Life hack: How to weld plastic
Plastic utensils are very convenient. It is lightweight, varied in shape and capacity, and inexpensive. And, it would seem, why repair it? After all, it is cheap and sold everywhere. I went and bought a new one. But there are situations when a broken plastic basin, for example, is needed right here and now. And there is no time to visit the store or the store is located several kilometers away. This life hack is for such cases.
Plastic, from which household items are made, is a universal material. It is easily machined, glued with various adhesives and is fusible. It is its last property that will be used when repairing a broken container.
What will you need?
For repairs you will need a simple soldering iron. The standard sting is removed. Another is made from a suitable metal rod. You can even use a regular large nail. The end of the nail should be flattened on an anvil.
Give it a certain shape. This is the shape of the tip that will be most convenient for further operations.
We weld plastic with our own hands
The repair principle is simple - the edges of the crack are connected by melting the plastic with a soldering iron.The soldering iron tip does not pass along the top, but is slightly recessed into the material in order to fuse a deeper layer.
Carefully, every millimeter of the crack. In this way, the entire damaged area is covered. It is desirable that the layer of plastic restored with a soldering iron be thicker. To do this, a plastic screed is additionally melted over the repaired crack.
After this operation, the surface of the repaired crack is carefully smoothed.
Final processing is carried out using a grinding wheel. Job is done.
Under no circumstances should this work be carried out in residential premises. When melted, plastic releases substances harmful to humans.
