Plastic block press showing all parts and measurements.
(PHOTO) Final
plastic block under 3,400 pounds per front wheel weight. The block
compressed about three quarters of an inch with the weight on it. The
block returned to its original shape when the weight was removed.
Turn low value plastic trash into valuable building blocks with a $300 homemade press.
December
15, 2010, was a big day for Harvey Lacey, the maker of a hand-operated
press that turns plastic trash into building blocks. That was the day
Harvey made his first plastic block. His website at RecycledPlasticBlockHouses.com chronicles his efforts to make a block press and plastic building blocks.
Harvey
says, “I see a solution to two problems facing us today. Plastic
pollution is a worldwide issue. Another worldwide issue is affordable
shelter. This block addresses both of those issues. It takes trash
plastic and makes it into an affordable alternative building material.”
Harvey
goes on to explain, “One of the things I’m trying to do with the block
press is make it like someone would under more difficult
circumstances. So I’m using common tools, no fancy machine shop lathes,
sheet metal shop presses, etc. I’m also trying to use scrap stuff found
around the shop. So far the only thing I’ve purchased for the block
press is the three foot by one inch ACME thread rod and nut, $69.00 with
shipping.”
Basic facts: The inside width of the press is eight
inches, which is also the standard width for a building block made of
concrete. Final block size is 8″x8″x16″. Four 12 gauge galvanized wires
hold the plastic block together. A simple tool is used to cinch and
twist the wire tight while still in the press. Each block weighs six to
ten pounds depending on how much plastic and pressure is added. They are
difficult to compress or distort. Horizontal wire around each block
facilitates attaching plaster mesh. Tied together with wire, and braced
with masonry reinforcement and rebar the plastic blocks create a very
strong wall ready for plaster inside and out.
Half
blocks are used at corners and at window and door openings. Cutting full
blocks without losing the integrity of the block is not possible, so
half blocks are a necessity. These are made by inserting a half block
plug in front of the ram and then applying the same method and pressure
as full blocks.
Harvey believes this block can be produced in
developing regions under the worst circumstances. In other words, it can
work anywhere there’s sufficient plastic waste.
Although most
any type of plastic could be used, more valuable grades of plastic
(especially #1 and #2) are best recycled so the material can be used
again. Number 5, 6 and 7 grade plastic is plentiful, has low value, and
seems most appropriate for making plastic blocks. For comparison,
today’s spot price is $420.00 a ton for number one and two plastics,
$150.00 a ton for three through seven. However, most facilities
can’t or won’t process Styrofoams and film plastics like shopping bags.
Those are shipped to the landfill. But they work great in Harvey’s
plastic blocks.
The recycled plastic building block
is just one factor in what should be a holistic approach to not only
recycling but sustainable building as an industry. Plastics that have
value as recyclables should be recycled when economically
possible. Recycled plastic building blocks
aren’t just an answer to housing for the third world. They’re an
opportunity for changing the lives of those that build the shelters
along with those that live in them. It would be best if it is presented
as a new industry providing jobs and opportunities for
entrepreneurships.
Recycled plastic blocks are perfect for
places such as Haiti, where manufactured building materials are
extremely expensive (far higher than the U.S.) and must be imported.
Plastic blocks are strong, waterproof, rot proof and insect resistant,
all very important qualities in tropical climates. There’s an abundance
of plastic trash available in Haiti, free for the taking. Gathering the
plastic would help clean up the country and provide jobs. Plastic blocks
could be used to create permanent housing that’s designed to fit the
local culture and their immediate needs. And with adequate tensile
reinforcement, concrete foundation and bond beams, plaster mesh and
plaster the structures could be designed to withstand earthquakes and
hurricanes.
Harvey’s not the first person to see the enormous
potential of turning trash to cash. Peter Lewis, the original inventor
of recycled plastic blocks, is an architect and aerospace engineer in
Dunedin, New Zealand. His company, Byfusion Technology, www.byfusion.net sells industrial machines that clean, chop and press recycled plastic into numerous products, including building blocks.
Peter
Lewis has been helpful in sharing his ideas to speed along Harvey’s
project. I’ve never met Peter, but I was very glad to see his
willingness to help this cause. Peter spent hundreds of thousands of
dollars to patent plastic blocks in August 2002, and millions since then
to develop industrial scale equipment. The Byfusion machine is
manufactured in New Zealand and can be exported in shipping containers.
Their mass production techniques are appropriate for many areas of the
world, including turning the massive plastic garbage patches in the
oceans into useful products. See Great Pacific Garbage Patch for details on the extent of the problem.
While
Byfusion Technology is perfectly suited for certain situations,
Harvey’s block making process is taking a decidedly different approach,
one best suited for less developed countries where modern materials are
not affordable. Harvey’s focus is on simple, low-tech solutions.
Virtually anyone with access to plastic trash, no matter how poor, can
start generating an income and making blocks for their home with his
machine. And even though his plastic blocks aren’t as uniform as
Byfusions’, they are certainly adequate for building simple houses.
To
work in impoverished areas, the machine has to be low cost, simple to
use, easy to make, durable and create a product that can be used by low
skilled laborers with a consistent degree of success.
Another
interesting aspect Harvey is using is an open source process to help
spread his ideas as quickly as possible. Anyone can freely copy and use
his press design. Free drawings are now available on his website. All
Harvey asks is that if anyone does develop an improved version to please
let him know about it so the improvements can be shared with others.
Another
goal is to create a cottage industry process that’s similar to the one
used to produce compressed earth blocks (CEBs) in many countries. Each
village or town could be making plastic blocks where it is not cost
effective or practical to send low value plastic trash to big cities for
processing.
Harvey‘s goal is to see his
machine manufactured and distributed everywhere alternative housing is
needed. He also wants to see another model of this machine that is
automated for use in the industrialized world. For those who can afford
the extra cost, it would not be difficult to modify a log splitting
machine to greatly increase output.
At last, there’s a
method for 100 percent recycling of plastics. The valuable plastics
need to be separated and recycled. The rest of it needs to go into
useful products such as building blocks — 100 percent recycling at its
best.
Harvey Lacey Wants to Rebuild the (Third) World One Bale of Recycled Plastic at a Time, by Robert Wilonsky, The Dallas Observer Blog
Photos courtesy Harvey Lacey
