Making the Perfect Obaggo Disk

Greetings Obaggo community! I've been wanting for some time to share some tips on how to use your Obaggo properly, and here is my first attempt. Into the future, I will continue to provide helpful tips, do's and don'ts, to help you make the most perfect Obaggo disk that you can.

I should start out by saying, there really is no such thing as the perfect Obaggo disk. In the world of plastic bag recycling, so long as the disk contains the right kind of polyethylene film, no contaminants, and is a nicely compacted encapsulated object, you've got a winner!

But there are some helpful tips for having the most success with your Obaggo, both for the smoothest operation of your Obaggo device, and also to ensure the disks are as valuable as possible in the recycling process.

Choose a good outer-layer

Choosing the plastic bag/film for the outer layer is probably the most important thing you can do to make your Obaggo come out beautifully. The outer layer both holds all of the other bags inside, but also will come into contact with the upper and lower heating plates.

If possible, you should choose a thicker plastic bag, or a plastic bag made from #2 - HDPE (high-density polyethylene), which melts at a higher temperature. Cereal box liners work well, as do the thicker case-wrap over water bottles, or the blue-and-white Amazon Prime shipping envelopes, or the traditional single-use grocery bag (or the thicker re-usable ones). These types of material won't adhere to the heating plates as much as other types of film.

Try to avoid using the thinner, softer plastic film such as bread bags and zip-lock bags for the outer layer. These are often #4 - LDPE (low density polyethylene), which melt at a lower temperature, and can cause excessive sticking to both upper and lower heating plates.

Remove all paper labels and food contaminants

Paper labels, food, staples, and tape are all contaminants for plastic recycling and you should make extra efforts to make sure they aren't in your Obaggo disk. Paper in particular is bad, as it burns at the temperature that plastic is recycled, turning it black and imparting a strong burnt odor. Food residue, such as that from cereal boxes, bread bags, and so forth, are difficult to remove in the recycling process, and should be avoided.

Image of non-recyclable plastic bags and pouches

Only recyclable plastics

Figuring out which bags and film are recyclable and which ones aren't is tough, I know, but it makes a big difference. Which of the above plastic pouches are recyclable? Unfortunately, none of them. And they won't say so on their labels.

Obaggo disks are imprinted with PE - Polyethylene, because those are the types of plastic expected to be in the disk. We have a list of acceptable items on our website (www.obaggo.com/learn). The bottom line is, "when in doubt, throw it out". It's better to err on the side of the disks being closer to pure polyethylene than having too many contaminants. If you make a mistake now and then, it's not the end of the world, but too many mistakes reduces the value of the recovered material.

A good rule of thumb, if the bag was used to keep food fresh for a long time, it almost definitely contains special layers for oxygen barrier, moisture barrier, and with other properties that aren't recyclable with polyethylene. Cereal box liners are an exception, the barrier coating on the waxy plastic bag is OK.

Image of recyclable bags with inks

Turn printed bags inside out (ink side in)

You may be wondering if the printing on the bags makes them un-recyclable. No, inks are not a problem. All the inks tend to blend together in the recycling process, and the colors blend making the resultant recycled material some shade of gray. However, the inks can cause a big problem with your Obaggo. If the bag you're using for the outer layer has printing on the outside, the inks can come off and cause a sticky mess inside your unit (see cleaning suggestions below).

To avoid getting inks stuck to the inside of your Obaggo, it is wise to turn those bags inside-out, so the ink layer is on the inside. The problem is, it is often hard to tell whether the printing is on the outside of the film, or on the inside of film, it will vary from bag to bag. So if you can, use a bag with no inks at all as the outer layer, and put the printed bags on the inside. This is more of an art than a science, sorry. You will get better at this as you get up the puck-making learning curve.

Don’t over (or under) stuff your Obaggo

This is another helpful tip that is more art than science, and comes from experience. The goal is to make a disk that is not too thin (where it could lay flat between two pieces of cardboard and not be noticed), and not too thick (where it comes out of the Obaggo and doesn't even seem to be compressed). The ideal Obaggo will be about 1 to 2 1/2 inches thick when it's done. More or less like a Brie or Camembert cheese.

It's tough to tell you exactly how much plastic to put in. Every plastic bag and piece of packaging film has a different amount of material, and different compression characteristics. For example, a bread bag will compress much more than bubble-wrap, where the air prevents much compression. Wherever possible, wad-up your plastic film in a way that minimizes the trapped air. Pop the bubbles in the bubble-wrap (or have your kids do it).

But choose an amount of material that will fill the compression chamber, not too much and not too little (I know, these instructions are not very specific). You should be able to put in 15 to 20 pieces of average size plastic bags into each Obaggo, less if the plastic pieces are bigger, and more if they are smaller.

Scrunch the bags tightly at the top

Some of you may be asking yourself, "What the heck does scrunch mean?". Well, I suppose it can mean different things, but here I intend it to mean "to draw or squeeze tightly together." You get the best Obaggo disk when the sides of the disk (which are not heated) are nice and tight, not loose and pleated like an accordion. It's a little extra work, but if you scrunch up the open (top) end of your bunch of bags, it can make the difference between a beautiful disk and a very frumpy looking disk. No, it won't make a hill of beans of difference in the recycling process, but you'll feel better about your creation.

Keep your Obaggo clean

If your Obaggo does get inks inside the compartment, on the heating plates or cylinder walls, the best way to clean it is using odorless mineral spirits. Pour the mineral spirits onto a rag and wipe the insides and heating plates down, the inks should come right off. Please don't spray or pour anything directly into the cylinder, or where it can get into the lid. I recommend cleaning the outside with some sort of stainless steel cleaner such as Weiman (also, applied to a rag first).

I hope these tips help! Please let me know if you have any specific questions that I didn't answer here. Just fill out the "Contact Us" form on our website. Happy Obaggo-ing!