Firstly, each newspaper should be slightly shredded
by hand. Using electricity seems a bit self defeating. I had put the papers in whole with a view to later mashing. Secondly, the process of pressing down on the two levers becomes very painful, as the angle the leavers end up at is an awkward 45 degrees. Thirdly, disengaging the mould from the frame which holds the handles is very awkward and can take some time. Fourthly, you have to get quite a bit of space off the ground to place the soggy briquettes on once they have been disgorged from the moulding frame. You then have to find somewhere for them to dry. Since the ground was quickly turning very wet and muddy, a bit of hard standing would have been useful. Fifthly, it is not a quick process. I would think we will have to wait a while for the briquettes to dry. Sixthly, bearing in mind that each briquette takes between 3 to 5 painful minutes to produce the heat output and burn rate are important.
Recycling paper or making briquettes?
Which is better: recycling all your paper, or soaking it and making briquettes to burn and so reducing the need for heating oil deliveries? Every time we put out a kilogram of paper to be recycled we are effectively saving 3-4 kilowatt hours of energy - and 30 litres of water from being used to make new paper out of virgin timber, according to environmental charity WasteWatch. That's the potential saving. But what it doesn't say is how much energy it takes to turn that old paper back into paper ready to be reused. (It's also worth bearing in mind that 51% of our recycled paper is sent abroad for processing.) Soaking, processing, and transporting recycled paper is clearly an energy-intensive business. Plus, the process isn't infinite: paper can only be recycled about five times before the fibres degrade beyond use. The briquette makers you sometimes see advertised in newspapers (including this one) do involve quite a bit of effort to use. You need to shred and soak the waste paper first, then, once the briquettes are made, you need to store them so they can dry out. It is estimated that one broadsheet (or smaller, post-broadsheet) newspaper will make a briquette that will burn for about an hour. Broadly speaking, this is equal to one kilowatt hour of energy. The Centre for Alternative Technology (cat.org.uk), which itself sells briquette makers, says "taking small amounts of paper out of the waste stream for use as fuel will make no real difference to the volume of paper we recycle, but it would not make sense to do so on a mass scale". The UK's high level of paper recycling- about 80% of newsprint is made from recycled paper - is a good example of something approaching "closed loop" recycling, it says. "In deeply rural areas where doorstep collection of newspaper is not carried out and the local recycling centre is some distance away, then it makes sense to use waste paper on site," it says. "Here, the logmaker is probably the better option. But where an established doorstep collection exists, then it makes sense to use this efficient recycling route, which guarantees that the paper will be reused."
What to do What to avoid Scrunch each page individually. Make a Don't waste time and Prepare the paper dry pile on the effort shredding ground next to you. Put the scrunched paper into a bucket Don't wait for days, and cover it with or even hours. You water, or start with don't need the paper Soak the paper half a bucket of to fall apart. You just water and stuff the need it to be wet and paper pieces into it. pliable. Less water, same effect. Place the open brickmaker on grassy, flat ground in your garden. Push Don't stress. Just do each little bundle of it. If your first paper in firmly and attempt falls apart, Pack the brick flatten it a little so you'll have little fire maker that the other pieces starters and more overlap and experience to pack interlock. They need the brick maker more to be able to 'grab' effectively next time. onto each other when the water is pressed out. Position the metal plate over the top of the wet paper. It should rest just Don't catch your within the black fingers between the metal frame. Then bars. Use one hand, using only ONE hand, Place the cover on hold the handle, and raise and position and prepare to move each bar the metal cross bars. press. individually until you There's a right way are confident you and a wrong way for know how to cross the bars to cross. the bars safely.. They should rest 'smoothly' together. If not, alternate their position. Press the water Use your FOOT - not Don't jump, bash or out. your hands. Put on a break the brick work boot or strong maker. Just step down
Process
Remove the wet
brick
Dry the bricks.
Burn them!
What to do What to avoid shoe then position firmly and evenly your foot directly where the bars cross. over the cross. Increase the pressure Gently increase the with your foot, then pressure to squeeze release it, gently the water from the forcing the water out. paper. Open the cross bars If the water is not and remove the running freely frame that holds enough onto the your new brick. grass below the brick There is enough maker, it might pool flexibility in the base on the top. Just pour plate to stretch it out the water off and a little as you release press with your foot the brick. Hold the again until the brick base plate vertically has compressed into and release the brick a firm and solid onto its side to rest shape. on a flat surface. You can make these paper bricks at any Don't panic if you time during the year, need to make more but obviously they during winter. Stack will dry faster in your wet bricks near summer. I start your fire - with gaps making mine in of air circulating summer and stack between them and them in their own they'll dry within a 'wood stack' under day or two. cover when they are dry. Never underestimate the warmth and efficiency of a paper It is easy to release a brick made this way. small amount of You don't need to fill paper to act as the a wood-burning stove 'lighting point' on with paper bricks the these bricks as you way you'd stuff it with lay them out to dry . sheets of newspaper. When starting a new Burn one or two fire, use a paper bricks at a time with brick instead of fire your vent almost lighters to ignite your closed and you'll wood. quickly learn how effective they can be. :)
Process
What to do
What to avoid
Print out this table of instructions to help you make your first paper bricks ... then scrunch it up and add it to your paper mix after you've comfortably mastered the process.
ABSTRAK PROJEK SEM
DISEDIAKAN OLEH, NUR AQILAH SYAKILAH BINTI NORAZLAN MJ165393 406 NUR ARINA AMIRA BINTI HARIZAL MJ165390 407
