hi everyone and thank you!! feel free to share this channel using this link https://discord.gg/pBye964 with other like minded precious plastic enthusiasts in your area! also check out this link https://community.preciousplastic.com/map/ for an insight on the people in your area who have added them selves to the "map"
Hi everyone...I am new here but have heard of Precious Plastic for a while. I am a board member of my HOA here in Houston, Tx and our community has wanted to have recycling services but the additional cost could not justify adding the service. However, I believe with Precious Plastic model, I think have a recycling center in our community is possible and with little cost to implement. However, my issue is I can't really find a Precious Plastic community in Houston, TX and I don't think I have the time/capacity to develop the tools (shredders, extruders, etc). What I can provide is the supply and demand for other Precious Plastic workspaces to use a designated spot at our community to collect and shred the plastic and distribute/recycle/sale as they see fit. Any ideas/suggestions?
the problem really is single stream recycling. once you can educate your public about the amazing benefits of recycling plastic domestically its a matter of having the establishments in place to turn around that plastic. hi, my name is ismael i created this server to help precious plastic with organization & im getting ALOT of ideas after reading your post. let me kick the idea around with my wife. will you pm me your number? id love to have a chat with you
Starterkits are packages of information with everything you need to know to set up Precious Plastic recycling spaces and start tackling the plastic waste problem.
Tayo here. In Austin. Seems like everyone else is from Houston. I’m planning to try and buy some machines somewhere, but I think any machine shop that does CNC milling and lathing should be able to prepare the parts, no?
4:58 PM
there’s some circuitry involved but from what I read the controls involved are fairly basic; just a couple sensors and a PID controller
To get well made parts of the right grade might be important, also the process, ie. Laser vs waterjet and the material. The assembly fitting alse requires a lot of skill mechanically. The european model is not spec'd for American steel sizes, hence mayerials are either really expensive, hard to find or not to find. Changing just thicknesses to an aproximaye equivalent causes the entire stackup to be different and likely has to be chased with an updated design. Same goes for the power drive motor. It looks an easy project but has considerable difficulty to make a realngood machine that does not break down often. Do your homework before comitting...
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pyro
there’s some circuitry involved but from what I read the controls involved are fairly basic; just a couple sensors and a PID controller
Hey Tayo. I'm in Austin to. I've been wanting to get started with PP and build some machines for awhile now but am a little overwhelmed. it kinda sucks how difficult the machines are to build if you don't have shop experiences and access to all the tools needed. I definitely want to get something going b/c i'm sure that once everything's up and running there would be a lot of community support here.
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stu_mcnulty
Hey Tayo. I'm in Austin to. I've been wanting to get started with PP and build some machines for awhile now but am a little overwhelmed. it kinda sucks how difficult the machines are to build if you don't have shop experiences and access to all the tools needed. I definitely want to get something going b/c i'm sure that once everything's up and running there would be a lot of community support here.
I've got some shop experience and am planning to try to open up a machine shop as a nonprofit so I may be able to be of help. But it might be possible to raise money for an independent Collection Point or something; I'm sure the city has momentum and funding for that somewhere if we ask the right people
9:29 PM
I want to use the recycled plastic to injection mold things and prototype parts along with a CNC mill and lathe
thats awesome, i dont have any shop experience myself but I'm motivated and willing to help someone who does. Just haven't found anyone that I can team with yet
@pyro you will need to look for a shop with sizable equipment, pending on what machine you are making. If you are looking to open a shop be prepared to have a budget of $40 to $80K or more covered for the machines and initial overhead which then has to be covered with monthly rent unless you are running out of your garage at which time you may not have the power you need to run heavy equipment. Some of the machines can literally be built with a disc grinder and a welder so that might be a start, or fundraising. The V4 shredder is actually fairly complicated and requires larger turning and CNC sheet cutting equipment for blades and spacers and a large enough throught bore lathe to handle the shaft through the chuck for eample. RE: funding there is some information on that on the main server, or you can check our Canadian server, just posted something on that there. Here is the link to our server, there is a recent post zoom video session where we discussed fundraising ang grants (preliminary as we are also looking to work on that) and we created a Fundraising channel and added some ifo from a Fundraiser that was paid in Australia. There also is a link to the template for that and it is Precious Plastic Based - Cool, you or anyone interested is welcome to explore. So we do not ge overwhelmed, here is a 10 uses invite link to our server, would be great to see you there! https://discord.gg/C78e66YMSf (Canadaian Precious Plastic Server Link)
Howdy Texans, my sister lives in Brenham and owns a little soap/lotion shop there. She is looking for a supplier of plastic squeeze bottles. She would rather source locally and use recycled plastics. Right now she gets 100ml squeeze bottles at $0.05 each in bulk. Does this interest anyone? If so, DM to discuss.
Zellim74
Howdy Texans, my sister lives in Brenham and owns a little soap/lotion shop there. She is looking for a supplier of plastic squeeze bottles. She would rather source locally and use recycled plastics. Right now she gets 100ml squeeze bottles at $0.05 each in bulk. Does this interest anyone? If so, DM to discuss.
I don't think I've seen squeeze bottles created by precious plastic I think it's more simple stuff for now. If your sister wants to try sustainable options she could try doing something similar to this soap/hair product/lotion company https://www.plaineproducts.com/ which is basically just have a set amount of bottles and have costumers bring them back for refills and such. Lush does something similar with discounts too I think.
I want a mixed workspace, with the shredder being the first machine I want to have. But I want to offer sustainable event/venue waste collection services. Eventually some other "green" services. Trying to walk before I run... with this analogy I'm still shopping for shoes ♂️♂️
5:34 AM
An old high school teammate introduced me to precious plastic, he's doing what I want to do in Bend OR
Clear Creek Precious Plastic
I am ready to go fullbore with a grant, but I need somewhere to buy the machines in the states complete. Anyone have a lead on this?
Hello! I'm the co President of precious plastic UH. We have 2 shredders, although one works poorly. We do accept donations but I would be interested in helping people shred using our machines! Dm me!
Eric sloat
Hello! I'm the co President of precious plastic UH. We have 2 shredders, although one works poorly. We do accept donations but I would be interested in helping people shred using our machines! Dm me!
Been looking for people to show me this machines and how to uses them. I us 3d printers and have scrap and parts that I don't need anymore. Also it would be nice just to meet other people that do this.(edited)
I've been lurking in Houston, finally made the shift to make plastic my primary focus. Presently I'm focused on building a large in-oven press mold for producing machinable HDPE billets- 14"x20"x7.5". I have the oven and power in place, will source the parts for the mold as soon as transportation issues are resolved. After that, a CNC router, shredder, and wash system. My aim is to machine a ~35lb part every day from a 75lb billet produced every-other day. Were there a reliable supplier of HDPE shred in Houston, I might be happy to forgo scrap processing in favor of patronizing a shredder business, if the costs made sense.
As I recall, UT has a Shredder Pro and an injector or extruder. Do you know if that shredder is single or 3 phase?
Christopher - Unmake Plastic
I've been lurking in Houston, finally made the shift to make plastic my primary focus. Presently I'm focused on building a large in-oven press mold for producing machinable HDPE billets- 14"x20"x7.5". I have the oven and power in place, will source the parts for the mold as soon as transportation issues are resolved. After that, a CNC router, shredder, and wash system. My aim is to machine a ~35lb part every day from a 75lb billet produced every-other day. Were there a reliable supplier of HDPE shred in Houston, I might be happy to forgo scrap processing in favor of patronizing a shredder business, if the costs made sense.
We bought 1500 lbs each (one pallet per) of HDPE black, HDPE natural, PP black, PP natural. They also will compound colorant into the natural if you need a specific color. (Natural is worth more because it can be colored; any recycled color basically gets turned into gray or back in industrial processing, from what I can tell.)
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JohnNephew
We bought 1500 lbs each (one pallet per) of HDPE black, HDPE natural, PP black, PP natural. They also will compound colorant into the natural if you need a specific color. (Natural is worth more because it can be colored; any recycled color basically gets turned into gray or back in industrial processing, from what I can tell.)
It was maybe a month ago? And buying at that volume the prices were $0.65/pound for natural and $0.55/pound for black, plus shipping (which was about 18 cents per pound). We are offering it on the bazar with a healthy markup in 1 kg increments for folks looking to get just a little. My selling price could be negotiable if someone needed a lot more.(edited)
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JohnNephew
It was maybe a month ago? And buying at that volume the prices were $0.65/pound for natural and $0.55/pound for black, plus shipping (which was about 18 cents per pound). We are offering it on the bazar with a healthy markup in 1 kg increments for folks looking to get just a little. My selling price could be negotiable if someone needed a lot more. (edited)
The plan is to machine around 140 35lbs blocks- I reckon I could meet that 5000 lbs minimum order. Ug- that's gonna take up valuable space. Looks like I'll need to put new shocks on the truck.
UH actually has a good amount of equipment. I graduated a year ago but I am still their most active member (not enough support). We have a pro shredder, and a homebrew shredder made by a few students as a capstone project. We also have a Frankenstein double sheet press that has a volume of 15"*30". We also have an extrusion screw that I have yet to tame into anything super useful. Throw in a hodgepodge of secondary equipment, and some shredded pp
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Eric sloat
UH actually has a good amount of equipment. I graduated a year ago but I am still their most active member (not enough support). We have a pro shredder, and a homebrew shredder made by a few students as a capstone project. We also have a Frankenstein double sheet press that has a volume of 15"*30". We also have an extrusion screw that I have yet to tame into anything super useful. Throw in a hodgepodge of secondary equipment, and some shredded pp
Not necessarily underpowered, but because of the way the teeth are arranged and the lack of a sieve some large pieces fall through on the shredder pro. Each subsequent round of shredding tends to break the shred down into smaller and smaller pieces until they are small enough to go into the extruder. We have a 5HP shredder pro in our workspace with a VFD that runs on single phase power and that has been my experience.
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rbercich
Not necessarily underpowered, but because of the way the teeth are arranged and the lack of a sieve some large pieces fall through on the shredder pro. Each subsequent round of shredding tends to break the shred down into smaller and smaller pieces until they are small enough to go into the extruder. We have a 5HP shredder pro in our workspace with a VFD that runs on single phase power and that has been my experience.
Yes exactly. The machine isn't perfect but it is far from underpowered. In always tell people it makes large chunks into smaller chunks. Every re shred lowers the average particle size
I think we've got a good sieve design now. GoUpcycled has one with the right US material thicknesses and they seems to have a good process for it. Might help make further incremental improvements to sizing.
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Eric sloat
Yes exactly. The machine isn't perfect but it is far from underpowered. In always tell people it makes large chunks into smaller chunks. Every re shred lowers the average particle size
Is your group's machine single phase, 3 phase, or 3 phase wed to a phase converter or VFD?
CitSciWorkshop
I think we've got a good sieve design now. GoUpcycled has one with the right US material thicknesses and they seems to have a good process for it. Might help make further incremental improvements to sizing.
I don't have plans or instructions, but I do have our production files that we converted from metric to imperial equivalent, adjusted to fit available material. We've shared parts and files with folks that have helped build some instructions, like the Circular Lab at ASU.
Hi everyone! I am based near Austin Texas and would like to get a workspace started, but I have not decided what kind yet.. Are there any other recyclers besides what is listed on the Precious Plastic map that I can network with? I would love to get some input on whether to start out by shredding, injecting or collecting
Hey! I’m in south Austin! I’d be interested in collaborating. I have a cnc machine (3’ x 3’), a 40 watt laser cutter, and two fdm 3d printers, and one resin 3d printer. I’m happy to be of assistance. I’m interested in building a community. I’m interested in finding someone who wants to build an injector. I can 3d print high heat resistant molds for the injector with special resins. I’m also CAD handy. So I think an injector is my priority #1. Next, if anyone has a shredder around Austin, I’d be happy to give you lots of PETG / pla / asa scraps. @Drew W I’m also new to the area and don’t know what the community here might look like. I’m rarely on discord. Feel free to shoot me a text 6087742734
Hi! I'm a fresh grad mechanical engineer and I'm currently based in Houston. I'd like to get into Precious Plastics, gain some experience, and help out if there's anyone who has a workspace going on in the area. I have experience with CAD (Solidworks, Fusion360, Onshape) but am open to any kind of work for Precious Plastics.
Hi! I'm a fresh grad mechanical engineer and I'm currently based in Houston. I'd like to get into Precious Plastics, gain some experience, and help out if there's anyone who has a workspace going on in the area. I have experience with CAD (Solidworks, Fusion360, Onshape) but am open to any kind of work for Precious Plastics.
Looking at the PP Map- https://community.preciousplastic.com -in South Central Texas, there are more hands-up looking to help than there are projects! Enthusiasm alone is like a lever with no fulcrum. Without demand for shred, developed capacity, such as at the aforementioned University of Houston, is idled. We need a plan to get the local post-consumer wast plastics ecology growing. I reckon that starts with manufacturing.(edited)
A series of tools for the Precious Plastic community to collaborate around the world. Connect, share and meet each other to tackle plastic waste.
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winn1994
Hey! I’m in south Austin! I’d be interested in collaborating. I have a cnc machine (3’ x 3’), a 40 watt laser cutter, and two fdm 3d printers, and one resin 3d printer. I’m happy to be of assistance. I’m interested in building a community. I’m interested in finding someone who wants to build an injector. I can 3d print high heat resistant molds for the injector with special resins. I’m also CAD handy. So I think an injector is my priority #1. Next, if anyone has a shredder around Austin, I’d be happy to give you lots of PETG / pla / asa scraps. @Drew W I’m also new to the area and don’t know what the community here might look like. I’m rarely on discord. Feel free to shoot me a text 6087742734
I will shoot you a text! It is nice to hear from you and others on the fabrication and RND side, I like the logistics aspect and I enjoy being a recycling advocate to my friends and the public
@ChaoticGacha Hey, I am glad you are interested in precious plastic and would like to help. Currently our only workspace is on campus so access for non-students is limited. If you look further up in the thread you can see the equipment that the UH group has at it's disposal. So far we've been a resource for educating students and haven't succeeded in being much else. A lot can be done with volunteers, but launching any type of product, or getting grants (for workspaces, programs, etc.) requires more work than what volunteers, or students have reliably been able provide. I'm interested in helping you find a way that you can access our resources and contribute. Feel free to DM me, and that goes for anyone else here as well(edited)
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ChaoticGacha
Hi! I'm a fresh grad mechanical engineer and I'm currently based in Houston. I'd like to get into Precious Plastics, gain some experience, and help out if there's anyone who has a workspace going on in the area. I have experience with CAD (Solidworks, Fusion360, Onshape) but am open to any kind of work for Precious Plastics.
I'm working on a press mold for large billets of HDPE- circa 75lbs -featuring in-mold annealing for stress relief; the billet is intended for machining. When done drafting the first iteration of the mold in Fusion, would you be willing to review the structure of the design? (I've been resorting to using flash deflection calculators, because I'm basically a cave man. It would be good to have an informed assessment of whether the design is over-built, or is destined to pretzel itself when loaded! Gone are the days when Fusion would kick out a simulation for free, and the unpaid version doesn't even include the workspace.)
I think small operations for like 1/2 hp less could be single phase for the shredder and single phase for the small manual injector, but for the bigger V4 machines I think they are mostly three phase
I want to start a workspace in the Austin area, is there any one out there that would like to collaborate? I want to see if there are any operations that my venture could complement and vice versa
Drew W
I think small operations for like 1/2 hp less could be single phase for the shredder and single phase for the small manual injector, but for the bigger V4 machines I think they are mostly three phase
I want to start a workspace in the Austin area, is there any one out there that would like to collaborate? I want to see if there are any operations that my venture could complement and vice versa
Looking at the PP Map- https://community.preciousplastic.com -in South Central Texas, there are more hands-up looking to help than there are projects! Enthusiasm alone is like a lever with no fulcrum. Without demand for shred, developed capacity, such as at the aforementioned University of Houston, is idled. We need a plan to get the local post-consumer wast plastics ecology growing. I reckon that starts with manufacturing. (edited)
Part of the problem is that everyone wants to help, but not everyone has ideas or posses the creativity to move forward with a manufactured product. I have a stool which I will be working on. My goal is to create reinforced silcone molds for injection. This is how we did it in the bronze foundries. Never had a problem and we were injecting hot wax. I assume it would be similar for melted plastic. Here is a stool I will be creating. I also have a bunch of sculpture I'll be working on. Let's turn those raised hands into helping hands, lol.
https://dribbble.com/shots/11459982-stool(edited)
Please I would like to know , does the diameter of the blades have impact on the size of the output shredded plastics ? Guess it's the case
And what blade diameter is appropriate to be used
12:02 PM
Cuz I belt a first shredder with a blade diameter of 10mm but the output seems to be too big and long to be put in the extruder then after following up here , I had to see more smaller blades on shredders so guess that's the way to produce better outputs
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