Papercreters: Re: [papercreters] Rookie mixer?

Friday, June 3, 2011

Re: [papercreters] Rookie mixer?

Papercrete is simple, which is why I like it, so keep the method simple.
Use what is available as papercrete is so versatile.

I use my trusty cement mixer sitting alongside an old bath tub. While I'm
working on other projects in the back yard I chuck a heap of paper and
water in the mixer and just let it rotate. I use about a tight 2" stack
of catalogues to a mixer of water. This allows the fibres to be teased
apart rather than being cut or broken and gives an amasingly strong end
product. As the paper is a very wet mix the mixer takes very little power
to keep it turning. I find the wetter the mix the better the fibre
separation into pulp.

I just pour each mix into the bathtub as it's ready. The pulp settles to
the lower half of the water. As the pulp is poured into one end of the
bath the excess water flows out the other end and can be recycled into the
next mix. The bath effectively acts as a slow version of a thicknesser in
a production factory. The resulting pulp mix is scooped out by the
bucketfull as required depending on the project at hand. It is handy to
have a continual supply of pulp for my constant experimenting. Just scoop
and use.

No other aditives are required to make a solid product. As paper is
basicaly wood fibres and clay the finished product comes out as hard as
wood and more rigid than LDF. I pour into molds to make bricks and
decorative panels for interior use and areas protected from rain. I gave
up trying to find a PC mix that will last well in the rain as the 200+
rain days per year we have seems to be just to wet for PC. It pays to
mention however that not adding sand or cement allows more shrinkage,
hence the precast nature of my work.

Wayne

>
> Some have used plaster mixing blades chucked into a drill as a
> mixer. You will probably want to soak your paper well,
> even shred it if possible or at least tear it into strips.
>
> Another simple mixer is made by taking a couple of strips of metal
> maybe 1"x6", crossing them in an "X" and drilling a hole at the
> intersection. Then these strips are bolted onto a piece of threaded
> rod or welded to a rod, which is chucked into a drill. There is a
> picture of something similar here on Amazon.
>
> Both of these work and will give you a decent workout in the
> process.
>
> The best place to read about papercrete is the archives of this
> group, the photo section, and the links. The links will take you to
> other papercrete resources.
> spaceman All opinions expressed or implied are subject to change
> without notice upon receipt of new information.
> http://Starship-Enterprises.Net blog at
> http://Starship-Enterprises.Net/wordpress/
> On 6/3/2011 7:29 PM, Jack Coats wrote: Is there something
> like a 5 gallon mixer that would do if using newspaper? Yes, I am an
> uber-rookie. If you can point me to various places to read I would
> be appreciated rather than waste bandwidth on this list.
> ------------------------------------
>