was a great conversation. I know what I have to do now !

1

I think the how to will do better than me

Good luck!

8:40 AM

Come back if you need help

Sure, I will definetely be around. I still have plenty to learn from all of you.

1

Can someone direct me to a link with information on how people are cleaning the plastic they collect? Washing machine recommended or something similar?

i am currently only collecting PLA/PETG and ASA from failed 3dprints and/or support structures etc, so the plastic is not very "dirty". i basically stuff it into laundry bags and use a pressure washer (carefully)

@tazmanian#0060 https://davehakkens.nl/community/forums/topic/washing-machine-development/

1

Hi everyone! I have clean post-industrial shredded HDPE / regrind available; $4.50 per pound, FREE USA SHIPPING. You can see the color schemes I have available on the PP Bazar: https://bazar.preciousplastic.com/raw-material/plastic/2-hdpe/

Raw Material :: Plastic :: #2 HDPE

4:22 PM

I obtained more than I need for my experiments, with some to re-sell to fund development of a sheet / block press.

4:30 PM

4:31 PM

Hello everybody, I was wondering how you calculate how much space approximately you need for collecting plastics? Are you flattening the plastics for example, so it doesn't take to much space? Also for example if I have a 50 liter bag full of plastic bottles how much would it be after shredding?

Hold on my friend

11:51 AM

11:52 AM

30 meter squared...that's like 6 meter x 5 meter

11:52 AM

I don't know about shredding that much. @Deleted User (edited)

@Lazy_Turtle it really depends on your operations.. that is a rough estimate to get started. Good luck!

1

have we done any plotting on setting up a driveway collection service?

That would be great if it does not exist.

hi everyone! im new to PP & i was wondering how are you guys currently collecting your plastic? or especially at the start? the starterkit step 22 says to be patient & be passionate and creative on ways to reach out to people. so im wondering what passionate & creative ways people have found to work so far!

i can imagine that you all would need community buy-in before investing to start up your own space! also, what would you recommend i do if i want to start a community, think that collection point is my best fit role but don't have a workshop space around me [checked map] to send the plastics to? :\

@munbuns Perhaps you can start a community point? https://preciousplastic.com/starterkits/showcase/community-point.html

Start a Community Point to Recycle Plastic

Learn how to grow and build the local recycling community to help fix the plastic waste problem.

@Lazy_Turtle ah i see, and from there... try to get enough buzz and people to start building up the other spaces?

Yes, that's the goal.

1

@munbuns I started off by going to laundromats. They usually have a bunch of HDPE detergent containers that can be used. A lot of small businesses also like the idea of their plastic waste going somewhere other than the garbage so that can work too. I’ve also gotten local school groups to collect plastic for me and I’ve done presentations to get them interested in reducing waste and respecting resources.

2

We pick it up from the beach

1

Anyone out there collecting in a low resource environment in a developing country?

@munbuns I'd say start small (garage, backyard) and build capacity as you develop.

@Mattia : I'd put a more detailed note on the main page about the who the 'start a business' thingy/claim really ... applies too; that way we have much less pain here, or daily on the phone - rectifying and explaining exactly this - for you. That must be now in the 500+ range those poor fellows, folks got the wrong image ... Folks taking hefty loans with actually ZERO business experience or prospect. Thanks. That cases btw. tippled since v4, I guess we have to spent another 50 hours (community hours, for you) this year alone

I can't recall a single forum discussion going anywhere except in the same direction : consider it a hobby, unless ... (edited)

8:03 PM

A list of case studies might evtl. help to back the new 'model' of PP up

- it's as said a little like sending folks with a 10K kitchen knife to a gun fight

A good old blog post would do it btw. too (edited)

if we had a thread based forum it would be an important discussion.. i like to talk about it too but it always gets lost here. A blog is a great idea, never considered it (edited)

@Timberstar re blog, you will be surprised how honest and cool davenhakkens.nl was 6 years ago : https://web.archive.org/web/20141126140250/http://davehakkens.nl/

is there a way to set up a blog where the content is easy to transport into other pages like with markdown?

1

Anyone collecting in the greater Seattle area?

How much do you pay for bringing plastic? Per kg?

@Lazy_Turtle that's a good question i'm asking myself as well. I think the market price for, say, shredded same-color PE or PP is not the same regarding your location. It would be nice to know a bit more about markets price. I'm surprised there isn't some kind of index somewhere in the word... Maybe someone will know more? (edited)

1

@Lazy_Turtle For bringing non-shredder plastic, as in raw bottles? Depends heavily on where you live. In CH it's just "trash" and people /want/ to recycle it out anyway (here we have a "tax per trash bag" system, so the more you throw stuff in the "general" bin (so the less you recycle (PET, tin cans, glass...), the more you pay. It's because the trash bags rolls themselves are heavily taxed.). So my plan is to have shredding space that also take care of the collecting part, collaborating with local collection points in restaurants, shops, etc. But I can't see money exchange hands (in one way or another) in the collecting process here. However, I could see myself "pay" the collector person a salary, like I would pay the person who does the shredding. (Which will probably be the same person, me.) However we're thinking about designing a "fidelity points" system maybe in the future, so people can use them in exchange for "doing the good thing". But with the high standard of living in CH, having cents exchanging hands would be more ackward than anything, especially if it's not automatized. ("You brought 5 PET bottles? Here is 50 cents.". People will probably tell me to "keep the change".) However, selling clean, dry, shredded plastic? Totally. But I don't think that was your question.

1

I actually had a different business model.

1

3:15 AM

I give discounts to people who bring plastic:) @Ley Klussyn @Precious_Plastic_Quebec

Hello! I was interested in starting a collection point for plastic in Morocco. Unfortunately on the map I cant find any sheetpress/ shredder or other spot who could have use for the plastic. By any chance maybe someone got advise of how to be able to find someone to recycle the plastic after collecting it? I am new in this field and am happy about any information

@Yvaine sorry for late reply, there is http://koun.ma/ in Morroco they do awesome products!

@Nick - PP France great thanks a lot!

Hi all! I've recently started getting a lot of plastic lids/caps and whilst they are a great source of (mostly HDPE) material, I have encountered a small issue: some caps have seals which are somehow bonded to their underside, of which I can seem to get out cleanly anyway I try. Does anyone have experience with sorting + processing lots of plastic lids/caps that could help? I can put up some photos if needed

thanks!

10:38 AM

*can't

Hello Everyone! I'm in the middle of starting my collection point in Bandung, Indonesia. I have this sheet plastics (I think they are usually LDPE) used for vacuuming foods. Is this plastic recyclable? I looked it up online and read it is made of nylon. By any chance, maybe anyone know how to process this? Your help would be much appreciated! Thankyou!

Hi everyone! I got a question about how to wash plastic in a right way? Made some research and tests, but hand washing takes a lot of time, also plastic quality is bad, because it has glue on a surface. I still didn't melt it, but heard that glue make it harder to control. Can you give me any advices? What techniques or machines can I use (instead of PP DIY washing station)? What chemicals can I use to tear off the glue? Cause now got only idea to cut plastic and use clean parts, collect dirty parts and then send it to giant factories, that can wash and recycle it. Thanks!

@Nick Kyiv I saw in a video that leaving the bottles in water for some hours, helped to take off the glue, at least with pet

Hello! I'll like to know if there is some free opensource blueprints for a compress hexagon mould for tiles. I'll also consider tu buy one if is in the US área, if someone can build it for me. Thankss awesome people!

Heyall, looking to start a collection point + shredding workspace and wondering what type of plastic is recommended to work with? And why?

@ccarrilloo thanks mate, not helping, but I tried with cold water. Will try with hot, thanks for idea.

@Deleted User you can start with HDPE, PP, and PS to start with. Because they are the easiest to work with and amongst the most frequently found.

@Yann thank you

@Evelyn hello! Yes we worked with couple of tons of bottle caps for version 4 (that's what the brick wall is made off). After testing we decided to keep the seal in without removing as it meant huge increase in time and cost. And it worked great in our case. I'd say do some test with the end product to see if it can work.

9:15 AM

@Nick Kyiv washing is hard as there's tons of different pollutants. We dedicated an entire 6months of research during V4 to find a viable and scalable way to wash. But eventually opted to tackle the problem at source and focus our strategy on clean plastic.

9:18 AM

@Deleted User super! Almost all plastic can work. Depends if you have the demand for them. Generally PP, HDPE, PS are the most common and requested in the Precious Plastic Universe. Alternatively you can also find some customer for PET in normal recycling circles. Stay away from PVC as it is toxoc

2

Hi guys! Wasn't sure where to ask... Trying to look for cad files of already created injection moulds... Is there any collections on sites anywhere?

@CrabbyApples look here https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to and search for "injection"

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

Thank you! And one more favor, trying to find a build of an imperial injector system... Any ideas of that's been done??

@Mattia re: washing. could you explain what you mean by "tackle the problem at source"? Like @Nick Kyiv I'm looking into ways to speed up the washing process. I'm researching the possibility of doing a local collect / wash / shred workspace. Collect and shred seem simple enough. I'm stuck on the washing step, as it seems quite labor and water intensive.

@coopernurse (USA WA) what I mean is that all the dirty plastic that you now have to clean with great use of resources and time was once clean and pristine or that it could be cleaned with very little effort by consumers "at source". It takes education, time and effort but in the long is a much more impactful approach where people know the impact of their waste and how to help.

@Mattia I see. Thanks

You can find more info here and use this website to communicate with people you collect from https://collect.preciousplastic.com/

Recycle your plastic waste

Learn how to collect clean, label-free plastic at home and help to tackle the plastic waste problem.

7:16 PM

Our approach is a more capillary and community based. (edited)

7:16 PM

Hope it helps

7:17 PM

I am sure you've seen this to give you a more detailed idea of the problem and our proposed solution https://community.preciousplastic.com/academy/collect

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

thanks. I've been watching a lot of PP videos the last few days, but I didn't understand the emphasis on sourcing materials that were already cleaned/washed. I'm going to think about that a bit more. appreciate everything PP has done.

Is anyone trying to collect / shred plastic forks/spoons? If so, how are you determining the type of plastic it's made of?

@coopernurse (USA WA) I’ve collected and shredded a bunch from events throughout the year. Most were marked and most I’ve come across were polystyrene. If they aren’t marked they’ll usually have a logo on them that you can find the type by researching the brand.

ok thanks

1

Came across this video: https://benchfly.com/video/51/polypropylene-vs-polystyrene/

Polypropylene Vs. Polystyrene

Here's how to distinguish polypropylene vs. polystyrene tubes, which can make a big difference in some experiments.

1

12:29 AM

The forks I have bend easily and don’t shatter. Seems like PP

Hi everyone, could somebody please tell me what the measurements of these collection bags are and how much kg of plastic in average you collect in one?

they are called bigbag, the kg depends if just sorted (about 30kg) if it is broken down much more, this bags are made for construction, and all industrial pourposes, depending of especifications up to 500kgs

10:07 AM

has anybody idea where to sell the sorted plastic, i want to start a collecting point where i will pay people for theirs plastic, but i need the one that buys it afterwards to me, in the future a will like to build other machines, at the moment just bulid the scheder one, and want to concience people about reciclying while i start the proyect and try own recycles, PLEASE HELP!!!!!!!

1

@emmanuel thanks a lot

@emmanuel you could get in touch with the Precious Plastic workspaces around you / in your country and see if there is interest! Find them on the map: community.preciousplastic.com/map Or sell it on the bazar! Especially if you have a shredder and can offer sorted and shredded plastic, that's always valuable!

(edited)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flexible_intermediate_bulk_container

Flexible intermediate bulk container

A flexible intermediate bulk container (FIBC), jumbo, bulk bag, super sack, or big bag, is an industrial container made of flexible fabric that is designed for storing and transporting dry, flowable products, such as sand, fertilizer, and granules of plastic.FIBCs are most oft...

1

@emmanuel which country are you in?

Hello, my name is Beatriz. Everything all right? I would like to know your experience with the recycling disposable cups of PP and PS . We, at ENACTUS UFABC (from Brazil), are prospecting a project in a recycling cooperative. This cooperative is having problems with the recycling of the cups, as they take up a lot of space (since they need to accumulate to give the weight that the customer wants) and it takes a long time to do the sorting (because in addition to separating the PS cups from the PP cups , they have to remove the organic waste that normally comes in the cups). And all this work is not paying off for them, since they sell the kilo of these cups for R$ 0.65 (which today would be worth $ 0.12). How do you deal with the problem of cups? Do you do more processes on them to increase the added value (like washing and grinding)? Do you produce products with PP and PS? Thank you very.

[FAQ] [collection] [bags] What are those giant bags used in the PP videos called? How much plastic can they hold? They are called a flexible intermediate bulk container (FIBC), jumbo / bulk bag, super sack, big bag, tonne bag, dumpy bag or rubble bag. FIBCs are most often made of thick, woven polyethylene or polypropylene, either coated or uncoated, and normally measure around 114 to 122 cm (45 to 48 inches) in diameter and varies in height from 100 to 200 cm (39 to 79 inches). Its capacity is normally around 1000 kg (2205 lb) but the larger units can store even more. An empty one metric ton capacity bag will usually weigh between 2.3 and 3.2 kg (5 to 8 lb), and have a volume of between 0.9 and 1.9 m³ (32 to 67 ft³.) See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flexible_intermediate_bulk_container (edited)

1

PLEASE HELP!!! I need to find those companys that buy the plastic, i`m from the canary islands, spain. i will like to find some companys in spain or europe to send them the containers with the plastic, my idea is to start buying people their homes plastic, and reslling it to industry, i have build the scheder machine, and i need to start the activity soi can build the other machines and start own recycled products....PLEASE HELP

Does anyone know how much kg of shredded plastic HDPE, LDPE, PP and PS can be collected in these boxes (56x39x28 cm/45 l) ?

Unless someone has a full one that they can weigh for you at their collection point, you'll have to roughly calculate the expected weight using the dimensions and the mass per mm³ of the different plastic types. Of course the finer it is shredded, the fewer air pockets there are, thereby increasing the weight. But an estimate would be in the 40 kg range. (I think....?)

(edited)

1

Thanks @Frederik C (ZA)

1

Or get a specific volume of plastic and weigh it so you can calculate it exactly

@Maris I got one of those container filled up, so I could weight it on Monday, but I presume it depends a lot of how fine you shred the material, I’m guessing it could be between 30-60kg depending on the shape/ size of the flakes, let me knowing you want me to weigh it in Monday (fine shredded PLA plastic)

1

@MTB3D that would be amazing!!! Thanks a lot

@Maris maris 15.5kg incl box, (box weight is 1.5kg) (edited)

1

Hmm... surprisingly light. What plastic type? Box volume / dimensions? (edited)

Seams quiet normal to me, it is not up to the top. Usually you could count 2 to 2,5 time more volume for flakes compare to compacted plastic.

Hi everyone

3:09 PM

Do you know a machine that can compress type 2 plastic?

3:14 PM

Pecious melting chart confusion! I dont see LDPE or HDPE, but I do see PE. Do you guys think both low density and high density are represented here? if so, is it safe to assume I can treat #'s 2 and 4 the same in the extrusion machine? once they are both flakes of similar size, same melting temperature right? or do they have different srinkage rates?

@MTB3D thank you!!

@Frederik C (ZA) also surprised me a bit, but I usually use bigger containers:p. The outermost dimensions are 56x39x28cm 45L the material is PLA flakes(density of solid material is 1.24)

1

@collect @Collection point Anyone available to plan out a collection service business plan?

8:34 PM

#archived-collection

Im mid writing my business plan just now which if it is successful in gaining funding would include collections. Only main issue i have with the collection is the vehicle (fuel,initial vehicle cost and insurance. All mounts up. This is why i have looked into bicycle recycling and turning bicycles into cargo tricycles then my next issue was how? do i have a box system or do i just arrange a day/time for a specific area this cost me some serious thinking time best senario i have is a box system and a collection day combined with a packing tutorial

9:29 PM

9:30 PM

This is still in a design stage for me but i selected the 3 plastics to make the business more viable #2,#5,#4 the boxes are made from #2 and can have mixed contents ie 2,5 and 4 but each box is collected when full to maximise the returns for the recycler and for the collector these tubs are 1ft square this allows generally most hdpe bottles and all other small plastics such as ldpe and pp im thinking it could be way to give kids an incentive for pocket money and the boxes are 1ft due to cycle lane restrictions of 1.5m-2m width here in the uk (i chose the lesser width to make it feesable even on narrow lanes) this allows 2boxes in width and 3 or 4 boxes in length on most cargo trikes plus each box is 10inches high plus the connector studs giving it 12inches total height (1inch male connector and 1inch female connector space) on the height restictions of trikes and bikes ive been advised others need to see over the top of the cargo so 3 boxes high is probs the limit giving each trike a capacity of 24 boxes maximum each weighing 1.5-2kg plus box weight.

10:02 PM

This means most collection trikes would require a cycle assist on the return trip but from what ive seen this is still relitivly light compaired to other cargo such as kids which were one of the main reason for cargo trikes in holland.

i was pondering on some sort of "newspaper delivery model" in suburb areas?

10:03 PM

numerous cargo bikes/trikes/human propelled vehicles

Yeah bud its the only way i can see it being economical in the long run otherwise it kills itself with costs to run

definetly

10:06 PM

i can dig for numbers/data, do you have any i can look at before i go look (don't want to do work just to find you already found the same stuff!)

Where abouts are you from? Im in scotland so the cycle lanes are pretty poor in comparison to the netherlands

I am NOWHERE near netherlands, i live in a suburb in Florida, USA. Dedicated non-car sidewalks (people, bikes, short range ev's (golf carts) etc )

You would need to plan your trike design based around the cycle lane widths of your area

10:14 PM

I reckon if you dont upset folks when on the collect you would.have more cooperation from recyclers

ALRIGHTY

7:54 PM

i am plotting this out today, will document work here:

7:54 PM

https://wiki.opensourceecology.org/wiki/Local_Recycling_Collection_Service

Local Recycling Collection Service

trying to dig for info on average composition of plastic waste

8:17 PM

ie what % of each material

Just hopping into this thread from another one thanks to @Eric Lotze I’m thinking one way to get build trust and gain traction early on is word of mouth. Not sure if anyone is on Nextdoor or thought of this yet. But you can introduce yourself on there and of course to your own neighbors first just to begin the word of mouth both online and offline. Let them know what you’re thinking and if you can pick up plastics from them.

i don't have that yet, or any machines, really more so theoretical. Definitely online, then fliers perhaps (no solicitation and all that) also always good to hype up recycling at schools (especially if working out of one!)

8:31 PM

also we may be able to make the fee for service very low, and thus easier to have, some comapnies can't afford an expensive recycling service AND a dumpster

@Eric Lotze that’d be interesting strategy. So you would charge a fee to pickup people’s recycling? I’m wondering how much recycling and waste management companies charge. I imagine each place difffers.

i'm thinking fee for pickup service, small amount paid to donating person for on site drop off (edited)

Putting data here: https://wiki.opensourceecology.org/wiki/Municipal_Solid_Waste

Municipal Solid Waste

9:12 PM

pls check my spreadsheet lol, i am no spreadsheet wizzard (yet)

so VERY rough guesstimate:

9:24 PM

9:25 PM

mostly poly ethylene, some PET and PP, others aren't that much, or thermosets?

plotting is moving along nicely

11:33 PM

trying to figure our routes and money if a local one were set up in my area

ALRIGHTY

11:58 PM

getting into the map phase

11:59 PM

Made this real quick

11:59 PM

so the markers are schools, and the library

11:59 PM

covered a lot of it, may use a few churches, and perhaps the local animal shelter as the other collection hubs

12:00 AM

i think the small circles were 1km in diameter

12:00 AM

so 1-2.5 meter in actual roads and whatnot i think

added churches, and another school

12:11 AM

12:18 AM

Final Map (i think?)

12:19 AM

also up close of that odd cluster (i made the radius 1.5km for it too instead of 1km)

12:19 AM

SO

12:19 AM

i think that will definetly cover it, and even map 1 would do well

As a person currently working in an italian food venue i know food businesses have a lot of plastic waste such as HDPE,PP,LDPE if you could strike a deal with them you could have a reg supply of same colours same plastics which could be the back bone of your supply of plastics only problem with this is the plastics will need to be cleaned. If you organise a route map like @Eric Lotze has above you could have a collection timetable set up. I know my place of work has waste collections every 3days and the trash cans are full to the max.

definetly

12:26 AM

i volunteered a TON at a local animal shelter pre-covid mess, and we had a PILE of plastic, but no service, just a dumpster

Was it a regular plastic waste supply?

we had pet food bags, cat litter bags, misc packaging wraps, food containers etc (from people's lunches etc), soap/chemical containers

Should ask them how much it cost for the dumpster and how often it was emptied. You could find you could save them cash by collecting the plastic for free and save them a dumpster collection or two per month

it was a mixed dumpster so organic waste + recycling + inorganic non-recyclables

12:36 AM

definetly may save if less full, and if full on compost service is added too, less smell

12:36 AM

was thinking with that much animal manure (not agricultural, but essentially yes) a dedicated compost, or anerobic digester would have some serious throughput

You're now in an area that is risky with contamination and has strict rules esp with carnivore waste. Not saying dont im just saying youd need to really dig deep in law and regulations if you wanna process this type of waste

definetly lol. I love building codes and safety, not a hippie with their "nAtUrAl ComPosT" releasing sludge/wastewater, or some sloppy thing

Lol dont get me wrong if it was veggie animal waste you could provide a collection service to alotments and make cash via compost building

I work at a commnity garden in mexico city. We have a program were people from the area can drop off their compost in excange for some harvest (the nAtUrAl ComPosT we make is either utilized in the garden or sold). Im working to get a plastic collection / drop off spot set up there as well. Eventually, if its sustainable, we too want to invest in a tricycle or cargo bike to pick up more materal.

1

nice!!

3:17 AM

so folks in the US, it’s hard to collect things during COVID, but I thought of an exception

3

3:17 AM

PS receipt spools

3:17 AM

They’re in every store in the country, nobody ever touches them, and they’re always getting tossed

3:18 AM

going to try and ask some places near me for them

Hello everyone, I’m Sharon Lennon m, citizen of Mauritius and an entrepreneur in the recycling environment. We have recently faced an environmental tragedy on our island with the wrecking of MV Wakashio on our coastal reef, creating a massive oil spill. We made boom barriers and plastic bottles were used as floaters. Now they are covered with oil and we are looking for a solution to recycle these bottles. Can anyone help please. I wouldn’t want to have to let it in the sea or in one of our landfills.

@Recyclean would basic dish soap work? It’s cleaned oil off of animals like birds. I’d imagine you’d need to get a lot of soap though (edited)

another COVID collecting idea, beach and environmental plastic are still a problem, with the proper gloves and sorting equipment, it can still be utilized as a source.

2

8:41 PM

I don’t live near the water so I just go to the nearest parking lot

What do you guys put the plastic collected into as you are collecting it? What is your managable size of collection?

@joshu when investing in a cargo tricycle mod the front of a bicycle and its easier,cheaper and straightforward.

I am in florida so it is like a l l w a t e r (short of terraformed suburbs, and s w a m p) so pile of marine debris

8:49 PM

is did some plotting on this over at the ose wiki, let me grab all that

8:49 PM

once covid is over i legit want to network with the local beach cleanup groups

ooh I’ve worked with flakes collected from Florida beaches

hi folks, i just stumbled on this unbelievable thing - i wonder how familiar is the PP community with this company/project? (name: the plastic bank) https://www.ted.com/talks/david_katz_the_surprising_solution_to_ocean_plastic

David Katz

The surprising solution to ocean plastic

Can we solve the problem of ocean plastic pollution and end extreme poverty at the same time? That's the ambitious goal of The Plastic Bank: a worldwide chain of stores where everything from school tuition to cooking fuel and more is available for purchase in exchange for plas...

Economies like this have been explored, not sure on sucess. I do want to do a deposit and / or rewards system for my makerspace/collection/use point. Also a pay for curbside collection service

7:17 AM

an "existing example" irl would be those "scrap drives"

hi folks, i just stumbled on this unbelievable thing - i wonder how familiar is the PP community with this company/project? (name: the plastic bank) https://www.ted.com/talks/david_katz_the_surprising_solution_to_ocean_plastic

@okram it is a great project that is backed by subsidies and a lot of competent people. The reality of their recycling is as usual a bit blurred

David Katz

The surprising solution to ocean plastic

Can we solve the problem of ocean plastic pollution and end extreme poverty at the same time? That's the ambitious goal of The Plastic Bank: a worldwide chain of stores where everything from school tuition to cooking fuel and more is available for purchase in exchange for plas...

How do you all identify the plastic type unless it's marked? Specially like the ones collected in a beach cleanup

here’s what I do @Tanvi (edited)

6

8:01 PM

basically get medical alcohol and a hydrometer to measure the density, along with plastic flakes that you know the resin code for (edited)

8:03 PM

if you get the water and ethanol concentration just right, you can separate PP from PE which are both common on beaches, not 100% perfect but it’s better than just guessing

Same, I'm using two cups with a different water/alcohol ratio. In one HDPE and LDPE sink while PP floats. In the other one HDPE sinks, while LDPE and PP float. I didn't use an hydrometer, but just added water to alcohol until the mix behaved like I wanted, using pieces of the 3 different plastic as a test. Basically, they all sunk in pure alcohol at the beginning, I added water until the density was high enough for the PP flake to float. Then with some more water the LDPE also floated. As Katla said is not 100% accurate, as the densities overlap slightly, and the might be affected by additives, temperature, and so on I guess. (edited)

5

12:30 AM

Not sure if there are other less common plastics with similar densities, though

oh neat

12:36 AM

I think I want to do a big test with a lot of different known plastic samples to see how reliable the float method is (edited)

3

@Rai @Tiz - Plastically You can use standard veg oil to separate PP from HDPE and LDPE out of the box. That's way cheaper than using alcohol. You can then use alcohol only for separating HDPE from LDPE when it is necessary. Depending on what you produce, LDPE is so rare that it will be in traces in your recycled product and won't affect it. I personally only test very large objects that can be in LDPE such as boat fragments and buoys the rest is systematically HDPE (famous last words)...

3

I’ve tried veg oil before and it’s just tedious to have to re wash everything

4:13 PM

I guess that’s the only con, otherwise you don’t have to worry about it evaporating

4:17 PM

I think in my case I’ve actually been getting a lot of LDPE mixing with the PP and ethanol is easier to adjust the concentration

4:18 PM

will LDPE always be very flexible?

I keep the liquid mixtures in jars, so no risk of evaporating... I hope

7:34 PM

Oh neat

It really depends of what size of object you are trying to identify. If you do a shaving and test it, you just need a bit of paper to remove the oil. Worst case scenario it smells like a chippy in your workshop if there is a bit left. If you only have microplastic I would simply include it in art or the sort as the manpower needed to sort it by hand is ridiculous. For the storage we use some food containers. I thought I had put a picture on here

2

Here the set up we use for us but also with schools

oh cool

2:42 PM

yeah I don’t work with high volumes yet

@Aldothegreen85 since our workshop is part of a mom n pop recycle center we will keep all of the hdpe and pp we can use and sell the rest to them (unforntunitly most of it will go to china, india, etc). Right now we only have a shreader and plan on suppling washed, shreaded and sorted plastic to other projects. (edited)

12:34 AM

As far as the tricycle, i live in mexico city where cargo trikes are common and cheap.

Thanks guys...this really helps!

Greetings everyone from the mushroom industry. I have an issue that you may be able to assist me with. The gourmet mushroom industry produces a ton of plastic waste that usually ends up in landfills. I don't use plastic because of this but soon will be needing higher capacity grow space and need to switch. I was wondering if your plastic recycling machine would be able to turn my used bags into a use able product? The bags are all PP with a synthetic filter patch that could be cut or pulled off. The only issue is after growing mushrooms inside for 2 months+ they have residual sawdust, mycelium, straw.... ect on the inside. Would there be an easy way to clean out these bags on a large scale to make the product pure? It could save thousands of pounds of pollution as i could collect from other farms as well. (edited)

1

@UpGoodDev what a great idea! PP plastic works well on precious plastic machines. Also, there is a how-to that you may like about cleaning plastic https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to/wash-plastic-washing-machine

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

@Ainhoa Thank you this info helps so much as a starting point!

1

@joshu > As far as the tricycle, i live in mexico city where cargo trikes are common and cheap. @joshu how cheap are we talking? in europe they are going for around £400 a tricycle brand new £250 second hand.

i need help establish a recycling center. ontario canada

@airportfarms Checked out #deleted-channel ? What questions do you have?

we own 8 hectare of land with permits for recycling in east of ontario canada . we want to establish a site for recycling. we are looking for new ways or alternatives for recycling waste . we have the funds and the land with permits . i need associates to create the site from scratch.

@Aldothegreen85 in mercado libre they are usualy around 100 used. In the tienguis as low as 30 U$ but they usully need some work at that point. New is about $200 or $250 for load berring / motercycle wheels.

I reckon if you want to build the plastic empire @joshu you will need to provide either an incentive to recycle with you or a product to buy that makes recycling for you easyier. I get that you have access to load trikes but think of how you can merge the recycle business into your local area in a competitive way with buying main stream brand new or ability to merge your recycle business with others in the area via the cost effectivness of using recycled products. 100 used sounds like a good number to work with if you can implement customisation into the design you have the potential to up the margin to 180-200 meanwhile saving the planet with recycled longlife products from single use items. From little to no cost to max profit is what i always aim for (trash to cash is good if you know how)

#archived-collection This labels are witch plastic?? How to recognize

6:47 PM

this can also be recognized with the float test

Hello!!!! I have a question, when cleaning PET bottles is there a faster way to clean the glue of the labels? I'm going to build the cleaning station but I was wondering if that takes care of the glue too

I use boiling water to help peel the labels off. It seems to take the glue better also (in my experience)

#archived-collection This labels are witch plastic?? How to recognize

@De Bartjes im trying to get these companys to put the info on their labels. It wont cost them anything and will make our knowledge better for easyier processing. I am only one drop in the ocean of consumers so if you want to you could also make your voice heard by contacting them directly (im using public formats such as twitter to put them out in the open to ensure a response)

4

11:32 AM

We got some washing bags which work very well with cleaning the plastic.

4

@Julie what are the washbags made from?

@Aldothegreen85 something less sustainable (polyester) but this could be a net made out of jute instead. It's just nice to use nets dor washing and drying.

1

I wasnt sure if it was poly or cotton the poly ones last a fair amount of time tbh. The cotton ones ive had in the past have usually fallen apart after a year of use (ive used them for socks to save socks going missing during the wash process)

polyester is downcycled from PET bottles, and relitively long lasting

9:32 AM

Also non-plastic rope is hard to mend. Plastic can be melt-cut and/or spliced that way. Sewing is nice and may work for nets?

9:32 AM

not too much of an impact at this scale, especially given it's being used "for the greater good" thus net (pun) "less plastic total" ?

Does anyone know what nozzle I would meet for an extruder machine to make 3d printer filament

good morning u provide, make available the cut plan with the measurements

@Babel Is this a question? Do you search something? https://community.preciousplastic.com/academy/download

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

Best place to find info on cleaning plastics? Removing labels, etc?

Hey, I am a final year architecture student doing a research on plastics. I have few questions and wanted to conduct a survey for it. Please participate and give your valuable input. I will also upload the result of the survey for everyone to use. Thank you https://forms.gle/XjenQrH3vQMYVXDt9 (edited)

Plastic in Architecture and Construction

The purpose of the form is to collect information about plastic products and their application in construction and architecture.

2

1

#archived-collection This labels are witch plastic?? How to recognize

@De Bartjes Most likely PVC

@Angus17 it depends on your setup. If you stretch the filament you can start with 2mm and lower to 1.75. stretching is tricky and takes time to calibrate. Some extrude without stretch and need to match cooling, height, winding speed.

I found this page from the wikipedia page on "plasticulture" on recycling plastic mulch/agricultural plastic film:

9:11 PM

https://web.archive.org/web/20080518090210/http://www.rkoindustries.com/id26.html

RKO Industries, Inc. Ag Plastics Recycling Process

RKO has developed a patented recycling process which converts extremely contaminated ag plastics into clean,PE and PP plastic resins pellets.

9:11 PM

seems to just be shred, wash, dry, recycle?

9:11 PM

( + sorting if need be) (edited)

Hi everyone, i just found out about precious plastic and i'd really like to be part of it and contribute as much as i can. I work in a hospital at the operation rooms. We throw away a lot of plastic, so i want to collect it and sort it. I live in the hague (the netherlands) and i have a few questions before i build up a collecting/shredderpoint. Tips are more than welcome and maybe there are people who live nearby the hague and want to work together with me.

2

@Ulfrigg I’ve been reading through this post here: https://davehakkens.nl/community/forums/topic/washing-plastic-v4/

Louis Bindernagel

Washing Plastic (V4) - Dave Hakkens

Washing plastic is essential in the recycling process and at the moment it is mostly done by hand – a very time-consuming process. While working with plastic films I came in contact with - Dave Hakkens

1

Thank you!

7:36 AM

Im just starting out but I’m reading a TON

7:38 AM

have to figure out where I’ll actually make profit as a collection point. May have to start out just as a neighborhood thing and work up.

3

i would like to know if anyone has a model for a non-profit collection point. something able to survive on public funding, perhaps in terms of price level according to the funding available

Remember collectors that you have this website to use to communicate with people what you doand how they can help http://collect.preciousplastic.com

Recycle your plastic waste

Learn how to collect clean, label-free plastic at home and help to tackle the plastic waste problem.

Hello, is there any model on nonprofit collection points?

2

1

Hey everyone!!! Our team built a container to separate the plastic check it out it could give you ideas! And feel free to give some feedback!!!! https://www.instagram.com/p/CGSI_mZHXJl/?igshid=1di5vuekuo21b

recycle.lab

• Collection Point • We are very proud of the new project that came out of the paper

the new and unique coletion point hasj all that we could ask for:

Personalized plastic labels

Moving parts so we can have different amounts of plastic

Clean design

Perfect orga...

4

5

@Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal Wow, it looks so cool! Do you plan on releasing the files and/or make an how-to?

Hey! Yes we will make a how too soon!!!

@MTB3D hello, would you tell me , please, how much plastic you can shred per day and how many hours you running your shredder per day? How many days a week? Thank you

Does anyone implements material tracking confirmations to ensure the material comes from the claimed source? E.g. written declarations or any kind of blockchain implementation?

https://www.lantech.com/blog/can-stretch-wrap-be-recycled/

Avery

Can Stretch Wrap Be Recycled?

In an effort to achieve sustainability, many CPG companies are asking 'Can Stretch Wrap Be Recycled". Read this Lantech article to learn more.

3

2

4:02 AM

good news, Plastic stretch wrap can be easily recycled.

I am trying to increase the list of plastics I accept. What are some surprising items made of PS and PP ?

Cuttery?

6:02 AM

I know some disposable cuttery is made out of PS

if it rattles its PS

the black sewer pipe is form pp i belive

Does anyone know what nozzle I would meet for an extruder machine to make 3d printer filament

@Angus17 I do if u want 1.75 mm filaments u need about a 3 mm nozzle

10:31 PM

Maybe a little late reaction

10:31 PM

Xd

@Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal awesome work! We hope to show you soon the version our partners in A Coruna are building, thankyou very much for the inspiration!!

.

@Julie YES!!! i really want to see that!

️

Is anyone on here cluey enough with plastics to know whether Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene can be blended with HDPE or any other plastics. An engineering firm has loads of shavings they are keen for me to take. Anyone worked with it or know anything about it? How would it go in my sheet press?

@Tiago-recycle lab. Portugal we showed them your example and it should be done by the end of November

@Julie THats fast!!

@linnto from my previous experience, ultra high molecular weight processing pe necessitate different methods. I had to dissolve it in hot solvent for days before being able to produce films (as far as I remember). I wouldn't blend it with other polymers, except if you are sure you can clean it easily. If you need, I can check exactly the method I used

hello! Im new here and im very excited because i am currently working on a collection point. And i have a question: Would it be a good idea to put a container outside so people can throw there plastic in it when my workspace is closed?

12:12 PM

their*

Thanks @Eve I’ve got a small sample of 10kgs I’m going to try in my sheet press straight to see if it is workable. Time will tell. I appreciated the advise

@linnto Yes, trying is often a good way to learn. As far as I remember, there was a problem with the mobility of the polymer chains. Since they were very long, they couldn't mix properly together. So maybe, if you heat for a longer time - maybe at a bit higher temperature, you would resolve partially this issue ? In any case, I would be interested to follow your results, so please publish them here

@Eve will do

Guys question can u make things from old PVC pipe

9:59 AM

If so I have a lifetime supply of it

@Taire : PVC plastics (#3) contain chlorine which would produce dioxins if heated (toxic). If you were thinking about shredding/melting (edited)

1

Yea

5:40 PM

I see

Hey anybody has any idea what type of plastic these pallet straps are made of? Is this PP? I found bunch of them in landfill. (edited)

nylon

11:28 AM

nost of the time

11:28 AM

atleast the once we use at work are nylon

thank you

hi! At a collection point we got a plastic packaging that has number 7 but we are almost sure it is number 5 - where is the information on how to check plastic material?

@Dolphin313 basic floating and burning properties can be found in download-kit from the academy, have a look there. Also check this page for more complex burning tests. https://www.boedeker.com/Technical-Resources/Technical-Library/Plastic-Identification

@magi SVK there used to be a beautiful poster of precious plastic on the website, before the overhaul. Where is all that material? And I hoped we could use the floating test, with salt water and oil, not burning.

1:31 PM

@Dolphin313 basic floating and burning properties can be found in download-kit from the academy, have a look there. Also check this page for more complex burning tests. https://www.boedeker.com/Technical-Resources/Technical-Library/Plastic-Identification

@magi SVK I seriously cannot find it in the academy? there are so many links. I thought it would be with the shredder.

1:33 PM

@magi SVK I seriously cannot find it in the academy? there are so many links. I thought it would be with the shredder.

@Dolphin313 I can actually not even find any page called Academy.... I am looking at this website https://preciousplastic.com/

Say hi to the Precious Plastic Universe

The alternative plastic recycling system run by people.

Floating-Properties_A1.pdf

120.01 KB

1:50 PM

@Dolphin313 this one i assume?

Υes!!!!!!

1:52 PM

@Dolphin313 this one i assume?

@magi SVK Yes! Thanks

where is it in the website located?

@Dolphin313 here is Academy page. Do you have this download kit, or the older one? Poster is there :) https://community.preciousplastic.com/academy/download

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

What are the best locations to collect plastic from that you guys have had success with?

Hey everyone - I'm looking for your best practices on washing plastic, be it small or big amounts. Any hint to a direction or things already discussed would be amazing. Thanks in advance!

@GoUpcycled from laboratories (clean and big amounts of the same type) and some local restaurants (you will need to ask them to clean it) there is a how-to about this on the website, are two nice sources with constant small but big enough amounts to start with

1

Yeah. I learned about the approach "owner cleans plastic", but I am afraid this will not work here, as it will be considered "unreasonable amount of work", so I plan to wash the plastic myself to not corrupt the actual recycling idea.

7:49 AM

so I wondered if you guys have developed washing processes on your own

@rewrkd_de have a look at this (or try search here on discord) https://community.preciousplastic.com/how-to/wash-plastic-pre-wash

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

@magi SVK - perfect, thanks. I really did not see this, even though I read quite a bit of these pages. Appreciated!

Does anyone have any experience with cleaning an acryllic paint from plastic? I have an access to empty paint containers, but cleaning the dry paint off of them is quite slow (mostly scratching it off). So if you know a faster way, I'd be glad if you share.

Rubbing alcohol , it helps remove acrylic paint pretty easily.

@Spiderdance will try, thanks!

Spiderdance

Rubbing alcohol , it helps remove acrylic paint pretty easily.

I like rubbing alcohol as well, sometimes in a spray bottle to help with application.

Julie

@GoUpcycled from laboratories (clean and big amounts of the same type) and some local restaurants (you will need to ask them to clean it) there is a how-to about this on the website, are two nice sources with constant small but big enough amounts to start with

May I ask which kind of plastic these 2 places have? It's pretty easy for me to collect HDPE but PP is pretty hard to find. I don't know where should I look for them...

Bazyaftchi

May I ask which kind of plastic these 2 places have? It's pretty easy for me to collect HDPE but PP is pretty hard to find. I don't know where should I look for them...

we got mainly PP and PC. But it wasn't written on our items so we needed to call the company + do some tests in the oven before injecting (edited)

Hello! What kind of fabric bags would you guys suggest to get? and from which kind of industry can you get them?

Julie

we got mainly PP and PC. But it wasn't written on our items so we needed to call the company + do some tests in the oven before injecting (edited)

Thank you

CrisLeash 🐙

Hello! What kind of fabric bags would you guys suggest to get? and from which kind of industry can you get them?

I’m actually using some old bins I found:

1

10:57 PM

10:58 PM

Hoping once I get a dedicated space and pandemic is chill I can get some kids to paint them for me

@Eric Lotze Hi ! I 'm looking at the chart and at the spreadsheet you showed on 15/07/2020. I noticed that all data come from the municipal public waste from USA. This would include both domestic waste and professional waste, I guess ? They could have very different plastic composition. For example, distributors use huge amont of wrapping plastique on palets and would favorise cheep plastic like HDPE. I'm also wondering if we have similar usage of plastics around the world. I noticed that in my French bin, I have a surprisingly high amount of PET, because many milk bottles are in shiny PET. On the other hand, in Switzerland, milk bottles are mainly in PP and collected in special containers for recycling.

1

DEFINETLY

3:49 PM

that is all residential, in the very "specific" enviroment of the USA (or maybe even just the small area in the study) !

3:50 PM

Agricultural "Plastic Mulch" is nearly always HDPE i think?

3:51 PM

I don't know what material adhesive tape is (or even if it can be used), but i know we had BALES of clear "shrink/cling wrap" so piles of that from some sort of similar large store/logistics hub

3:51 PM

Not certain what a restraunt would have?

3:51 PM

Schools too are another good source

3:52 PM

That is a great area for me to clear up/add more info @Eve (adding it to my to-do list now right now lol)

Eve

@Eric Lotze Hi ! I 'm looking at the chart and at the spreadsheet you showed on 15/07/2020. I noticed that all data come from the municipal public waste from USA. This would include both domestic waste and professional waste, I guess ? They could have very different plastic composition. For example, distributors use huge amont of wrapping plastique on palets and would favorise cheep plastic like HDPE. I'm also wondering if we have similar usage of plastics around the world. I noticed that in my French bin, I have a surprisingly high amount of PET, because many milk bottles are in shiny PET. On the other hand, in Switzerland, milk bottles are mainly in PP and collected in special containers for recycling.

Here in switzerland most milk bottles are hdpe :)

Filled a 15ft truck with PET to turn into some new products soon! Collected from a local business who has been making PPE for the community and wanted to reduce the amount of plastic sent to the landfills.

13

Thick cling wrap, what number or material is that usually?

@Plasticwork.ch my mistake. But my point is that they are collected in supermarket in special containers. I suppose that this is possible only because they are all or almost all in the same material. And because Swiss people are able to differentiate plastic. They have special bins for PET (drink bottles), for PP and for PE (milk bottles

) and they use them. This is impressive. On the other hand in France, milk bottle can be in different plastics, so harder to sort. And people still have difficulty to differentiate cardboard and plastic...

1

7:50 AM

@Julie @Eric Lotze I found some info about plastic composition in different city in Europe (spain, neatherland, romania) https://plasticircle.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/PlastiCircle_D4.1_FINAL_PU_M10.pdf

7:51 AM

7:52 AM

So PET seem to be massively used in Spain and Romania, while in Netherlands it is PE

And this is the results I got from my collect in France. The "not tag but R" correspond to the plastic waste without indication of materials but are probably made of a common plastic (typically yoghurt pot)

4

@Eve That's amazing! I'll add it to the wiki page today

4:40 PM

definetly intresting to disect the differences

4:40 PM

PET is mainly used in disposable water bottles

4:44 PM

So maybe due to climate, and thus more water bottle usage? Granted i don't know what europe's culture on those is currently. When i lived in Brussels Belgium forever ago (was a kid too, so memory isn't 100%) i know filtered tap water at restaurants (with or without Carbonation (some goofy way that was said in french (to me, a non-native speaker) ) (or a SINGLE carbonated flavored drink, not infinite like the USA lol) was huge, so less waste from inside there maybe. Not certain on outside, i've always used non-disposable whenever possible (mainly due to insulation, thick plasic or a thermos etc stays cold way longer than that thin plastic), but i know many in the USA use piles of those disposable ones, and "single use" them, i tend to refil them when i do use them (at events where i didn't bring one etc)

Eric Lotze

@Eve That's amazing! I'll add it to the wiki page today

Could you link the wiki page? I'd love to bookmark it.

sure! Also feel free to request an account and add on to it if you want! (edited)

9:25 PM

https://wiki.opensourceecology.org/wiki/Unknown_Plastic_Waste_Workflow

Unknown Plastic Waste Workflow

@Eric Lotze Concerning PET drink bottles, I suppose that it really depends on your habits. I guess that people on this channel are careful with their plastic consomption, otherwise they wouldn't be part of such a project. And some people refuse to use plastics at all and prefer glass bottle, even if, since they are heavier, they would also necessitate a high amount of petrol for transportation. Since I go shopping by bike and my muscles are my motor, I always trend to choose the lightest packaging. To answer your point about water in public places, we can get for free tap water in restaurant (I dont think it's filtered), while you have to pay for mineral water that normally comes in glass bottles. For carbonated water, it is normal to buy a bottle (glass or plastic) even if in some places you find carbonated tap water but it is rare. When I was in Switzerland, Sodastream machines were popular, but I haven't seen many of them in France In some countries tap water is not really or really not drinkable - or people don't trust it, or taste really bad. Then it really make sense to buy water bottles.

By the way I was trying to find the reference of a plastic sorting system. I saw one some time ago on this serveur. I suppose it uses near infra-red spectroscopy. Does anyone have references for it ? Does anyone ever try to build one on it's own ? With a raspberry or an Arduino for example ?

@Eve Maybe asking in #deleted-channel would be better...

Ohh.. I missed this one... Sorry

No it's all good! I just don't have the answer for you and people that look in that channel probably can help you better

not about plastic but a good example of collecting https://www.bkrot.org/ (edited)

BK ROT : Locally-Sourced Compost for Your Gardening Needs

We transform food and coffee waste into nitrogen-rich compost. Help the environment by dropping off your scraps on Sunday.

4

Is anyone collecting 3d print leftovers?

Search for posts from Filagain. https://discordapp.com/channels/586676777334865928/605686860324536320/727509020818145302 (edited)

1

Frederik C (ZA)

Search for posts from Filagain. https://discordapp.com/channels/586676777334865928/605686860324536320/727509020818145302 (edited)

thank you

1

Has anyone tried collaborating with their cities recycling to get the recycled materials that they collect. Just thought I'd put it out there.

Specific case studies would be interesting. The way systems work can be very different from country to country. Also, then you enter the murky world of politics and big business. Usually, municipalities legally own the trash in their dumpsters. If you take it without permission, you're technically stealing from the government. If you take it with permission, you become a client of the city, and require a formalized contract. And so on and so on... Endless red tape, to make recycling as complicated as possible. Who benefits? Oil companies.

looking for food in a dumpster YOU THEIF THAT IS MY PROFIT

11:50 PM

what a boring dystopia at times lol

1

I suggest dealing with companies that pay for their waste and have an output of the same plastic rather than councils for the aforementioned reasons.

Hello sorry I’m new here! But does anyone know of a collection point in the state of Georgia USA??

@jgreene have you checked the map? I have something to do at the moment but I can try to look later...

Where can I find the map??

jgreene

Where can I find the map??

PP Community website : https://community.preciousplastic.com (edited)

Oh sorry! I was off discord for a couple days...

1

Hey everyone. I was wondering where is the best place to collect LDPE plastic bags?

placing some collecting points outside shops maybe? I think the main issue is how to involve people into collection.

Around here, we have grocery stores that do this. Might be an ideal placement for wherever you are

Hello guys, We are a small hardware prototyping team of makers (10 years strong ) from Eastern Europe and we have been working for the last 2 years on a Reverse Vending Machine similar to the ones you already know from collection points like the TOMRA devices. We are considering open-sourcing the project so we can move faster with both development and funding. So far we have been funded by IKEA Romania for a test pilot and developed an initial prototype that is being used on their premise. As a short summary, the current prototype can identify between glass, PET, aluminium cans, and other materials putting each item in a 120l Eurocontainer. The whole system is modular so these features can be adjusted on the fly. We are actively searching for funding for the next phase of development that would get us closer to a market-ready product. The first iteration was mostly made by hand as you can see in the attached pictures because it was easier for us to experiment and fail/repair fast this way. We want to redesign the enclosures and internal systems so they can be mass-produced. Would our project be interesting for Precious Plastic in the area of Collection/Sorting as a fully open-source kit? Do you know any financing solutions that would work in this area? The website of the product (Work in progress) https://inventeaza.ro/resources/rvm/ Let us know what you think, Best regards, Constantin (edited)

1

2:53 PM

We could post more pics from the build process if you are interested but Discord is shit with multiple pics, maybe a gdrive folder would work better.

1

precious plastic 4 team did research on automated sorting, so i guess more open source input would be appreciated

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1zFJZxZX3GIysTxRTd6tYpeGfEso3cknP?usp=sharing

8:37 PM

here they are ( pictures of our experiments with the RVM - later edit ) (edited)

Nice "click bait."

That's the RVM picture gallery, not a list of robotic sorting systems from the V4 research team. (But you can still look.)

heh, silly mixup, yeah those are pictures from our build process not the v4 automated sorting. but I never implied they were.

9:08 PM

Also we posted in the collection channel especially since we believe our solution is targetting a bit of a different area than the robotic sorters on a belt.

Hey guys, how you doing? I have a great idea for collecting plastic. In my home town, there are a lot of tall buildings and big residential complexes. About 2.000 people. Imagine all that plastic. The way the dispose their trash is thru a trash shut. So im proposing a system where all apartments put the clean plastic in a different color plastic bag, and they can only throw that bag in a specific hour and day of the week. At the bottom, a recycler will be there ready to sort out all the 7 different tipes of plastic.

11:03 PM

What do you think? It might work? There would be a lot of education around it

1

Hello everybody, i AM new on this comunity, what you say about Help associations on our comunity? How? We have associations on our comunity to save animals kids victims our others, if the people follow the Rules clean plástic we can pay 0,01 cent by unit, imagine everybody send their plástics and know they are making One donation, some coutrys the people want Help but dont have Money, but giving plástic anyone can do it. What you think about this?

@Constantin Craciun Sounds like an AMAZING project

@Constantin Craciun Really great looking project! I’m sure there are more peeps in the PP community who might help.

Anyone interested in free unused pla prints. Around 3kg or more. Or tips on where I can drop it. Eindhoven- Netherlands (edited)

ChapisKush

What do you think? It might work? There would be a lot of education around it

I think anything is worth trying! If you can gather a team, work out all the logistics (times, bags, educational mats), then start proposing your pilot plan to an apartment building owner. Could be fun!

beerbooth

Hello everybody, i AM new on this comunity, what you say about Help associations on our comunity? How? We have associations on our comunity to save animals kids victims our others, if the people follow the Rules clean plástic we can pay 0,01 cent by unit, imagine everybody send their plástics and know they are making One donation, some coutrys the people want Help but dont have Money, but giving plástic anyone can do it. What you think about this?

Incentives for recycling are always good especially monetary incentives for donation drop offs.

Bazyaftchi

Hey everyone. I was wondering where is the best place to collect LDPE plastic bags?

Around my area in the US, there is a grocery chain that has bins in front of their store to collect LDPE plastic bags. It’s not advertised unfortunately but it is used frequently. I have no idea what they do with it though. They did put benches made from 100% from LDPE in front of a few of their stores though, so hopefully it means they have a partnership with a recycling company.

Plastic Paradigm

I think anything is worth trying! If you can gather a team, work out all the logistics (times, bags, educational mats), then start proposing your pilot plan to an apartment building owner. Could be fun!

Yeah man! im going to run a pilot in mid febreuary. Educating the residence is key! Im doing it with a lot of good and nice graphic design. I'll keep you up if the method workss

1

ChapisKush

Yeah man! im going to run a pilot in mid febreuary. Educating the residence is key! Im doing it with a lot of good and nice graphic design. I'll keep you up if the method workss

Awesome! Any social media I can follow?

not yet, im planning everything with my partners, as soon as I release anything ill tell you.

6:08 PM

Its gonna be in spanish though hahaha

6:08 PM

What you up to?

ChapisKush

What you up to?

I’m trying to launch a collection point here in the US, slow going but I am determined

And how is the methology?

So far I’ve been doing word of mouth with community members and talked with a few businesses regarding the circular recycling methods. I’ve been accepting donations of plastic this far, only because I have no business structure (just me no team) to really get a grasp on what would sustain a business like this other than selling the clean shredded plastic. But that requires a shredder and $$$

Hey, i am new to this community and want to start collection point in India. so suggest me some idea so that i can get it done at minimum cost.

D_makhalepara

Hey, i am new to this community and want to start collection point in India. so suggest me some idea so that i can get it done at minimum cost.

I would suggest you start with the Academy on PP website, helps break down the needs.

D_makhalepara

Hey, i am new to this community and want to start collection point in India. so suggest me some idea so that i can get it done at minimum cost.

If you have a building and it has a garbage shut, make everyone dump plastic in one specific day of the week

@Joseph Hi hope you are well. Curiou my "Pin" for Collection Site has been in "awaiting moderator" approval for months. Curious How long does it take? Collection piolts are going well.

Gail

@Joseph Hi hope you are well. Curiou my "Pin" for Collection Site has been in "awaiting moderator" approval for months. Curious How long does it take? Collection piolts are going well.

In the same boat!

Gail

@Joseph Hi hope you are well. Curiou my "Pin" for Collection Site has been in "awaiting moderator" approval for months. Curious How long does it take? Collection piolts are going well.

Is this on the community map website?

Hi, My name is Yavuzcan. I'm from Turkey. I want to join your pretty family. I want to be a plastic recycler in my area in Turkey and also do it for money. I'm researching every part of your guide on website. I dont have much money for build a completely workplace within collection point and create productions. Can anyone help me and give some informations ?

maybe start small by creating a collection point where you only shred and try to sell the shreded plastic?

Hi spiros nik, it can be possible, i will try it. Thank you

maybe just try and figure out the market first. where would you be able to provide your product...

I talked with some local shops too, seeing if they were interested in recycling more and asked about what plastic they were throwing away. Consultation kind of meeting if you will.

5:34 AM

Educated them on what I can take to be recycled locally and what other efforts could be made to reduce more waste.

Hi guys, my name is Fernando and together with my wife Patricia and Santiago, we are opening a collectiong center in Almere Poort, The Netherlands. The goal for the center is to teach children about our consumption crisis and circularity. Let's connect if you are in the area.

Plastic Paradigm

Is this on the community map website?

Try https://community.preciousplastic.com/map

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

4

1:04 AM

My collection of HDPE AND LDPE

Buying hdpe plastic today

Hello friends, I have a good amount of sorting sacks that need to be reused. The disclaimer for the Bazaar says only items made by members can be sold there. How can I get these PP resources to those who need them? I packed and folded them up for shipping but there a question of "What's the best way to get resourced materials to other PP members? Please help, that all I want to do... (edited)

Being able to drop them by would be ideal i guess....

RecyclingWithKids

Hi guys, my name is Fernando and together with my wife Patricia and Santiago, we are opening a collectiong center in Almere Poort, The Netherlands. The goal for the center is to teach children about our consumption crisis and circularity. Let's connect if you are in the area.

Hey Recycling with Kids! Although I'm not in the area, I am thinking about setting up a similar center in Berkeley California, would love to chat about what you're considering :)

@sandy I am happy too. I sent you a dm.

Hey everyone. Is it possible to create more collection point from on account on Precious Plastic community web ? https://community.preciousplastic.com/map i cant see this option. and it would be very useful

thanks

Precious Plastic Community Platform

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

I can only see a few 'collection-points' in Europe !! Does that mean it is difficult / not profitable / not needed to setup a collection point? (edited)

Hello all, Is there any need for collection points in the Netherlands? I have collected some plastic and possibly I have a connection with a company who is throwing away a lot of plastic, it’s an production factory...

1

Martin PP Slovakia

Hey everyone. Is it possible to create more collection point from on account on Precious Plastic community web ? https://community.preciousplastic.com/map i cant see this option. and it would be very useful

thanks

that's true. would be super useful. not possible for now

@Martin PP Slovakia @Mattia the people of Precious Plastic Bangkok have found a nice solution to share the dropoff point in the area by having their own local map/overview on a google drive. https://www.facebook.com/PreciousPlasticBKK/posts/1422412744765828 Here in A Coruna (Spain) we are also trying to find a way to add a map for local collection use. more like the purpose of having http://collect.preciousplastic.com/ just for the people that want to donate their plastic to their local Precious Plastic community. Is your question about being able to put dropoff points on the map or really collectionpoints? @Martin PP Slovakia (edited)

This is already a next step but it might be interesting to keep in mind. Also related to community points. In the local map it seems to make sence to work together with zerowaste/packaging free places. we found this map http://duurzamehotspots.weebly.com/de-kaart.html which shows all the sustainable spots in europe added by experiences of people. But I guess maintaining such a detailed map is quite a lot of work.... We had a call with the girls that started https://greenguide.hu/ who started a very nice city guide with several sustainable points on it. They are open to share ideas and looking themselves also into making the map better by working with certain criteria to let restaurants/bars/stores think about how they could be part of their map and become more sustainable. And ways to sustain themselves by creating/updating this map. This could be by giving tours, workshops, guiding in how to fit your restaurant/store into their criteria.... etc. Here in Coruna we have https://www.instagram.com/wesustainability/ that we help to set up a collectionpoint. They also start a place to give workshops, presentations about recyclingprocesses of several materials, this is how they try to sustain the collection point as a physical space. Maybe you have some ideas/thoughts about @Mattia @Martin PP Slovakia? (edited)

Hey @Julie yes indeed collection needs fine tuning. Thanks to all the useful feedback out there hopefully we can make the next iteration better. Thank you for all the inputs

️ But I like the idea of collection points being able to create drop off points.

Mattia

Hey @Julie yes indeed collection needs fine tuning. Thanks to all the useful feedback out there hopefully we can make the next iteration better. Thank you for all the inputs

️ But I like the idea of collection points being able to create drop off points.

yes was just a start, step by step and by trying out it will become what it will become

Julie

@Martin PP Slovakia @Mattia the people of Precious Plastic Bangkok have found a nice solution to share the dropoff point in the area by having their own local map/overview on a google drive. https://www.facebook.com/PreciousPlasticBKK/posts/1422412744765828 Here in A Coruna (Spain) we are also trying to find a way to add a map for local collection use. more like the purpose of having http://collect.preciousplastic.com/ just for the people that want to donate their plastic to their local Precious Plastic community. Is your question about being able to put dropoff points on the map or really collectionpoints? @Martin PP Slovakia (edited)

Hi Julie, my point was to highlight missing option, of creating more points (worspace, collection point or community point) from just ONE account. So far it is not possible. However we in our PP SK team, just used more accounts for PP map, since we have already 3 collection point on the map, and 1 workspace. Together 4 points= 4 accounts needed

Canadian Recycler

Click to see attachment 🖼️

your lil tikes bed connects me with know the process to build big volumes and I liked the process https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWZB1B8aOiY

Little Tikes

How the Cozy Coupe is Made

Martin PP Slovakia

Hi Julie, my point was to highlight missing option, of creating more points (worspace, collection point or community point) from just ONE account. So far it is not possible. However we in our PP SK team, just used more accounts for PP map, since we have already 3 collection point on the map, and 1 workspace. Together 4 points= 4 accounts needed

Okay I see, and are all your collectionpoints within the same area/city/town? Sounds great so many active people in the area! nice job

Hi people I have been working on a spreadsheet that would help to keep track of our shredded plastic storage. There are still things to improve but I would like a first feedback round. Let me know if you have a plastic storage in your workspace or collection point and want to try-out the spreadsheet. Click on the ✅ if you want to join and I will send you a link by PM. We are using it ourselves as well and hope to have a couple of people more trying it out before sharing it with everyone. #archived-collection #deleted-channel (edited)

9

Julie

Okay I see, and are all your collectionpoints within the same area/city/town? Sounds great so many active people in the area! nice job

Hi Julie. Those collection points (we call them Plastic banks) are around whole Slovakia, in Bratislava, Košice(2 places) and one more. Its great way, how to build community of recyclers in slovakia, and since we call it Plastic Bank, its our unique rewarding system, where people who brought plastic waste to our points, can buy our recycled products for plastic waste (as a currency, that we call Plastcoin" ) its fun way how to engage community

11:13 PM

Plastic Bank rewarding system, by PP Slovakia

12

5

Wonderful Infographic!

1

Nice to see this approach being tried, i'm looking forward to hear more about it

1

Hi all, was just wondering if anyone has a community set up or workshop in the province of British Columbia?

Hello All, can someone assist me set up a community point in Kenya Africa

2

Orowe-Opiyo

Hello All, can someone assist me set up a community point in Kenya Africa

What kind of help are you looking for @Orowe-Opiyo

Im really interested in setting up a collection point in my area, but not sure what I would do with the materials collected

8:45 PM

man

8:46 PM

I live near a river, all the houses around here are raised up, but there is just thousands of square feet where folks could store collected plastics

Hi people, we've started a conversation about creating a database for plastic waste items. This has been popping up more often as a request within the Precious Plastic community. It can be a very useful tool for:

packaging designers
plastic collectors to find out the type of plastic when it isn't written on the product itself
overview of information about packaging, to create campaigns to make brands aware of their impact.
somehow it also becomes an online history museum about plastic packaging (because hopefully most of these items will disapere) One example is - https://guacamoleairplane.com/supplier-guide To get a step forward in making this database happening, we would like to start with brainstorming. This will be done online on ZOOM. Please head to this link to select the time slots that works the best for you - https://doodle.com/poll/z23hp6cgsat9gs7i

Choose your preferences on the date to join the zoom. We will update you about the time and date + the link to the zoom meeting Friday the 30th of April here on discord. Feel free to collect some examples, possible platforms, ideas and bring them to the ZOOMbrainstorm. Hope to see you at the brainstorm. PreciousPlastic

Sustainable Packaging Supplier Guide — Guacamole Airplane

Doodle: ZOOMbrainstorm - Plastic waste database

Hi people, we've started a conversation about creating a database for plastic waste items. This has been popping up more often as a request within the Precious Plastic community. It can be a very useful tool for:

packaging designers
plastic collectors to find out the type of plastic when it isn't written on the product itself
overview of ...

2

Brett

Im really interested in setting up a collection point in my area, but not sure what I would do with the materials collected

download mold files for existing products already on the precious plastics website. Once you have the molds or products you want, open up an etsy account and/or a website that showcases your products.

Hello everyone, @Julie @tomvb and myself are prototyping a "product to plastic types database" and we need your help! The "database" is currently made of this google sheets - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ztJJ98DO4QrWohieobSHNY7dxFVWxVUvwKRimjhIRKc/edit?usp=sharing In order to fill it up with information we've created this simple google form - https://forms.gle/MCSxE9qXxi11zRDD8 - for you to use whenever you see a product that is not in this database. A nice way to always have the form ready to use is by creating a shortcut on your phone home screen. To do that, follow these steps: 1. Open the form on your phone (Chrome on Android, Safari on iOS) 2. Share (iOS), Menu button (Android) 3. Save to home screen Example shown below. Please let us know if there is more information you think we need to collect. Thanks and happy sorting

Plastic Product Database

Form responses 1 Timestamp,Barcode,Product Name,Category / Type of product,Country,Plastic Type 1 (Main package),Plastic Type 2 (Lid),Plastic Type 3 (Label),Plastic Type 4 (Secondary package),Plastic Type 5,Add Product Image,Feedback about packaging (Easy to recycle? Other issues?),Product Name

Google Forms - create and analyze surveys, for free.

Create a new survey on your own or with others at the same time. Choose from a variety of survey types and analyze results in Google Forms. Free from Google.

davidyaha

Hello everyone, @Julie @tomvb and myself are prototyping a "product to plastic types database" and we need your help! The "database" is currently made of this google sheets - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ztJJ98DO4QrWohieobSHNY7dxFVWxVUvwKRimjhIRKc/edit?usp=sharing In order to fill it up with information we've created this simple google form - https://forms.gle/MCSxE9qXxi11zRDD8 - for you to use whenever you see a product that is not in this database. A nice way to always have the form ready to use is by creating a shortcut on your phone home screen. To do that, follow these steps: 1. Open the form on your phone (Chrome on Android, Safari on iOS) 2. Share (iOS), Menu button (Android) 3. Save to home screen Example shown below. Please let us know if there is more information you think we need to collect. Thanks and happy sorting

Good idea

Something interesting could be to somehow connect this database to openfoodfacts.org which does something like you propose, but with ingredients.

alexsolex

Good idea

Something interesting could be to somehow connect this database to openfoodfacts.org which does something like you propose, but with ingredients.

Yeah definitely! Do you know of an open general products database? Food is a good start but day to day would have many more categories

I only know the openfoodfacts one. It may be useful if you can have a global pre-filtering of the plastic food contents depending of what kind of food category it is...

Here is what I found (in french) Looks like barcodes on products should include (in a near future ? ) datas about how the packaging is recyclable https://www.usinenouvelle.com/article/des-donnees-sur-la-recyclabilite-des-produits-dans-les-codes-barres.N901354

Des données sur la recyclabilité des produits dans les codes-barres

Les codes-barres des produits de grande consommation devraient prochainement intégrer des données liées aux emballages et à leur fin de vie,...-matieres-premieres - Matières premières

1

alexsolex

Here is what I found (in french) Looks like barcodes on products should include (in a near future ? ) datas about how the packaging is recyclable https://www.usinenouvelle.com/article/des-donnees-sur-la-recyclabilite-des-produits-dans-les-codes-barres.N901354

That would be great!! Hopefully more countries will adopt this... Up to now most legislation is quite flawed

@davidyaha I would also recommend looking into the GS1 barcode system https://www.gs1.org/standards/barcodes With literally thousands upon thousands of products, it will take a long time to develop this database from scratch. If you could just scan the products barcode and take relevant information into your own database, it might happen a lot faster. But it would require some app development/backend to be really slick

GS1 Barcodes - Standards | GS1

Barcodes are symbols that can be scanned by proper systems and play a key role in supply chains. Find here several types of barcodes managed by GS1.

2

Hi from Toronto! Hope everyone is safe and healthy Question To my fellow Torontonian(!) would you please help me find existing and active One Army plastic collection points in GTA please. I’m new to the One Army community and wanna start with baby steps, for now

(edited)

Hello, does anyone know about collection or any precious plastic work happening in East Tennessee or in the state of Tennessee? I think I've seen someone in Charlotte NC on the map. Hoping to hop in and start up (collection and grinding) this Fall (2021)

Gonna take the plunge---Baltimore needs a collection point!! First-gotta find some space. Recommendations?

TEglen

@davidyaha I would also recommend looking into the GS1 barcode system https://www.gs1.org/standards/barcodes With literally thousands upon thousands of products, it will take a long time to develop this database from scratch. If you could just scan the products barcode and take relevant information into your own database, it might happen a lot faster. But it would require some app development/backend to be really slick

interesting. definitely understand that it's a huge undertake but... with 100k people in community, and a better UX, it just might be possible to map out the most common products quite quickly.. we do need as many people possible to start using this form though. Shameless plug to the form - https://forms.gle/MCSxE9qXxi11zRDD8 The db - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ztJJ98DO4QrWohieobSHNY7dxFVWxVUvwKRimjhIRKc/edit?usp=sharing

5:32 PM

those of you running a collection point and that could benefit from such a database, get your collectors to use the form!

Also I think that most results would look like this.. This was a Duck glade toilet scent and there is no information suggesting that on their site as far I see it

alexsolex

Good idea

Something interesting could be to somehow connect this database to openfoodfacts.org which does something like you propose, but with ingredients.

Just saw that they have packaging properties as well. not filled but that's good to know. Also it seems like the best open database for barcodes.. Example: https://world.openfoodfacts.org/product/7290106724488

דנונה bio - 200 ג

Ingredients, allergens, additives, nutrition facts, labels, origin of ingredients and information on product דנונה bio - 200 ג

there are some members from the GTA. As the One Army is more global and we are in the process of bringing people together and establishing communitie s in and around Toronto and nationally we can use your help. But Patience, due to the pandemic nothing happens quickly... BTW. The One Army server and Preciois Plastic site is great for finding info on the various Precious Plastic and beyond plastic technical tasks. They are alsonlooking to improve the map. So do try to place yourself on the Precious Plastic Map and share your experience on our server and in the #deleted-channel channel on the one army server. (edited)

is there a collection point in northern Germany?

Sewayaki Kitsune No Senko-san

is there a collection point in northern Germany?

Where are you located? https://community.preciousplastic.com/map We also have a german diecord server: https://discord.gg/UcYf3qgn (edited)

Hello everyone!!! I am happy to join this community, Can I get a help of knowing the machine prices and who supply? I am in East Africa- Tanzania.

If you want to buy machines, you can have a look here. bazar.preciousplastic.com Be aware of shipping and import costs if you order from abroad.. If possible buy locally

Big companies in France collecting mask and turning them into car bodies Big companies in France are starting to collect masks to be turned into pellets and then plastic car bodies. I have a friend who works for "le Carrefour" and told me about this, I was very happy to learn about this (edited)

12:37 AM

Companies in France have been using recycled plastic even before the lockdown to make car bodies out of recycled plastic. *(For cars like: Renault, Volkswagen, Citroën...) The only new thing is that there is a factory that takes the mask and processes them into clean black PP pellets. To be injected into new car bodies for your brand new car....

sandy

Hey Recycling with Kids! Although I'm not in the area, I am thinking about setting up a similar center in Berkeley California, would love to chat about what you're considering :)

I'm in San Jose. Let's chat!

why dye it black, let me have my dirty light blue COVID mask car

5:30 PM

that’s neat

Rai

that’s neat

Lol idk they literally do this with all recycled plastic for industrial usages as far as I have seen.

@parisapoopdiddywhoopscoop Hi im from Mississauga, im starting a collection point for clean plastic only. DM if you would like

fanleck_john

Hello everyone!!! I am happy to join this community, Can I get a help of knowing the machine prices and who supply? I am in East Africa- Tanzania.

Habari? We are based in Njombe and have produced two machines (injection and compression) here. Let´s talk

Impysh

I'm in San Jose. Let's chat!

Hi! I am in Pacifica. Would love to connect! (edited)

Does anyone know where I can get the PDF to print the labels for my sorting bins?

11:13 PM

Never mind I found it. My brain is fried today....

Yvaine

Hello! I was interested in starting a collection point for plastic in Morocco. Unfortunately on the map I cant find any sheetpress/ shredder or other spot who could have use for the plastic. By any chance maybe someone got advise of how to be able to find someone to recycle the plastic after collecting it? I am new in this field and am happy about any information

Hi Yvaine, where are you in Morocco?

Hello One Army community! I'm Camille - calling in from Amsterdam, The Netherlands I'm the co-founder of Bye Bye Plastic Foundation. We're going to organise a canal clean-up in Amsterdam mid-October. Our program is called Clean The Beat, & you can read more about it here: https://www.byebyeplastic.life/clean-the-beat We are looking for workspace in & around Amsterdam that are able to take & recycle the plastic we will collect. Is there someone from Recycling With Kids Almere here? | Recyclingwithkids.com

Clean The Beat | Bye Bye Plastic

A living hub for musically-powered cleanups by Bye Bye Plastic Foundation.

Greetings from Haiti

3:49 AM

Love it @Camille BBP

Does anybody here have tips on bin lids to use when collecting plastics in labs to reduce contamination

I’m wondering the same, but a bit for collecting bottle caps. Like a funnel shaped or with a rubber sleeve or something, would keep stuff from falling out if it got knocked over in my case or keep from putting bigger stuff in, might also work. Keep debris out… hmmm

Hello One Army community!

10:52 AM

I am Dex from Zambia, i collect PET bottles and i was wondering what would be the best way of recycling/reusing PET bottles any advise?

Hi can anyone here in Europe supply us with different sorts of plastic? We need only smaller amounts of 5-10 Kg, per month. Flake size ideally 5mm. We are particularly interested in industrial waste. It's mainly for prototyping and product development. Thank you. (edited)

Hi I'm looking at getting a extrusion machine to build beams. Do you know what plastics can and cannot be used for these?

littlenick

Hi I'm looking at getting a extrusion machine to build beams. Do you know what plastics can and cannot be used for these?

I would say best would be best with HDPE and ldpe because PP plastic can shatter easily

I'm looking for someone who is availeble to make a prism about 10x10x30 cm or more or who has en experience with making molds in "owen".

Tomorrow is my NGOs 17th monthly recycle drive. Every month it is bigger, every month we collect more. We should probably collect 2x or even 4x per month, but we are all volunteers and have other jobs, but we will probably collect a ton every month soon

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5:31 AM

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5:31 AM

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5:32 AM

We filled the cube van twice for delivery

17 months ago we started with cardboard boxes for collection, up graded to used flour sacks, then to large garbage bags, now to these large heavy-duty collection bags

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@Joe Cubed really nice to see you progress and all the people you have managed to reach! How clean do you receive the plastic? And what are the question that have been asked the most? Keep on going, nice work!

Julie

@Joe Cubed really nice to see you progress and all the people you have managed to reach! How clean do you receive the plastic? And what are the question that have been asked the most? Keep on going, nice work!

The plastic we get is super clean, and mostly has other plastics removed like wrappers, caps, labels, and even cap tags(or locks or safety seals, orwhatever they are called) . We get asked mostly, What type of plastic is this? Haha, the most confusing are when we get Korean and Japanese plastic that have the triangles, but just writing inside.

Hey I'm in a high school in texas and I was wondering how I should approach my principal with the Idea of me collecting plastic at the school but i store the plastic at my house any ideas

Nathaniel (texas, USA)

Hey I'm in a high school in texas and I was wondering how I should approach my principal with the Idea of me collecting plastic at the school but i store the plastic at my house any ideas

Think along the line of legacy. What will happen to said collection point after you leave the school? Will others take over for you? If so, how? The more detailed you can be in your plan, the more thought they'll give it as well. Show how it benefits the community and perhaps some examples (like how you're going to do it, etc...)

Joe Cubed

The plastic we get is super clean, and mostly has other plastics removed like wrappers, caps, labels, and even cap tags(or locks or safety seals, orwhatever they are called) . We get asked mostly, What type of plastic is this? Haha, the most confusing are when we get Korean and Japanese plastic that have the triangles, but just writing inside.

Really nice job @Joe Cubed do you give the people information in advance? and how are you giving them this information?

Julie

Really nice job @Joe Cubed do you give the people information in advance? and how are you giving them this information?

Because we started so small and slowly grew, and our collection is completely voluntary, we have had great success. We try to have enough volunteers around for one on one attention as people are sorting their plastics and we teach a few tricks for sorting like bending and looking for discolouration(#5), bending repeatedly to heat it and smell(#6), attempting to rip it{cannot rip #1}

10:49 AM

And if the plastic is dirtywe set it aside and we ask them to wash it next time. We only collect 1 time per month, and most people have nowhere except their apartments to collect plastic (we are in Hong Kong) so they tend to clean it really well before storing it.

10:51 AM

We also have a table where volunteers are busy removing labels and cap tags so if people don't remove them on their first visit, they certainly do on their next visit

@Joe Cubed nice way of working happy to hear that it went so well! Do you use any illustrated instructions (where is written how you want to receive the plastic and when and where they can find you?) Like the poster that you can find in the starterkit? And if so, do you share this online (virtual) or with a flyer or poster? Thank you for answering all those questions!

Haha yes, since I speak English, and most of my neighbours are Chinese we Try to use a lot of pictures. Luckily most people here speak much more English than I speak Chinese so we usually default to English. But my colleague has done a video that just demonstrates the technique for opening and washing tetra packs and we really should do a lot more of that sort of thing. Mostly shared through our Facebook page, or our neighborhood Facebook page. We are called seed-2-STEM (edited)

https://fb.watch/9ErhAailu-/

12:53 PM

If I could figure out how to send a link to fb page I would

12:54 PM

@seed2stem.ltd

Joe Cubed

If I could figure out how to send a link to fb page I would

Super clear video! and very active facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Seed2STEM.ltd) nice work!

Log in or sign up to view

See posts, photos and more on Facebook.

Thanks

Hi there, has anyone been able to collect waste plastic from hospitals? I imagine they would produce a lot of waste plastic, but I'm not sure if it's safe to use...?

rbtubby

Hi there, has anyone been able to collect waste plastic from hospitals? I imagine they would produce a lot of waste plastic, but I'm not sure if it's safe to use...?

even though a lot of it might me good plastic,ti is NOT considered safe do to conatmination

4:58 AM

this means you cant recycle it (edited)

sponsoons

even though a lot of it might me good plastic,ti is NOT considered safe do to conatmination

Yeah, so I've been doing a little bit of reading up on it. Basically if the plastic waste is considered 'hazardous' or 'clinical' then as far as I can tell it gets sent to an incinerator (if someone can correct me if I'm wrong that would be appreciated!) . There are some doctors, nurses and other hospital staff in Australia pushing for other 'non-hazardous' plastic waste to be recycled however which is really good to see! https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-13/healthcare-waste-covid-plastic-recycling-reusing-hospitals/100533552

Healthcare workers are 'dressed in oil' during COVID. They want som...

Frustrated doctors and nurses workers are speaking out about their sector's reliance on single-use plastics. They're fighting back to save both the environment and money.

rbtubby

Yeah, so I've been doing a little bit of reading up on it. Basically if the plastic waste is considered 'hazardous' or 'clinical' then as far as I can tell it gets sent to an incinerator (if someone can correct me if I'm wrong that would be appreciated!) . There are some doctors, nurses and other hospital staff in Australia pushing for other 'non-hazardous' plastic waste to be recycled however which is really good to see! https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-13/healthcare-waste-covid-plastic-recycling-reusing-hospitals/100533552

the push for non-hazardous' plastic waste to be recycled has been there for some time

5:49 AM

however evertime its taken up its pointed out that how do you seperate them,as most things will be conatimnated,either direclty or otherwise

5:49 AM

so this means a lot of hospital plastic is shadily recycled

5:52 AM

the 'good' ones will wash/boil the material out of fear for their safety

5:52 AM

but most if the plastic looks visually clean will just shred and melt it down

Hi everyone I’m from the Philippines. I’m interested in focusing on starting with a collection point business which is called a junk shop here. A junk shop collects and buys recyclables then sells it to recycling plants. I’m hoping this way I can start small and then grow til I have my own recycling and sell products. I want to start small because I don’t want too much risk and also because I have to allot my savings in case of emergencies since I’m my family’s breadwinner. I have to be careful with what I spend. My biggest problem is I don’t know where to begin.

Welcome! There are plenty of resources around, but I would recommend you start in the academy: https://community.preciousplastic.com/academy/intro.html

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Thank you so much Loki

Our last collection collected 570kg of recyclables. Not all plastic but still a lot of recyclables.

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1:53 AM

We are on our way to 1 ton per month

3

@Joe Cubed , were you able to do this with clean plastic, or dirty material? My workspace partnered with my city's waste management center in order to get plastic in this quantity, but the quality of the plastic is just horrid. If you were able to got that much material clean, I would love to hear more about how you did it.

Choonis

@Joe Cubed , were you able to do this with clean plastic, or dirty material? My workspace partnered with my city's waste management center in order to get plastic in this quantity, but the quality of the plastic is just horrid. If you were able to got that much material clean, I would love to hear more about how you did it.

Yes our material comes to is very clean. We have grown slowly and educated along the way.

Hi everyone. We are a coffee shop/restaurant chain based in Miami,FL. Unfortunately we still sell plastic bottles for juices. We would like to start an initiative for customers to bring back their empty bottles at the end of the month... Does anybody need them or has any ideas who does or what we can do with them? Thank you for your help!!!!

Make reusable cups they can save up for

9:40 PM

Like 100 trow away once

9:41 PM

Get you one reusable one

Taire

Make reusable cups they can save up for

Thank you! Do you have any resources who I could contact for such a project? Where do I start?

Tjat

9:42 PM

I do not have

9:42 PM

My guess is

9:43 PM

Find a pp workshop near

9:43 PM

And contact them to see if they have any options for making them bottles into cups

9:43 PM

Aka shred and mold

PuraVidaMiami

Hi everyone. We are a coffee shop/restaurant chain based in Miami,FL. Unfortunately we still sell plastic bottles for juices. We would like to start an initiative for customers to bring back their empty bottles at the end of the month... Does anybody need them or has any ideas who does or what we can do with them? Thank you for your help!!!!

also check if there are any plastic recyclers or scrappers near you,most will buy the plastic buy the pound for a small bit of money

5:12 AM

we used to get about 25 cents for a kilo of plastic,this is for unclean,dirty plastic

Does anyone have advice for cleaning plastic before shredding it with a Precious Plastics shredder? I am part of a project that wants to collect type 5 plastic at a college campus building to shred and use for extrusion. We are not sure how to effectively clean the plastic we collect in order to not gunk up our shredder, as well as to remove any labels as necessary.

when i used to brew beer, cleanin labels was hot water and oxy clean soak and they'd mostly slide right off, but i'm not sure about certain types of glue

CrabbyApples

when i used to brew beer, cleanin labels was hot water and oxy clean soak and they'd mostly slide right off, but i'm not sure about certain types of glue

I‘am recycling every honeyjar given me back. Not just my ones and my usaly steps are normaly just water it, than dishwasher, if the label is not removed-> label-remover, than again dishwasher to geht food save.

Julie

What kind of help are you looking for @Orowe-Opiyo

on this, I'm also from Kenya and hoping to find a workshop that has ready built shredders. Any ideas? Would prefer not to have to build it myself

Hi folk. I'd like to download some posters for my collection space, but the link I need on that Starter Kit page is broken

8:53 PM

@currylove have you tried the PP group at International School Kenya? I believe they make machines

@dex hi from south Africa. It's possible to cut pet bottles into really long strips or strings then make rope or diamond mesh (looks like a diamond mesh fence). I make ecobricks with pet bottles- ecobricks.org. In Sri Lanka they're made into thread. (edited)

@fanleck_john https://plastikirafiki.com/ at least they're not in Europe : ) Hi from South Africa

rafiki

Home

Clare R

@fanleck_john https://plastikirafiki.com/ at least they're not in Europe : ) Hi from South Africa

thanks. Checking them out

Maricris

Hi everyone I’m from the Philippines. I’m interested in focusing on starting with a collection point business which is called a junk shop here. A junk shop collects and buys recyclables then sells it to recycling plants. I’m hoping this way I can start small and then grow til I have my own recycling and sell products. I want to start small because I don’t want too much risk and also because I have to allot my savings in case of emergencies since I’m my family’s breadwinner. I have to be careful with what I spend. My biggest problem is I don’t know where to begin.

Phillippines does impressive work with ecobricks : )

Hi folk. Does PP academy have specific info on collecting in different communities, e.g. rich vs working class?

@Clare R how are the pet bottles cut into long strings?

currylove

@Clare R how are the pet bottles cut into long strings?

sorry, don't have a link - I saw it either on Youtube or Precious Plastic website.

Clare R

Hi folk. I'd like to download some posters for my collection space, but the link I need on that Starter Kit page is broken

could you share the broken link?

It's fixed now. Thank you

currylove

@Clare R how are the pet bottles cut into long strings?

Here is a Video of this https://www.instagram.com/reel/CNnYAFPlNsu/?utm_medium=share_sheet

Login • Instagram

Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.

https://youtu.be/GSBh77bjz_Q And here is a good YouTube-Video

Advoko MAKES

10 Creative Ideas to Reuse Plastic Bottles / Bottle Cutter 2.0

Hey @Collection point! This is just a friendly reminder for everyone to keep their profiles on the community platform (https://community.preciousplastic.com) up to date. We direct people to the map daily (11,000 per week), so profiles that are up to date tend to have more success finding partners/clients, customers or volunteers/workers. Be sure to check over your: Photos Workspace type Description Links Thanks for doing what you’re doing! Hugh - Community Manager

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Philipp

Here is a Video of this https://www.instagram.com/reel/CNnYAFPlNsu/?utm_medium=share_sheet

thanks. I tried this, but the plastic strip wouldn't cut all the way to the end. It ended up giving me many small strips. I don't know now, maybe it's the type of plastic bottles in Kenya

currylove

thanks. I tried this, but the plastic strip wouldn't cut all the way to the end. It ended up giving me many small strips. I don't know now, maybe it's the type of plastic bottles in Kenya

Hi, I am sorry to hear that. Out of curiosity, did you try with different types of bottles? Was there some that was harder to work with than others? Have you tried with bottles from the METL-group? I.e. Mo EXTRA? I do not have the opportunity to try with these bottles myself, and would love to get some feedback regarding their quality.

Astrid

Hi, I am sorry to hear that. Out of curiosity, did you try with different types of bottles? Was there some that was harder to work with than others? Have you tried with bottles from the METL-group? I.e. Mo EXTRA? I do not have the opportunity to try with these bottles myself, and would love to get some feedback regarding their quality.

yes I tried different types of bottles. The CocaCola PET bottles are the easiest to slice through, though maybe I need to place the bottle at a particular angle to cut a strip all the way through the bottle. Bottled water companies' bottles are a mix, some are easy to cut through and others really tough. In Kenya we don't have METL-group operating

2

currylove

yes I tried different types of bottles. The CocaCola PET bottles are the easiest to slice through, though maybe I need to place the bottle at a particular angle to cut a strip all the way through the bottle. Bottled water companies' bottles are a mix, some are easy to cut through and others really tough. In Kenya we don't have METL-group operating

I made a PET cutter similar to this one : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yf6-j2Gy0FI I found this was what has the most regular cutting. This is not that difficult to build, the only two critical operation is the distance between your two bearings, and the fact you need to sharpen the bearing (they usually come with a chamfer that need to be removed).

Plastic Bottle And Can Cutter

Plastic Bottle And Can Cutter (Part 1)

10:55 AM

Then, your bottle choice matter as well : it needs to have as little diameter variation and texture. A bit like the 2L Coca-Cola bottles.

Yann

I made a PET cutter similar to this one : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yf6-j2Gy0FI I found this was what has the most regular cutting. This is not that difficult to build, the only two critical operation is the distance between your two bearings, and the fact you need to sharpen the bearing (they usually come with a chamfer that need to be removed).

wonderful. Let me try this out

Anyone know of any ongoing collection efforts in the Bay Area, California

11:29 PM

Could be through PP or commercial

I wanted to show you guys something that on the one hand shows the right idea, while also being the stupidest way of solving an issue

1:15 PM

1:16 PM

German butter package. They know that you can't recycle their packaging properly because they mix plastic and paper. So they inform the customer that they should seperate it before throwing it out

1:16 PM

Instead of, you know, just not using paper. All it does is make the customer think they buy something better because it has paper instead of plastic that you touch, and its actively harmful to proper recylcing

2:44 AM

reminds me of these detergent bottles, available for sale in the USA. the recycled paper exterior is all for show - they are lined with plastic, which of course makes them worse than an all plastic bottle since it is just about impossible to recycle as far as i know.

oh wow, this might be the worst I've seen I always thought that sparkling wine bottles with a plastic sleeve on them were the worst but this is on another level

Mill cartons are the worst

Falcon

Mill cartons are the worst

The main milk provider in my country switched back to glass bottles for milk. They also changed their yoghurt product line to be put in glass containers. Sadly the yoghurts ones are not used in a refund system yet but they work on it.

Milk cartons as in tetra pack at least get used enough that entire facilities can be dedicated to them, but when a single company decides to do something like this for a one time goof then there is zero chance it will be recycled

v1el1

The main milk provider in my country switched back to glass bottles for milk. They also changed their yoghurt product line to be put in glass containers. Sadly the yoghurts ones are not used in a refund system yet but they work on it.

Glass is great, if it gets reused at least 10 times and the bottle doesn't leave a ~50mile radius around where it was produced and filled etc

just checked the label online and it says there is only one plant in the whole country and that is a distance of 150 miles away from me ...

Using the same milk bottles for the last 5 Years

1

Do you have to cook it yourself then? Here they only sell raw milk last time I checked on of these out

Probably uht?

Yes its raw milk, but we didn‘t cook it.

v1el1

just checked the label online and it says there is only one plant in the whole country and that is a distance of 150 miles away from me ...

glass plant or milk plant? Cause if they get reused enough then that one time delivery from the glass manufacturer to the milk guys isn't great but can be offset If its 150 miles for the milk then basically anything would be better than glass

sioux612

glass plant or milk plant? Cause if they get reused enough then that one time delivery from the glass manufacturer to the milk guys isn't great but can be offset If its 150 miles for the milk then basically anything would be better than glass

That company has one place where they wash and refill the milk bottles.

uff, then thats rough+

12:55 PM

Then again I'm a massive hypocrit, my favorite beer is only sold in glass bottles and gets transported 300 miles

sioux612

Then again I'm a massive hypocrit, my favorite beer is only sold in glass bottles and gets transported 300 miles

Most of my beers get imported from all over the place. The struggle if you like craft beer pubs.

Craft your own fingerguns

Falcon

Craft your own fingerguns

I trust the people of Guinness doing that for me

Idk if guiness is craft...

Falcon

Idk if guiness is craft...

that´s one of the more famous brands at that place.

They also have their own in house brew which i like.

I don’t know how i feel about glass. It is somewhat energy intensive to make/recycle (Although i need to look into that more specifically though, it may be comparable to melting plastic/metal?), is heavy (so energy use in transportation + work demanded of logistics personnel is greater), and can shatter (had a pallet with some pasta sauce in glass containers crash at Walmart one shift and that was one huge mess lol)

8:34 PM

Aluminum cans may be a neat non-plastic workflow

8:35 PM

I am also just team recycled+bio-sourced feedstock based plastics, and strict disposal (where plastics are kind of the best solution, mainly liquid handling etc)

Eric Lotze

I am also just team recycled+bio-sourced feedstock based plastics, and strict disposal (where plastics are kind of the best solution, mainly liquid handling etc)

I see NO case, where plastics are the best solution for liquid handling

How so?

11:47 PM

Low Mass, High Strength, Mostly Inert, Cheap, Non-Biodegradable (So your seals don't rot, good for that at least, horrible for litter sadly!) , Water/Oil/Many Solvent-proof etc. Main issue is the usage of fossil fuels in production, and incomplete/irresponsible end of life processes *(ie not recycled and/or pyrolyzed and/or gasified, just littered or landfilled)

1

As long as you make sure that the plastic is returned into the recycling system, plastic is the best material for fluid handling of non-bulk sizes. Glass and aluminium both have their places but if the fluid is something simple and it will be shipped some distance then plastic is superior.

sioux612

As long as you make sure that the plastic is returned into the recycling system, plastic is the best material for fluid handling of non-bulk sizes. Glass and aluminium both have their places but if the fluid is something simple and it will be shipped some distance then plastic is superior.

both glass and aluminum are also very carbon heavy in their production

10:00 AM

both to make the material itself and then to form it

I'd call it energy intensive, not carbon heavy, but its not like there are NO reasons to use glass or aluminium Theres good reasons why fuit juices weren't in the german deposit system, and why we don't like the old beer pet bottles

sioux612

I'd call it energy intensive, not carbon heavy, but its not like there are NO reasons to use glass or aluminium Theres good reasons why fuit juices weren't in the german deposit system, and why we don't like the old beer pet bottles

exactly,both have their places and genarrly trying to change those isnt a good idea

sioux612

I'd call it energy intensive, not carbon heavy, but its not like there are NO reasons to use glass or aluminium Theres good reasons why fuit juices weren't in the german deposit system, and why we don't like the old beer pet bottles

fruit juices are in the deposit system since 01/22

11:40 PM

the deposit system would be expanded in the coming years

11:44 PM

for examples: to-go-drinks and take-away-eatings in 2023 plastic milk bottles in 2024

11:46 PM

there are also considerations to increase the deposit value for glass bottles in order to promote the use of plastic bottles less

oh I'm well aware, and we aren't happy about it, multi layer pet bottles are, compared to normal ones, stupid complex to recycle

9:00 AM

They have their entirely own material stream because of that

General question #archived-collection the starter kit provides some excel sheets to keep track of the plastic collected? Anyone is doing that? And at a long run it would be cool to make some graphics for reading this data @Corey (edited)

CrisLeash 🐙

General question #archived-collection the starter kit provides some excel sheets to keep track of the plastic collected? Anyone is doing that? And at a long run it would be cool to make some graphics for reading this data @Corey (edited)

I was wondering the same - but also thinking if there we had an online database of single use plastics this could help sorting - As we find new packaging in the PP community we could test it and then record it in the database. Then it would be possible to search by the product - for example 'brand x fabric conditioner' and find out that they use a PET container with a film etc? could call it What'sup' ?!

Bonjour, Dans le cadre de notre cours de projet entrepreneurial, Mme Amélie Jacquemin m'a conseillée de vous contacter. En effet, il parait que vous recyclez les produits en plastique. Notre projet est de récupérer les gobelets en plastique des guindailles à Mons pour vous les donner/ apporter. Comment pourrions-nous collaborer ? Le plastique des gobelets est-il le plastique que vous recyclez ? Doit-il être propre ?

Gillscorner

I was wondering the same - but also thinking if there we had an online database of single use plastics this could help sorting - As we find new packaging in the PP community we could test it and then record it in the database. Then it would be possible to search by the product - for example 'brand x fabric conditioner' and find out that they use a PET container with a film etc? could call it What'sup' ?!

Looks like this does not exist! We can create it! Are you a collection station?

CrisLeash 🐙

General question #archived-collection the starter kit provides some excel sheets to keep track of the plastic collected? Anyone is doing that? And at a long run it would be cool to make some graphics for reading this data @Corey (edited)

May need to stsrt from scratch :( ill look fir the download

6:56 PM

Unless seone has it and wants to email it to me haha

Hey people,

I have around 2 kg of old prints (mainly PLA) that I feel bad just throwing in the trash. I live in Germany (Frankfurt area) and would be happy to send it to someone who could shred it and re-use.

️ Anyone interested? Cheers, Marc

MarcoOO00

Hey people,

I have around 2 kg of old prints (mainly PLA) that I feel bad just throwing in the trash. I live in Germany (Frankfurt area) and would be happy to send it to someone who could shred it and re-use.

️ Anyone interested? Cheers, Marc

Has anyone experienced shredding and injecting PLA?

MarcoOO00

Hey people,

I have around 2 kg of old prints (mainly PLA) that I feel bad just throwing in the trash. I live in Germany (Frankfurt area) and would be happy to send it to someone who could shred it and re-use.

️ Anyone interested? Cheers, Marc

Maybe @QiTech Industries ? Or is that too far already?

Hello, I was wondering if someone had already injected nylon through the simple injector ?

Severin from PP Munich

Maybe @QiTech Industries ? Or is that too far already?

Happy to send it there, in case they can use it!

Do you all shredd your collected plastic what do you all do with it? I dont have funds to buy or build a shredder but can easily collect lots of plastic! Where could I send it to support the precious plastic movement?

can you find some PP friends near you. you can consult the map of the community

7:15 PM

https://community.preciousplastic.com/map

Precious Plastic Community

A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.

Corey

Looks like this does not exist! We can create it! Are you a collection station?

I'm just setting up, hoping to work with the local town council to set up a collection station, working from my garage at the moment and just about to build a shredder. I'm happy to help define the fields etc but dont know much about databases beyond setting up local MS access ones!

Gillscorner

I'm just setting up, hoping to work with the local town council to set up a collection station, working from my garage at the moment and just about to build a shredder. I'm happy to help define the fields etc but dont know much about databases beyond setting up local MS access ones!

Good to know that you are making such progress. And that's exactly what I am about to do here in Kitwe Zambia. Any ideas on shredder designs, small unit to start with?

Kalebi

Good to know that you are making such progress. And that's exactly what I am about to do here in Kitwe Zambia. Any ideas on shredder designs, small unit to start with?

@Kalebi Yes v3.3 shredder getting in kit form from the bazaar probably hand crank to start with and then get a motor later, will probably start with a panini press to experiment first off

Gillscorner started a thread. 3/6/2022 8:53 PM

hello! I've got a few pounds of PLA that I can't recycle. I live in South Florida, is there anyone I would be able to send it to? I've just reached out to Free Plastic in Miami, but they're not listed as a collection center. Thanks for the help!

Does anyone have a favorite source of orange HDPE? (A brand of bottle or bottle cap that’s orange that I should look out for, etc.)

3:27 PM

"Powerful Plastic" in South Africa . 20 ecobricks and about 70 PET bottles. 15kg or so.

3

1

Disco Business

Does anyone have a favorite source of orange HDPE? (A brand of bottle or bottle cap that’s orange that I should look out for, etc.)

I guess maybe drinks with orange favours are easy to focus, hardly having food in mind that uses them? maybe possibly butter or similar sweets to put on bread, etc. which are packed in plastic-trays but so far I don't know any of those yet?

Hello all. Is there actually a time-efficient way to remove labels from recyclable plastic? Background: Wouldn't a Collection Point be much more "successful" if you relieve the givers of work and don't require them to scrape off the labels themselves?

Larre

Hello all. Is there actually a time-efficient way to remove labels from recyclable plastic? Background: Wouldn't a Collection Point be much more "successful" if you relieve the givers of work and don't require them to scrape off the labels themselves?

most labels that are printed directly on the bottle(ie the ones needing to be scraped) can imo just be shredded and used just like that,either my filter will catch it or it will go right through and not cause any problems

6:37 PM

if you are using a friction/drum washer,then in that process the ink will be removd by the firction

6:37 PM

tge main type of labels that has to be removed and isnt as easy is the sticker type,but even for that just by heating it for a lil,it'll come off very easily

@sponsoons so you are basically just shredding regardless there are labels or not?

yea mostly

7:50 PM

because on most of the bigger recycle extruders,theyll have a filter and said filter will catch it

7:51 PM

the main label types youll see are plastic film,paper and paper sticker,plastic wrap around,print and laminate (edited)

7:52 PM

plastic sticker and laminate is the most annoying to remove

7:52 PM

the thing is,when shredding and washing,most types of labels will come right off

7:53 PM

and pretty much everybody will do float/sink separation,which makes it very easy to seperate labels

Thank you for your reply!

someone could give a hand to get a carbon filter?

Lixeiro

someone could give a hand to get a carbon filter?

you want to use for one of the machines? which one?

Carolina

you want to use for one of the machines? which one?

Hey Caro, yes, firstly to a extruder.

this one has worked pretty well for us, the brand is knokoo. Also! best place to talk about this kind of topics is in

#deleted-channel

1

I found it on Alibaba express

3:29 PM

that one has a suction system right?

https://www.amazon.de/KNOKOO-Schwei%C3%9Frauchabsauger-L%C3%B6trauchabsorber-Tragbare-L%C3%B6trauchabsauger/dp/B083Q4KJZK/ref=sr_1_1?__mk_de_DE=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=C0DF0P9MXVG9&keywords=KNOKOO&qid=1650548857&sprefix=knokoo%2Caps%2C384&sr=8-1

KNOKOO Tragbares Schweißen Mobiler Rauchabzug HEPA-Filter FES150 Mi...

KNOKOO Tragbares Schweißen Mobiler Rauchabzug HEPA-Filter FES150 Mini-Löt-Rauchabsorber-Anzug für Nagelstudio und ESD-Lötstation

1

Carolina

this one has worked pretty well for us, the brand is knokoo. Also! best place to talk about this kind of topics is in

#deleted-channel

how can I move the thread to there?

Carolina

this one has worked pretty well for us, the brand is knokoo. Also! best place to talk about this kind of topics is in

#deleted-channel

is the same https://www.amazon.de/KNOKOO-Schwei%C3%9Frauchabsauger-L%C3%B6trauchabsorber-Tragbare-L%C3%B6trauchabsauger/dp/B083Q4KJZK/ref=sr_1_1?__mk_de_DE=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=C0DF0P9MXVG9&keywords=KNOKOO&qid=1650548857&sprefix=knokoo%2Caps%2C384&sr=8-1

KNOKOO Tragbares Schweißen Mobiler Rauchabzug HEPA-Filter FES150 Mi...

KNOKOO Tragbares Schweißen Mobiler Rauchabzug HEPA-Filter FES150 Mini-Löt-Rauchabsorber-Anzug für Nagelstudio und ESD-Lötstation

Carolina

this one has worked pretty well for us, the brand is knokoo. Also! best place to talk about this kind of topics is in

#deleted-channel

for nails studio? haha sounds good!

thats the one!

great! thanks a lot

1

Hi everyone..I was just wondering how people in European countries with a deposit scheme for recycling are encouraged to bring plastic back to a PP workshop or collection point rather than bring it to get their deposit back? Does anyone know of any such initiatives to make local residents/communities bring their plastic to PP spaces rather to the deposit scheme of the government? Something similar to the Pfand system (incentive for collection programme in Germany) will be introduced in the UK next year. Many thanks:)

Disco Business

Does anyone have a favorite source of orange HDPE? (A brand of bottle or bottle cap that’s orange that I should look out for, etc.)

I can find that mainly orange beverages, some juice and some dangerous fluid (i.e. drain cleaners) are in orange HDPE here in Italy. I also recover some small containers from deburring tools at job. Also some mineral oil bottle. It is one of the colors most difficult to find, at least here.

v1el1

just checked the label online and it says there is only one plant in the whole country and that is a distance of 150 miles away from me ...

I just met with a processor who ships the crushed glass more than 300 miles to get beneficiated, so I don't believe it's a strict distance across the board. This plant provides cullet for roads, I believe.

sioux612

Then again I'm a massive hypocrit, my favorite beer is only sold in glass bottles and gets transported 300 miles

Me too. I was used to buy german beer from the italian importer, since I lived near him, in northern italy. Now I moved ~300km south, and I started carrying it for my friends and collegues, las times I carried south more than 350bottles, since regularly I go north, meeting my parents and friends... But at least it comes in returnable bottles, so the difference isn't that big, expecially because I have to use my trailer to carry that quantity, and in Italy with trailer I have the 80kmh speed limit, saving fuel comparing to going 130kmh without trailer, even if there is more weight and two wheels more...

Plus, using LPG in a medium/small size engine (1.8L) at least I reduce pollution compared to other fuels...

Each one of these jugs is like 219 g. I have a total of 26 of them. Time to start shreding them

Shredding these by hand is taking forever lol

Mr. Kevin

Shredding these by hand is taking forever lol

By hand? Is there no shredder in your area that you can use?!

Nope. I’m cutting them into smaller pieces that I will then try to grind in a blender

9:46 PM

Thankfully I have nothing but time on my hands

Then go, find a team and start the first workspace in your area!

I have 45 lbs worth of hdpe bottle caps too that I need to grind up

9:49 PM

Those grind up pretty well in the blender

Wish I could help you but I am quite sure that you don't live anywhere in germany

I live in West Virginia in the US

Mr. Kevin

I live in West Virginia in the US

I live in NY

Three jugs worth

1

nice

Trying to determine if I need to trim the scraps down smaller

Mr. Kevin

Trying to determine if I need to trim the scraps down smaller

are you trying to use them for an extruder or a heat press ?

Alex_recycles and creates

are you trying to use them for an extruder or a heat press ?

heat press

Mr. Kevin

heat press

then your good you can make them smaller if you want

Hey! I started collecting some beach trash for a project after a bunch washed up on my shores; but most of the plastic is either broken up or the resin identification codes are really worn away and not legible. Does anyone have any links to guides or general advice for how to identify and sort everything?

KeelanMoore

Hey! I started collecting some beach trash for a project after a bunch washed up on my shores; but most of the plastic is either broken up or the resin identification codes are really worn away and not legible. Does anyone have any links to guides or general advice for how to identify and sort everything?

It's not ready yet, but for identifying plastic, there is a project ongoing: https://plasticscanner.com/

Jerry

Plastic Scanner

Towards a plastic scanner that can identify the five most common plastics! Making plastic recycling possible anywhere around the world.

1

DataWorm (PP Berlin)

It's not ready yet, but for identifying plastic, there is a project ongoing: https://plasticscanner.com/

Thank you; sounds pretty perfect (if it were ready) and I will keep tabs on progress!

Heyyyy. I am part of a community of people who pick up litter on the weekends. We'd like to set up a plastic collection point and were wondering if there is a revenue-generation component to this -- assuming we collect alot of clean plastic, is there a way to then sell this to shredders/etc in exchange for money? Would really appreciate an answer to this question

(edited)

Carolina

this one has worked pretty well for us, the brand is knokoo. Also! best place to talk about this kind of topics is in

#deleted-channel

these are easy to DUY, just need a blower and 5 gallon bucket, and activated charcoal. I built several for the co2 lasers I used to sell and service before. I have even made them up to 55 gallon drum size.

3:38 AM

FYI if you are looking for plastic to mold, machine shops that process engineering plastic usually have lots of scrap left over from machining engineering plastic, acetal, HDPE and PVC. I started posting to the machinist groups for buying this cause the local junk shop has not had as big supply lately.

Am I the only person seeing their prices for waste HDPE going up? Street prices here in the Philippines for plastic waste HDPE is more than steel scrap. almost 19cents usd per kilo for unshred scrap, and pellets are almost a dollar a kilo now.

Hi Everyone, I am looking for some ideas and inspiration. I have a very successful recyclables collection that collects 750+kg per month. I believe we are successful because the collection is like an experience. We have 200-300 families that come and separate recyclables into 15 categories. We want to add to the experience! Is threre anything simple, easy, cheap and safe that you would enjoy at a recyclables collection?

Do you have a live counter for amount of plastic recycled? I'd certainly get a kick out of seeing the number go up when I brought my stuff in.

That would be amazing @Graveheist (edited)

4:08 AM

Great idea

I am thinking about using Google sheets and using a plugin to pull it to my website. I can update the Google sheet on my phone and the website will show live tallies. Then I can use a laptop or iPad to display it live at the event as well

Joe Cubed

Hi Everyone, I am looking for some ideas and inspiration. I have a very successful recyclables collection that collects 750+kg per month. I believe we are successful because the collection is like an experience. We have 200-300 families that come and separate recyclables into 15 categories. We want to add to the experience! Is threre anything simple, easy, cheap and safe that you would enjoy at a recyclables collection?

All that comes to mind is some nice music to jam to while working.

Ben - Precious Plastic Ciledug

All that comes to mind is some nice music to jam to while working.

Music is definitely important.

Hi, does anyone here know if there are/have been existing relationships between Precious Plastic itself as an organization or one of the workspaces in the Netherlands and a bigger recycling company for obtaining large(er) amounts of presorted/washed/shredded HDPE? For a side project I'm working on I'm looking to get my hands on 50-100kg for prototyping. If it works out the way I think I would probably need 1000-1500kg for the next phase. (edited)

1:47 AM

Before I start called every plastic recycling company I can google I'd thought to ask first if there's maybe some existing relationships.

Maxbet

Hi, does anyone here know if there are/have been existing relationships between Precious Plastic itself as an organization or one of the workspaces in the Netherlands and a bigger recycling company for obtaining large(er) amounts of presorted/washed/shredded HDPE? For a side project I'm working on I'm looking to get my hands on 50-100kg for prototyping. If it works out the way I think I would probably need 1000-1500kg for the next phase. (edited)

Yes when we where in the netherlands we did order some clean and shredded plastic for testing the machines. The only downside was that they only work with tons of plastics, i believe the minimum we managed to get was a batch of 700 kg. I dont remember the name of the company, maybe @Yann does.

Hey folks, I am new to this and was wondering do you guys clean/sanitize you plastics before shredding or after shredding? What methods do you use?

xDoubleATx

Hey folks, I am new to this and was wondering do you guys clean/sanitize you plastics before shredding or after shredding? What methods do you use?

the last prototype we made for a washing system uses mostly water with a lot of pressure to get read of the grease and dirt (no cleaning products added) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYwUfRg6q1g&t=366s If the water can be warm thats a big plus!

One Army

MN#54 - We made a new shredder!

Is there anyone in the vicinity of Franklin, MA who could take a small batch or two of PP plastic? I work at a company that makes rheometers, and when lab testing, we tend to use plastic once and then discard it. I'm wondering if there's something else to be done with it.

Lucas Ario

Is there anyone in the vicinity of Franklin, MA who could take a small batch or two of PP plastic? I work at a company that makes rheometers, and when lab testing, we tend to use plastic once and then discard it. I'm wondering if there's something else to be done with it.

How small?

Very. I'm keeping the scraps in a large pencil box, and two days have only filled it 1/4th full. My plan is to store it up for several months or so, and then bring it to a recycler in one big batch.

Hi there! Does anyone know about certification of the machinery as "childproof"? International or any regulation at all?

Elvira de Grazia

Hi there! Does anyone know about certification of the machinery as "childproof"? International or any regulation at all?

none of the machines designed by Precious Plastic are suitable to be used by children

1

Hey Everyone, I'm looking to start collection in Nashville Tennessee in the next few weeks!

4

rybread

Hey Everyone, I'm looking to start collection in Nashville Tennessee in the next few weeks!

i'd like to collaborate

I have an idea for collection within the UK. Anyone else based here?

Found a promising plastic source: polypropylene baling twine from hay. If you are in or near farm country, it may be something to look for. Seems to be pure polypropylene, easy to clean (if it even needs it). I'm looking forward to trying to feed it directly into our little benchtop injection machine (the way I do with plastic bags), and also interested in seeing how easily it shreds, since it's small strands of poly wound together into cordage.

1

Absolutely can be done! Over in Canada we have this fellow doing the same with modified farm equipment How are you getting the bags through your injection machine? I heard films very hard to work with and I'm never sure which bags are PP https://www.producer.com/news/alberta-farmer-turns-ag-plastic-into-fence-posts/

Alberta farmer turns ag plastic into fence posts | The Western Prod...

VERMILION, Alta. — It took farmer, inventor and recycler Danny Farkash about 2 1/2 years to figure out how to build a machine that turns used agricultural

Very cool article!

12:25 PM

We have a LNS 150A (https://www.techkits.com/products/model-150a/), and we just stuff the LDPE bags/film into the hopper. The one specific mold we have been using, making coin-like game tokens, is very tolerant of the different types and forms of plastics we've used in it -- it is a single chamber directly under the injector after quite a wide sprue/runner, so there are no difficult angles to get around. I found yesterday it even works with shredded HDPE lawn sign, which I was dubious about working at all for injection molding since it stays so viscous and doughy.

1

This is the mold...very forgiving!

3

JohnNephew

This is the mold...very forgiving!

Are you dremeling these by hand??

yeah he previously said he's texturing/shaping them by hand

Ben - Precious Plastic Ciledug

Are you dremeling these by hand??

Yup!

Though now that I have my little desktop CNC back up and running, I am looking forward to making some with it and seeing how well I can get the medieval/ancient hand made look while not having to carve the same face design on a mold with 15 copies.

If anyone is in NJ or the NY metro area, I have a resin casting shop and would LOVE to supply someone with sprues/bad castings/the stuff that leaks out of molds onto the bottom of my pressure tanks. Currently we cut up what we can and toss it in the bottom of statue bases. If anyone wants it to grind up, hit me up, and either use it for whatever or give some back and i'll toss it into statues, I honestly don't care, I just don't want to toss it in the trash.

does anyone have a sample letter in English for soliciting donations of plastic from municipalities and homeowners associations?

Butte (PP Philippines)

does anyone have a sample letter in English for soliciting donations of plastic from municipalities and homeowners associations?

Dear [Municipality/ Homeowners Association], I am writing to you with a request for a donation of plastic. As you may know, plastic pollution is a major problem facing our environment, and we are committed to doing our part to reduce its impact. We are currently working on a project that involves recycling plastic and turning it into useful and sustainable products. To achieve this goal, we are in need of plastic donations from the community. We would be incredibly grateful if you could consider donating any plastic materials that you may have. This could include plastic bottles, bags, containers, and any other recyclable plastic items. We are willing to arrange a pickup or drop off location at your convenience, and we will ensure that the plastic is recycled in an environmentally responsible manner. Your contribution to this initiative will not only help reduce plastic pollution but also promote sustainable practices in our community. We believe that small actions can make a big difference, and we hope that you can join us in this effort. Thank you for your consideration, and we look forward to hearing from you soon. Sincerely, [Your Name]

3

12:59 PM

AI generated

If anyone uses this, be sure to specify plastic types and also if you only accept clean plastic. As we all know, post-consumer plastic is usually quite filthy.

Hi Everyone, not sure if this is the best place to post this but I want to put a call out to all precious plastic friends in Australia as we are desperately seeking any recycled PLA waste. We are 3D printing them with our robot at the UNSW Design Futures Lab and are searching for any PLA waste we can find. If there is anyone from Sydney that reads this or anyone else that may be able to point me in the right direction, any help would be greatly appreciated!!

mkdfl

Hi Everyone, not sure if this is the best place to post this but I want to put a call out to all precious plastic friends in Australia as we are desperately seeking any recycled PLA waste. We are 3D printing them with our robot at the UNSW Design Futures Lab and are searching for any PLA waste we can find. If there is anyone from Sydney that reads this or anyone else that may be able to point me in the right direction, any help would be greatly appreciated!!

There seem to be a few manufacturers of 3d filament in australia. Have you tried reaching out to them? They may recycle their own waste stream, but I'm willing to bet at least one of them is sitting on a pile of waste PLA and not sure what to do with it.

12:08 AM

Or they may have customers that have contacted them about how to recycle the product they sold.

1

3

Butte (PP Philippines)

Click to see attachment 🖼️

Love this

Butte (PP Philippines)

Click to see attachment 🖼️

Is really good, here in spain theres a couple of them too, always full

Hey guys ! We will have a shredder and an extrusion machine. Quick question concerning the collection set up : do you ask people to sort out the plastic by providing different bins ? Or isn't easier to just collect clean plastic and sorting in ourselves?

7:03 PM

Also , do you collect plastic bottle ? We have been told it's a hard plastic to melt afterwards. So we are wondering it we should only collect the plastic caps ?

Estelle

Also , do you collect plastic bottle ? We have been told it's a hard plastic to melt afterwards. So we are wondering it we should only collect the plastic caps ?

If you're talking about PET (#1) bottles, I would advise just taking the caps & rings. There is quite good industrial recycling of soda bottles themselves, and PET is a tricky material to work with for a bunch of reasons including temperature and moisture issues. On the other hands, bottles made of HDPE (#2) for example are great to work with (often containers such as jugs of milk, laundry detergent, etc.). The resin type/number matters more than the shape it comes in for Precious Plastics-type recycling. (For industrial processes, shape matters a great deal because of machinery and automation.)

3

#NewShop #Recycling #Plastic #CommunitySupport Exciting news from our #NewShop! Our first customer brought us some plastic to #Recycle as soon as we put up our sign. We're so grateful for the #CommunitySupport. Let's keep up the good work together! #PlasticReduction

1

Estelle

Hey guys ! We will have a shredder and an extrusion machine. Quick question concerning the collection set up : do you ask people to sort out the plastic by providing different bins ? Or isn't easier to just collect clean plastic and sorting in ourselves?

Oof I've been busy lately but I can add to this. I ask people to sort and clean but I always end up having to sort again. I end up with plastic I don't use like PS and PET, but there's other recycling streams I can toss them into so they end up in the right place (I hope). Bottlecaps and the rings are great. PET is often sought after by the recycling industries but for us precious plastic workspaces it is a more difficult material to work with. It's possible but...theres so much other plastic that we can work with so it might not be worth the trouble.

JohnNephew

Found a promising plastic source: polypropylene baling twine from hay. If you are in or near farm country, it may be something to look for. Seems to be pure polypropylene, easy to clean (if it even needs it). I'm looking forward to trying to feed it directly into our little benchtop injection machine (the way I do with plastic bags), and also interested in seeing how easily it shreds, since it's small strands of poly wound together into cordage.

Just working through a backlog of posts. I was in contact with the person that runs https://www.twinerecycling.com/. They work with FFA and 4-H groups to collect the twine (apparently, it is often filthy. Often containing vet needles, horseshoes, general trash, manure, mice nests, etc.) They only work with one recycler in the US because many others ship the twine overseas through brokers. She told me they work with "Green Group Reprocessing" in Minnesota. Apparently, due to the dirty nature of the twine, it is often a low-grade brittle material. However, it is still a significant source of precious material going to landfills worldwide. It might be worthwhile reaching out to find out more. We are hoping to work with them to figure out if there are ways to help close the loop.

Twinerecycling.com | Recycling Baling Twine

Baling Twine Recycling

1

David Maulik - Maker Space 307

Just working through a backlog of posts. I was in contact with the person that runs https://www.twinerecycling.com/. They work with FFA and 4-H groups to collect the twine (apparently, it is often filthy. Often containing vet needles, horseshoes, general trash, manure, mice nests, etc.) They only work with one recycler in the US because many others ship the twine overseas through brokers. She told me they work with "Green Group Reprocessing" in Minnesota. Apparently, due to the dirty nature of the twine, it is often a low-grade brittle material. However, it is still a significant source of precious material going to landfills worldwide. It might be worthwhile reaching out to find out more. We are hoping to work with them to figure out if there are ways to help close the loop.

You can also get PP or HDPE from printers. Their canvas rolls come with ends that are made of plastic. A commercial printer, the kind that makes photo canvases, gets through quire a few per day.

Ben - Precious Plastic Ciledug

Oof I've been busy lately but I can add to this. I ask people to sort and clean but I always end up having to sort again. I end up with plastic I don't use like PS and PET, but there's other recycling streams I can toss them into so they end up in the right place (I hope). Bottlecaps and the rings are great. PET is often sought after by the recycling industries but for us precious plastic workspaces it is a more difficult material to work with. It's possible but...theres so much other plastic that we can work with so it might not be worth the trouble.

Really? I'm currently living in an african country and from my observations, the main problem here is PET bottles waste, they're just everywhere... and to me it would be a game changer if there was a precious plastic solution for PET. By the way I've just come across a video showcasing a machine, a rather small one, that transforms pet flakes into polyester fibers (that you can turn into pillows, blankets, filling for furniture, etc...) and was instantly blown away. You can find this on YouTube looking for "Easy wool machine". Do you guys know if the folks at Precious Plastic could come up with a similar machine ? That would be revolutionary ! All comments and ideas welcome! Thx (edited)

stroller

Really? I'm currently living in an african country and from my observations, the main problem here is PET bottles waste, they're just everywhere... and to me it would be a game changer if there was a precious plastic solution for PET. By the way I've just come across a video showcasing a machine, a rather small one, that transforms pet flakes into polyester fibers (that you can turn into pillows, blankets, filling for furniture, etc...) and was instantly blown away. You can find this on YouTube looking for "Easy wool machine". Do you guys know if the folks at Precious Plastic could come up with a similar machine ? That would be revolutionary ! All comments and ideas welcome! Thx (edited)

I believe @Butte (PP Philippines) was extruding PET and using a blower to blow the filament into a stuffing material. So, there is some hope.

Ben - Precious Plastic Ciledug

I believe @Butte (PP Philippines) was extruding PET and using a blower to blow the filament into a stuffing material. So, there is some hope.

i used a air compressor that ran thru a custom heater powered by the same heaters as in a hot air gun, and then thru a custom made nozzle that worked like a paint sprayer. (edited)

2:11 AM

the blower I could not get to work (edited)

one way we get plastic is via the local government. This is sorted PP plastic, mainly microwave food containers. 534 kilos and we paid about 110usd. We will use it to make new stuff and to torture test our new shredders before they go out to customers. typically we run 50 kilos thru each new granulator, and the new dual shaft machine will get the entire 534 kilos as a test. (edited)

4

Has anyone been able to come up with a tool for taking off the plastic rings under the caps? I think it would be beneficial for me because I'm a part of a club at school that sorts trash at our college's events so a quick way to take those small pieces off instead of taking a whole bottle with me would be good

4:46 AM

Also I think it would be beneficial to provide for consistent plastic donors that have a lot of caps, probably gift it for their hard work providing good sorted clean plastic. And have it as a tool that you could sell to newer donors?

Liri (They/He)

Has anyone been able to come up with a tool for taking off the plastic rings under the caps? I think it would be beneficial for me because I'm a part of a club at school that sorts trash at our college's events so a quick way to take those small pieces off instead of taking a whole bottle with me would be good

Hook knife blades in a utility knife work well: https://www.homedepot.ca/product/milwaukee-tool-50-pc-hook-utility-knife-blades-w-dispenser/1000665429 obviously can hurt yourself with the knife if you're not careful

thank you thank you!

1

5:20 AM

@waterppk do you think this: https://www.amazon.com/HEADLEY-TOOLS-Utility-Removal-Regripping/dp/B081YMYTS1/ref=asc_df_B081YMYTS1/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=459561101720&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=1525866403434254859&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1014517&hvtargid=pla-953355880042&psc=1 would work? seems to maybe be smaller and comes with a handle

HEADLEY TOOLS Hook Blade Utility Knife, Golf Grip Removal Tool Hook...

HEADLEY TOOLS Hook Blade Utility Knife, Golf Grip Removal Tool Hook Knife with Blades for Regripping Golf Clubs, Golf Club Grip Hook Blade Knife Orange (7pcs Hook Blades, 1pcs Hook Knife Handle)

5:21 AM

also 40 dollars less haha

Yeah definitely look around, no idea where you're located so find a local supplier/etc that makes sense for you. The geometry of the blade lets you hook the ring to cut it off

yeahhhh ok! Thanks

I;m in colorado but I'm a college student and don't have transportation so I don't really get around much

5:34 AM

it'll probably just be amazon for me this time

5:34 AM

but I think this'll be good for the next event I do I'll be able to collect all the plastic with a lot more ease

Liri (They/He)

Has anyone been able to come up with a tool for taking off the plastic rings under the caps? I think it would be beneficial for me because I'm a part of a club at school that sorts trash at our college's events so a quick way to take those small pieces off instead of taking a whole bottle with me would be good

I usually cut them out with a small wire cutter or blade cutter or sometimes with a nail clipper (it depends where I am, working in a mechanical factory I usually have a nail clipper with me with which I remove metal splinters from my hands, but in the plastic workshop I often use cutter blade).

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