Large Bowl Made From Trash Polyethylene Plastic - Plastic Bags

One great way to eliminate the 90% of plastics that are not recycled - and 30% of which is not even collected is to make products from the waste. Make products that EVERYONE needs - bowls, Chairs, tables, roofing and fence posts! And create processes that ANYONE in the world can use that are safe and require the minumum of equipment and skill. wastefree23.org is offering training to communities world wide on how to easily and quickly make the bowl in this instructable,

Together 8 billion people CAN pick up everysingle piece of plastic and recycle it:)!

Supplies

To build a large bowl from trash / waste polyethylene bags and wrappers you will need a heat press or some way to heat the plastic. You can use your oven and heat to 350f. to build a heat press the instructions are here..cost is less than $300 USD for materials https://wastefree23.org/building-a-heat-press-procedure-and-instructions

Teflon sheets - the type used for printing tee shirts

Trash plastic - can be shredded or as is, approximately 3 pounds to make a thick wall bowl or 2 pounds for a thin wall bowl. IT does not need to be rinsed or super clean. the goal of wastefree23.org is to make valuable products for the lowest cost as fast as possible to ellminate trash and waste - as well as provide needed products to the 2 billion people in the world who lack basic housing, furniture, and the money to purchase it.

an exterior mold - an existing metal or ceramic bowl is ideal...if you use a plastic bowl the bowl will likely deform as the plastic from the heat press is HOT and cools very slowly

Step 1:

Place teflon on the bottom heater in the heat press. Cut a pattern for the sides of the bowl. Typically an arch as shown. there will be two sides on this bowl with 2 seams. This will allow a flat piece of plastic to take a curved shape. The pattern is not required but if not used or trimmed the folds in the plastic will rise above the either plastic when the bowl is complete

Step 2:

place the loose or shredder plastic in the shape of the pattern on top of the teflon in the press. some plastic outside of the pattern is fine. the plastic is easy to trim when hot, the excess plastic to the bottom of the bowl will strengthen the bottom when the bowl is made. cover with Teflon and close heat press. depending on the temperature of the heat press it will take 5 to 10 minutes for the plastic to become hot and bond completely.

Step 3:

If you pattern was an S like the one we used then you can cut the plastic into to C's or arches when the plastic is hot and in the press. It is easy to cut.

Step 4:

Take one arch from the heat press and place in the mold and press firmly. Remove the Teflon on the sides so they are exposed for the next arch. Take the 2nd arch and place on the other side of the mode and press the overlapped area together. Use a hot air gun or a clothes iron to add a little more heat to the overlap then press to bond.