One way of upcycling plastic waste is to shred it and melt it to mold it into new things. One way to do this at home is to use a paper shredder to shred the plastic and then melt it in a toaster. Please note I used PLA plastic which is relatively nontoxic when melted. HDPE will also work. Here are the steps to recycle your plastic waste at home.
- Collect Materials
- Shredded Plastic
- Toaster Oven
- Toaster Safe Mold
- Heat Resistant Gloves
- Mask
- Sandpaper
- Pour plastic into mold evenly
- Make sure not to add too much or it will not melt evenly
- Set the toaster to the melting temp of your plastic
- Make sure you are using a non-toxic plastic like PLA or HDPE.
- The melting temp of PLA is 180 to 220 degrees celsius (356 – 428 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Put the mold with the plastic into the toaster and start toasting
- Check periodically
- When the plastic is evenly melted take it out and let it cool
- When cooled sand down any rough edges
- You might want to rinse off any plastic remains when you are done sanding.
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