Plastic bags are made from the same substance that makes all plastic: petroleum.

Petroleum materials and products have two main disadvantages: Manufacturing produces significant amounts of pollution and the product is not biodegradable.

In other words, it is difficult to produce and almost impossible to get rid of once produced.

According to the Natural Environment website, it takes between 60 and 100 million barrels of oil to produce plastic bags in a year worldwide, and it will take about 400 years for them to fully decompose.

Therefore, it is better to recycle plastic bags.

The recycling symbol (three closed arrows) is found on most plastic products, but this is often a marketing gimmick.

Many bags collected by factories cannot be recycled. Most of them end up in landfills to lie there for the next hundreds of years.

There are, however, biodegradable packages, but not everything is clear on this topic either. Whether they really decompose in nature, or is this just another trick to increase sales, we figured it out.

Plastic – durable, lightweight and cheap material. It can be easily molded into a variety of widely available products.

Production and use of plastic bags has increased over the past 10 years.

Therefore, their reuse, recovery and recycling are extremely important.

Bags made from:

  • polyethylene;
  • cellophane;
  • other polymers.

Polyethylene

Polyethylene recycling has important, since in most cases it is not biodegradable and may accumulate in landfills for decades. At the same time, recycling polyethylene is quite easy to carry out.

Due to its composition, waste plastic can be melted to a liquid state.

As it hardens, it is reconstructed or extruded, making the material reusable.

Therefore, recycling plastic bags can lead to the creation of new, durable products that also are cost-effective and environmentally friendly.

Recyclable polyethylene bags include:

  • for shopping;
  • from milk, kefir, etc.;
  • for garbage;
  • All types of thin and very soft bags are made from low-density polyethylene.

Cellophane

Typically, cellophane is not recycled, although it can be considered a recyclable material from a scientific point of view.

The cellophane bag biodegrades naturally (since it is not plastic). Therefore, for disposal it is better to place it in compost.

In the production of cellophane use carbon disulfide and sulfuric acid which may cause pollution.

Therefore, it is necessary to limit packet emission and make the most of each one.

Products made from other polymers

From films used to make plastic bags, the most common four polymers:

  1. High density polyethylene (HDPE).
  2. Medium density polyethylene (MDPE).
  3. Low density polyethylene (LDPE).
  4. Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE).

The vast majority of grocery bags are made from HDPE.

Characteristics of HDPE:

  • moderate opacity;
  • tendency to bruises;
  • high strength;
  • lack of ability to stretch.

High-density polyethylene bags tear easily, but due to their strength, they are well suited for use as grocery bags, clothing, and packaging.

HDPE resins are less opaque than HDPE, but not as transparent as low-density polyethylene.

Bags made from PESP do not stretch and do not have high strength.

PESP is used in consumer packaging for paper products such as paper towels and toilet paper, etc.

LDPE is used for the manufacture of bags with moderate tensile and strength properties and a high degree of transparency.

LLDPE is slightly thinner than LDPE and has an elastic consistency.

This material usually appears sticky and is used as a stretch film.

All these raw materials are processed at waste recycling factories. More durable plastic cannot be recycled because the material clogs sorting equipment at processing facilities, which leads to its breakdown or shutdown.

Processing technology and equipment

The simplest process for recycling plastic bags includes the processes:

  • collection;
  • sorting;
  • grinding;
  • washing;
  • swimming trunks;
  • granulation.

Production processes vary depending on composition or type plastic.

Most processing plants operate in two stages:

  1. Automatic or manual plastic sorting to eliminate all contaminants from the plastic waste stream.
  2. Melting plastic directly into a new shape or grinding into flakes, then melting before final processing into pellets.

For recycling plastic bags the following equipment is involved:

  • sorting plant;
  • plastic injection molding machines;
  • extrusion machines
  • installations for blow and vacuum molding;
  • molding and thermoforming equipment;
  • other equipment depending on the level of production.

Recycling bags at home

Besides that plastic bags reusable and reusable in the kitchen, at home and in the garden, they can also be recycled at home. The result will be the necessary durable sheets of plastic for crafts and further use.

To do this, you need accumulated plastic bags (at least 100 pieces), regular baking parchment, an iron and scissors, and an oven.

The bags must be pre-washed and dried. It is better to use HDPE bags, and colors and designs don't matter.

Having cut off the handles, the bottom and the side, we fold the resulting rectangles in layers. A layer should consist of no more than 5 packets.

Place a large sheet of parchment on a heat-resistant surface (plywood, OSB), fold the first 5 bags on top and lay another sheet of parchment.

Iron at average temperature ironing the sheets, starting from the middle to the edges. If the sheets are poorly fused, then increase the temperature, if holes appear, reduce it.

Having chosen the desired temperature, iron the remaining stacks of sheets.

Next comes the soldering of the five-layer sheets to each other. We also iron the first two five-layer sheets, but with more high temperature. We apply the next five-layer solder onto the result and iron it again.

Sheets must be added to the thickness you need, applying to to different parties soldered stack (i.e. it is better to turn it over).

The sheets turn out to be quite dense, so there is already a five-layer soldering can be used anywhere you want.

But for higher quality sheets you need them bake in the oven:

  1. Place on a baking sheet parchment.
  2. Place a multi-layer briquette on parchment.
  3. Cover with a sheet of parchment.
  4. Place a baking sheet on top as well.
  5. Place on the top baking sheet a couple of bricks for weight.
  6. Place this in the oven for 30 minutes at 200°C.
  7. We take it out and wait until it cools down without removing the bricks.
  8. When it cools down, check the edges of the polyethylene. They must be homogeneous. If not, place in the oven at a higher temperature of up to 230 ° C.
  9. The resulting briquettes trim the edges.
  10. We use recycled polyethylene.

Video on the topic

We invite you to watch a video about recycling plastic bags:

Conclusion

The goal of recycling plastic bags is to reduce plastic pollution while reducing the cost of purchasing starting materials for the production of new plastic products.

This approach helps save energy and frees the environment from pollution from plastic bags, and reusing polyethylene at home will save the cost of purchasing some items and materials.

In contact with

Millions of plastic bags are used and thrown away in Moscow every year. It turns out that some of them are successfully recycled. Today we will go to such an enterprise and find out how polyethylene is prepared for reuse.


The Moscow Region company "Expert Vtor" does not process all types of plastic bags, but only film, bags, bags, production defects of stretch film (the so-called shrink film) and LDPE.

LDPE is polyethylene high pressure or, as it is also called, low-density polyethylene. LDPE waste can be generated during the direct production of polyethylene film. There is a lot of waste - in stores (packaging bottles, boxes, boxes), at glass factories (from packaging bottles, cans), at distilleries and beer factories (from packaging containers or finished products).

Stretch film is linear high-density polyethylene (LDPE). It can stretch a lot. Due to this property, as well as increased resistance to punctures and tearing, stretch film is used for packaging various goods, in particular on pallets. Stretch film waste is mainly generated and accumulated in warehouses of any size, at customs terminals, logistics centers, etc.

Popular T-shirt bags made of HDPE (polyethylene) low pressure) and “biodegradable” bags, which can be found, for example, in “Azbuka Vkusa”, the company does not recycle. Polypropylene film, PVC film, bubble film, polyamide film, multilayer PVD+PP, PVD+PA films, as well as double-sided two-color films are also not suitable. Also, film contaminated with oils, fats, food waste and pesticides.

The collected polyethylene first goes to the warehouse. Up to 100 tons of film waste can be stored here, naturally in pressed form. At the first stage, the raw materials undergo careful sorting. Stretch is separated from LDPE, and types of films that cannot be processed by the enterprise’s facilities are rejected.

After sorting, bags of a certain color are put into a crusher. In it, using V-shaped knives (this type is also called “dovetail”), the film is crushed to particles of uniform size. The knives are driven by an electric motor.

From the crusher, through a pneumatic conveyor, the so-called “crushed material” enters the sink. In it, with the addition of special cleaning solutions, the “crushed” is cleaned of dust and other non-polyethylene inclusions.

The next stage of processing is agglomeration. The so-called “cooking” takes place in it. The operator loads clean “crushed material” into the working chamber through the loading window.

The raw materials fall along the guides onto the rotating rotor, are crushed by knives and, due to friction against the body and among themselves, are heated to the plasticization temperature. In this case, the entire volume of loaded raw materials becomes like a mushy mass.

When the material becomes homogeneous, “shock” water is added to it, as a result of which the material is sharply cooled and sintered into individual small balls of irregular shape. The agglomerate is dried for some more time at natural ambient temperature and unloaded into prepared containers to go to the final stage. The cooking process itself lasts from 5 to 10 minutes.

The granulation process can be compared to minced meat through a meat grinder. The agglomerate that we obtained at the previous stage is loaded into the extruder hopper.

It is called so because the production of granules is based on the extrusion method - forcing the molten mass through a molding hole.

In general, the “minced meat” from the boiled bags is melted under the action of heaters and pressure created by a rotating screw. The polymer melt is forced through a filter into the rotating extruder head. Already from it come the so-called threads. To cool, they are passed through a water hose and then into knives, where they are cut into uniform granules.

The granules are packaged in clean polypropylene bags, approximately 50 kg each. Special conditions storage is not required, but it is advisable that it be in a dry room. The resulting granules, depending on the composition and color, are sold. Stretch granules of natural color are used for the production of secondary stretch.

LDPE granules of natural color are used for the production of secondary shrink or technical film. Colored LDPE granules are mainly used for the production of garbage bags.

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Plastic bags.

Plastic bags owe their existence to processed oil and natural gas. They have high strength, but are not biodegradable. Less than 60 years have passed since the invention and popularization of the first bags, which means that not a single one of them has yet undergone absolute biological decay under natural conditions. Household bags that have lost consumer properties and found in the natural environment, create sustainable pollution of the entire ecosystem. When they are heated and burned, harmful substances are released that are toxic to the entire ecological system. A plastic bag can be recycled in an industrial environment only after being separated from its contents.

Plastic bags.

Cellophane is a transparent, fat- and water-resistant material made from viscose. The environmental safety of cellophane is due to the high rate of its biological decomposition and the absence of plasticizers, and the glycerin it contains is harmless to living organisms and to the environment in general. These qualities of cellophane revive interest in this type of packaging - when separated from dyes and impurities, it is completely processed by microorganisms and recycling is possible.

Oxo-biodegradable bags.

Their production uses the same polymer raw materials (crushed plastic bottles - flex PET) as in the manufacture of plastic bags, but with the addition of degradants. Additives artificially accelerate the process of biodegradation in the environment into carbon, water, trace elements and biomass under the influence of temperature, ultraviolet radiation and oxygen. The decomposition period of oxo-biodegradable packaging is 1-3 years. Impurities that reduce mechanical strength and promote rapid decomposition of plastic make it impossible to recycle it in its pure form.

Hydro-biodegradable bags.

The basis for their production is food crops - plant polymers obtained from high-starch food crops such as beets, corn, and wheat. They are distinguished by high environmental friendliness at all stages of operation, but low strength indicators and high resource consumption during production. The process of complete biological decomposition into carbon and water in 30-70 days, as a result of decomposition, biomass (compost) is formed. A T-shirt type bag is made from natural material; garbage bags and packaging bags.

Paper bags. Kraft paper bags.

The raw material for their production is wood or waste paper. Have short term services, thereby increasing their quantitative consumption and production costs for electricity and water. The ideal scheme for optimizing production and natural costs includes comprehensive responsibility of the manufacturer and the buyer. Several recyclings of one paper bag are possible - packaging material is made from wood, which, after a period of use, is recycled back into packaging. At the same time, waste paper is processed with less energy consumption, and the paper, having completed its consumer cycle, is decomposed in the soil by microorganisms.

Reusable polyester bags.

They are sewn from synthetic artificial material obtained from recycled polymer waste (recycled plastic). Completely eliminates the need to purchase plastic bags. With daily use, one such bag will last from three to five years and will replace several thousand bags. Products made of polyester are included in the list of materials approved by the state sanitary inspection authorities of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation for contact with food, non-toxic when burning and decomposing. Bags made of polyester are recommended for recycling processing.

Textile bags.

Made from fibers plant origin- jute, cotton, flax, bamboo or recycled materials. Eco-bags have become not just impersonal containers for purchases, but an independent part of the wardrobe. Having completed their consumption cycle, the bags decompose into non-toxic substances.

Each of us can improve the environmental situation; we just need to be careful about our own garbage and throw it away in separate solid waste containers.

flexpet.ru

Plastic bags and film | Separate collection ECOLOGICAL MOVEMENT

Everything you wanted to know about packages and didn’t hesitate to ask.

There are quite a few companies that process soft polymers, but most of them prefer to work with waste produced by large enterprises and look at “household” plastic with distrust. There are good reasons for this: household plastic is often contaminated with substances that unpredictably affect the recycling process, and it turns out that it is more difficult to wash these substances from soft packaging than from hard ones. Companies quite naturally do not want to risk expensive equipment and the quality of entire batches of finished products due to impurities in raw materials and they follow the path of least resistance. Unfortunately, there are still few people willing to invest in new technologies for pre-processing raw materials that reduce the above-mentioned risks.

Companies that do not have strict requirements for raw materials also exist, for example, manufacturers of polymer-sand tiles and other building materials are ready to accept even a mixture of different types of soft plastic.

Types of plastic bags and films.
  • polyethylene (marking 02, HDPE, HDPE and 04, LDPE, LDPE): polyethylene can be of high and low density (low and high pressure, respectively), if there is no marking, then you can distinguish one material from another as follows: thin rustling packaging bags and large some of the “T-shirt” packages are 02; and soft, oily bags, greenhouse, stretch and bubble film - 04.
  • polypropylene (marking 05, PP, PP): most often this packaging is shiny and “crispy”, easily torn, and does not stretch. Cereals, pasta, bread, cookies, etc. are packaged in polypropylene. Opaque wrappers from chocolate bars are also PP with added dye; such packaging is more difficult to recycle, so it is not accepted everywhere.
  • combined plastic (marking type C/xx or 07/other)
  • biodegradable and pseudo-biodegradable (be sure to read about the difference in the separate material!)
Do not confuse plastic bags with “cellophane”!

A huge number of people, out of habit, call any rustling waterproof bags with this word. In fact, today 99.9% of bags and films are made of plastic - polyethylene (HDPE, LDPE) or polypropylene (PP). Cellophane, as reflected in its name, is chemically treated cellulose - that is, it is the closest relative of paper and is labeled PAP (that is, paper, paper).

The cellophane “boom” occurred in the 70s and 80s. Since the early 90s, it began to be replaced by cheaper and easier to produce polyethylene. However, if a cellophane bag quickly decomposes into organic components, a polyethylene bag will decompose in about 150 years.

The question of how much more environmentally friendly cellophane is than polyethylene is ambiguous - after all, to produce a cellophane bag you need not just to combine a couple of molecules, but to cut down a living tree and thoroughly process it. However, due to its benefits in reducing the world's landfill, this material is slowly reappearing on the market. Mixing cellophane with plastic bags and film for recycling is dangerous - cellulose can ignite under conditions in which plastic cannot ignite in principle. In addition, once it gets into the tiles, which are made from shredded bags, cellophane will begin to rot, which is why it will become unusable ahead of time. Therefore, a big request: if you come across a transparent, crisp film labeled PAP, throw it in the general trash.

Article about cellophane on Wikipedia

Where can I recycle plastic bags? (Information as of January 2018)

We were able to obtain reliable information about several procurement companies, both large and small, that are actually involved in the collection, processing (and partly recycling) of soft plastic generated by the population. We hope that the list will be supplemented and expanded, including with your help. Write to us if you learn something new!

The ExpertVtor company procures different types recyclable materials, also accepts and independently processes LDPE bags and film, and some time ago they began to accept PP(5) and HDPE(2) bags, but not any (for details, see the table below10. These bags are sorted and pressed by 'ExpertVtor' and sells to other processors. Where accepted:

  • stationary reception point at the design factory “Flacon” st. Bolshaya Novodmitrovskaya, 36, building 15. (to the right of building 15). At point in work time There is a receptionist, but even without him the point works offline every day and around the clock!
  • at the actions of our movement:

The Tsessor company is based in Elektrostal, near Moscow, and is engaged in the collection and partial processing of recyclable materials, incl. polymer. Accepts any bags/soft polymer packaging, except foil and those marked 3 and 7. During an excursion to the Cessora processing plant, our activists learned that recyclables from the shares are sent to other processors. If the raw materials are pre-sorted by type (and color!), then it has a chance to be more high level processing than to become an additive to polymer sand tiles. Recyclers that Cessor works with: recyclene.ru, mplastika.ru, etc. Where they accept:

  • stationary containers in Elektrostal (see map recyclemap.ru)
  • at the events of our Movement “Separate Collection:

The Ecoline company works under a long-term government contract in the districts of the Central Administrative District and the Northern Administrative District, and states that their containers for separate collection You can fold some types of soft packaging (see the table below for details), but have not yet provided information about what happens next.

Project “Glass” from Butovo. Where he takes it: at rallies in Butovo in the South-Western Administrative District, Moscow

The Sphere of Ecology company at its collection point at Artplay currently accepts only transparent packaging and LDPE bubble film (04). Where: Moscow, Nizhnyaya Syromyatnicheskaya st., 10, building 3 (from 9 to 19, no lunches and weekends)

type of soft packaging

company
ExpertSecond Cessor Ecoline glass Sphere of Ecology
HDPE, HDPE, 02, 2, transparent Yes Yes Yes No No
HDPE, HDPE, 02, 2, opaque Yes Yes ? No No
LDPE, PVD, 04, 4, transparent Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
LDPE, PVD, 04, 4, opaque Yes Yes ? No No
PP, PP, 05, 5, transparent Yes Yes Yes No No
PP, PP, 05, 5, opaque Yes Yes ? No No
PVC/PVC/3 No No No No No
7(other) No No No No No
with labels, price tags No No No No No
dirty/greasy/with crumbs No No No No No
“biodegradable” bags No No No No No
foil No No No No No
non-foil composite plastic (marking type C/xx) No No No No No
How bags and film mixtures are recycled (video)

Recycling of bags and films

The problem of plastic bags and examples of solutions in the world.

The key components in PE bags are oil and natural gas. About 4% of global oil production is spent on their production. At the same time, the average lifespan of a package is 20 minutes, and the average lifespan of decomposition is 100 years.

Few people think that this convenient invention creates a huge number of problems, kills millions of birds and animals every year, and sometimes even leads to floods.

Currently, more than 150 million tons of plastic pollute the world's oceans, the British environmental NGO Ellen Macarthur Foundation reported.

The problem of used bags in the world is already so acute that various measures are being taken to combat environmental pollution from polyethylene, and about 40 countries have already introduced a ban or restriction on the sale and production of plastic bags:

IN European Union On April 16, 2014, a directive was adopted to reduce the number of plastic bags by 50% by 2017 and by 80% by 2019.

Denmark. In 1994, a tax was introduced on the free distribution of plastic bags. After this, demand for it fell by 90%.

Germany. Consumers pay for bag disposal, while retailers and distributors are responsible for collection and recycling.

Ireland. An “ecological” tax has been introduced. As a result, package consumption decreased by 90%.

Singapore, Bangladesh, Taiwan. A complete ban on the use of plastic bags has been introduced. The reason for this was the fact that sewers were blocked and river beds were blocked with plastic. Recall that in Bangladesh, plastic bags were the main cause of floods in 1988 and 1998, which flooded 2/3 of the country.

Tanzania. Here, for the production, import or sale of plastic bags, you can be fined $2,000 or jailed for a year.

Zanzibar. The import of plastic bags is prohibited.

Australia. Since January 2004, the authorities have introduced a ban on plastic bags on Kangaroo Island. By the end of 2008, there was an outright ban on the use of plastic bags in supermarkets throughout the country.

England. The population here has been using biodegradable bags since 2004.

Latvia. The tax on disposable bags is used to reduce their use.

Finland. In this advanced country, stores have machines for recycling and producing new plastic.

China. From June 1, 2008, it is prohibited to produce, sell and use plastic bags with a film thickness of less than 0.025 mm, and free distribution of them in stores and supermarkets will be prohibited.

Italy. Since January 1, 2011, the use of plastic bags has been prohibited in the country. Instead, they use reusable bags or biobags.

Rwanda. Stores across the country have banned the provision of plastic bags to customers. Local police on the street stop those who dare to walk with a package in their hands. Some supermarkets that failed to comply with the law had their trading licenses revoked, according to Environment Minister Drosella Mugorevera.

India. According to the new law, any citizen using plastic bags may face a prison term of up to 7 years or a fine of up to 100,000 rupees, which is equivalent to 2 thousand US dollars. This ban was introduced following the example of South Africa.

Egypt. The ban on the use of plastic bags was introduced in 2008. The authorities decided to take these measures in order to preserve the unique ecosystem of the Red Sea, where plastic bags thrown into the sea are the first to suffer Coral reefs.

France. In 2017, France passed a ban on single-use plastic bags (with a capacity of less than 10 liters and a thickness of less than 50 microns - that's a millionth of a meter) distributed in large supermarkets around the world. This is only part of a large EU program against the use of plastic, where they already understand that it has a significant impact on the environment.

Russia. There are no official restrictions on the use of plastic bags in our country. However, Russia has recently banned calling plastic bags “biodegradable”. Unfortunately, we are still very far from banning plastic bags. Meanwhile, in the capital alone, about one hundred thousand tons of plastic bags are used every year, and barely a third of this amount is disposed of (most often through conventional burial).

What to do?

rsbor-msk.ru

from collection to recycled plastic

Home » Garbage and waste

Recycling plastic bags is a rising trend in solving waste disposal problems, but there is still room for improvement, according to waste management experts. More and more grocery stores are participating in plastic bag recycling programs, which is making a difference. Here are some important facts about recycling plastic bags.

Total plastic recycling volume could increase

About 13 percent of all plastic bags, plastic film and PET bottles were recycled in 2014, according to the State Environmental Protection Agency. Polyethylene film used in a wide variety of products, including e.g. packaging materials. The recycling rate of plastic bags is significantly lower than the same rate for paper and metal or the recycling of plastic bottles. Nearly 60 percent of all metals were recycled in 2014, according to the agency, while more than 50 percent of paper was recycled in the same year.

Recycling plastic bags: Goals. The Association of Plastic Products Manufacturers, which includes the majority of companies producing plastic bags in Russia, has set as its goal a 40 percent recycling rate for plastic bags and films by 2018. Achieving this goal will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save energy to heat 200,000 homes every year, along with an annual waste reduction of 100 million kilograms.

The dangers of plastic bags

One of the biggest dangers of plastic bags is the associated pollution and energy expended in the original manufacturing process, which primarily uses natural gas. By recycling plastic bags at the waste sorting station, along with a variety of other recycled plastic products, the waste management company offers a much cleaner operation. The amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere is reduced by 50 percent, and energy savings reach 70 percent in the plastic recycling process.

Plastic bags are also responsible for hundreds of thousands of animal deaths at sea and on land. Sea turtles are extremely vulnerable because the floating plastic bags resemble jellyfish, the turtles' main source of food. Other marine animals, as well as dogs, goats, cows and other animals on land, have died after eating plastic bags.

Use of recycled plastic

The process of recycling plastic bags and other plastics results in recycled plastic and returns clean plastic pellets used in products ranging from carpet to ski jacket insulation to composite lumber and decking.

meclean.ru

Where to Put Plastic Bags. Options for Solving the Issue

Plastic bags in the kitchen - ordinary thing. They appear in the house with products from stores and supermarkets and simply in the form of packaging. Each of us would like to reduce negative impact polyethylene on environment, and for this he uses cellophane bags for the second, or even the third time. So you have to hide them throughout the kitchen so that you can use them again after a while. But the number of cellophane bags awaiting a second use grows exponentially, and begins to cause irritation. Some cannot withstand the attack of polyethylene and throw everything away en masse. But only to make room for new plastic bags. To bring your nervous system in order, read our tips on where to put plastic bags and how to store plastic bags.

Ecological option.

Almost every city has a recycling collection point. At such points they accept used batteries, plastic, polyethylene, rubber tires, used batteries. To find where to drop off plastic bags in your city, just google plastic collection points on the Internet. Collect all the bags in a large bag (sorry for the tautology) and go donate. In addition to the feeling of satisfaction received from your contribution to the environmental condition of your city, you will receive money from the recyclables acceptors. Maybe small, but still.

Read about the creation, use and disposal of plastic bags on Wikipedia.

Economical option.

Not a single hardware store will offer you an option on how to store plastic bags at home. If you visit online stores, you can choose a suitable option for yourself in which to store plastic bags - a kind of organizer in which plastic bags are placed on top and taken out through a special hole. Such containers from the Internet can be placed on the table, hung on a hook on the work wall, on a door handle, or hung in a niche under the sink. They are made of plastic or metal, have all kinds of shapes and colors. But, each of us knows how to count money. And no one needs additional expenses in the form of purchasing a container for cellophane. Therefore, we suggest choosing for yourself not only where to store plastic bags, but also how. It is convenient to store plastic bags in:

  • paper napkin packaging. Those who do not use such napkins can successfully use a tea box. In general, any cardboard, metal, or plastic box will do. The compact size allows you to keep this container in any kitchen drawer. To ensure maximum convenience, you can cut a hole in the top of the box.
  • plastic bottle. Cut off the bottom and neck of the bottle (determine the required volume yourself). Then put the bags in it and use it with pleasure. Craftswomen and creative individuals can decorate the bottle with decor. This design is also convenient because it can be attached from the inside of any kitchen door.
  • continuing the topic plastic bottle, containers for liquid detergent or washing powder are suitable for the role of bag storage.
  • knitted bag. It costs nothing for needlewomen to crochet or knit a cellophane storage bag from leftover yarn. If you have an old knitted item in your house that no one is going to wear, then you can make storage for cellophane bags from the sleeve of the item. Stretch a lace or braid on both sides of the cut sleeve and tighten. The result will be something like candy or sausage (whatever you like).
  • embroidered doll-bag. To make such a doll, we use our imagination and take a creative approach to the storage of cellophane. IN finished doll, the sewing pattern for which is available on the Internet, we place a capacious bag under the skirt. We will store the packages in this bag. To prevent them from falling out, we tighten the bottom of the bag with an elastic band.
  • knitted bag made of plastic bags. If you know how to knit, then instead of yarn to create bag storage, use cellophane. This, by the way, relates to the question of where plastic bags can be used.
  • bushing from paper towels or foil. If there are not too many bags, you can hide them in a cardboard sleeve left over after using paper towels or foil. You can store these sticks with plastic bags inside anywhere.
  • spice basket in packaging. In such a container, which is a colored basket, it is convenient to store folded large bags in a vertical position, having previously tied them with a rubber band.

How to compactly fold plastic bags.

We have decided on the type of cellophane storage. However, we all understand that if you try to stuff all the bags in a crowd, the capacity suffers. But if you fold the bags compactly, then many more bags will fit into the organizer or storage bag. Folding them in a neat order will not only increase the number of bags in the “bag storage”, but also align them.

  • triangle folding. Level the bag on a flat surface. Fold it in half lengthwise and then a couple more times. Holding the bottom edge of the bag from the fold, bend it into a triangle. Next, we continue to bend the triangle to the very top. Such a tiny triangle takes up little space.

If you are folding a large plastic bag with handles into a triangle, then tuck the handles of the bag into the triangle. Then they won't hang out.

  • rolling into a tube. We flatten the bag on the table, and then fold it several times to form a strip. We wrap the strip around two fingers, rather than using the wrapped handles of the bag to secure the bag. To do this, we wrap the handles around a ring from a bag.

We simply fold large, rigid bags in half or three. This will be the solution to the problem of how to fold plastic bags into a box. Any of these methods of folding cellophane allows you to identify torn, dirty or old bags during the folding process and dispose of them.

How can you use plastic bags?

Giving cellophane bags a second life is not only possible, but also necessary (we don’t keep them in vain, do we?). Plastic bags can be used for:

  • cleaning up after pets while walking outside. When going for a walk with your four-legged pet, put several plastic bags in your pocket to use as gloves when cleaning up after the animal.
  • work in the garden plot. By putting such a plastic bag on your palm, you can safely dig into the ground without fear of getting your hands dirty.
  • garbage. Do not buy special garbage bags, but use used bags available in your house.
  • protect brushes from drying out. After working with paints and varnishes, wrap the brush in a bag to prevent it from drying out.
  • sending parcels by mail. Wrap the parcel or parcel in bags, then the recipient will receive the item or thing you sent safe and sound.
  • insulation of plants in the off-season. Many people know how dangerous spring frosts are. Therefore, you can cover the seedlings with bags at night. A kind of mini-greenhouse will protect young sensitive plants.
  • knitting bags and rugs. Colored polyethylene rugs would be appropriate in the hallway. And in a plastic bag you can not only store old bags, but also go with it to the grocery store.
  • repeat purchases. Everything is clear here.
  • visits to medical institutions. Plastic bags can be used instead of shoe covers. By wearing bags on your shoes, you will save on shoe covers. You still have to throw away this and that.

What can replace plastic bags.

You can reduce the amount of cellophane in the kitchen and in the house by using the following instead of bags:

  • paper bags.
  • translucent bags made of tulle.
  • large shopping bags made from environmentally friendly materials. Such bags are sold in shops and supermarkets near the cash register.
  • foil. Wrapping sandwiches and other foods in foil is much more convenient.
  • cling film. Similar to the previous point.

As practice shows, you can’t do without plastic bags, but it’s possible to reduce the amount of plastic you use and tidy up your kitchen.

Video about how to conveniently store packages

Plastic bags and film

Additional Information:

Types of plastic bags and films.

  • polyethylene(marking 02, HDPE, HDPE and 04, LDPE): polyethylene comes in high and low density (low and high pressure, respectively). If there is no marking, then you can distinguish one material from another as follows: thin rustling packaging bags and most “T-shirt” bags are 02. Soft, oily bags, greenhouse, stretch and bubble film are 04.
  • polypropylene(marking 05, PP, PP): most often this packaging is shiny and “crispy”, easily torn, and does not stretch. Cereals, pasta, bread, cookies, etc. are packaged in polypropylene. Opaque wrappers from chocolate bars are also PP with added dye; such packaging is more difficult to recycle, so it is not accepted everywhere.
  • combined plastic(marking type C/xx or 07/other)
  • biodegradable And pseudo biodegradable
  • polyvinyl chloride(PVC, PVC, 03)

Where can I recycle plastic bags?

We do not accept all types of packages. Accurate current list look at our instructions!

  • bags: packaging, T-shirts, ziplock, for shopping
  • film: bubble, greenhouse, stretch
  • spandbond bags
  • "sugar" bags and similar bags, bags
  • foamed polyethylene
  • with markings:

02, HDPE, PVD, C/02, C/HDPE
04, LDPE, HDPE, C/04, C/LDPE

How to return bags and film?

  1. independently to the collection point of the Collector
  2. order a Collector
  3. at the rallies of our movement, from which we take it to the Collector’s warehouse

We do not accept for processing from individuals:

  • “biodegradable” plastic;
  • polyvinyl chloride (PVC/PVC/03);
  • plastic 07.

On this site we collect bit by bit information on where to submit rare species recyclables and things. We keep the data up-to-date and check reception points if they cause you mistrust.

Most of our activities are supported by volunteers, but in order to structure the information, monitor its updates and maintain the operation of the site, we need daily work content manager Please, so that we can continue to provide up-to-date information for you!