| RECYCLING SOURCES
https://www.greendisk.com/gdsite/default.aspx – is a great company that recycles technotrash. Worth checking out!
http://www.reducereuserecycle.co.uk/where_can_I_recycle/cds_and_dvds.php
Recycle them. For instance the
city of Glendale, CA, takes cds in the recycling bins. However the jewel
cases are not recyclable through the city system. Please check your own municipality.Kirt
General Does anyone know the
best adhesive to use for sticking CD Roms? In response to this I have
received the following:- “In
Minneapolis there is a yearly parade of art cars – old cars transformed into rolling
masterpieces. One guy covers his car with CDs and uses the glue one would use for
applying fake fingernails (the professional glue, not the kind in the drugstore kit).
He says that nail glue was the most permanent adhesive he had found.”
Thanks to Jennifer Wegiarz for
this useful information as well as another suggestion for using CDs –
not that I am
suggesting you stick them all over your Dad’s car!
Apparently the trick to cutting CDs is to warm
them with a hair dryer and then use utility kitchen scissors. Denis
Vermeirre .
I would avoid melting or too much
cutting. I do believe there are toxins involved. Anon SUGGESTED
USES:-
Jewelry / jewellery: You can just cut any shape from
a CD very carefully and use it as a necklace, a pin, a
barrette…this look is very futuristic and all your friend will
love the cool reflection effect. (Maybe you have to file the edges
to make them smooth)Christine - I have stuck several CDs low
down to a fence in a shady part of my garden which reflects sunlight
onto the normally shaded flower bed. The extra sunlight makes plants
that usually grow in full sun to thrive in the shady area.
Jenny
Glue a lid of an old sports bottle lid (the one you
open by pulling the valve, I forget what’s it called) or a
dish-washing detergent lid to the hole of a CD. Next, you blow a
balloon with air then, trying not to lose any air, pop the balloon
onto the lid. Place the hovercraft on a smooth surface, a glass
table is good. A great toy for kids.
Eya Farev
Catherine
Singleton Sean Shrum
To make a photo display, you will need approximately
3 and 1/2 yards of decorative ribbon between 2 and 3 inches wide.
Cut a 30 inch length of ribbon and attach a bow and a hanger to one
end and cut the other at a slant. Glue 3 CDs to the ribbon, shiny
side out and equally spaced . Glue photos to the CDs for vertical
hanging. These look especially nice on a very narrow wall section.
Inetia C.
Chase
My kids love their shiny fish they made. Take 2 cds and some colored paper. Cut lips and a tail out of the colored
paper and glue to the label side, glue label sides together, fan fold a 4 x 6 inch piece of colored paper and slide it through the
center hole for a fin, attach a googily eye and hang with fishing line.
Nancy
Clanton
- Drill 4 holes in the edges of several
CDs. Use wire to tie them together so they create a sheet. Hang
these sheets of CDs from the ceiling and they create a partition,
yet light is shared between the divided sides.
Bob
- Cds or dvds drill a very small hole top and bottom of the cd or
dvd, add magazine photos or your own printed pictures; tie strong
cord or string linking three cds or dvds and hang up. Now you got
your own mobile picture frame also good for reflecting sunshine into
a room.Steven Moran
- I put CD’s on fence posts and around
the chicken coop to deter hawks and other birds who would like a
chicken dinner. The shiny reflection works like a distraction as
they fly over. I put CD’s on fence posts and hang them from trees to
deter deer from the garden.
Dar Brandon
- Use as scrapers when cleaning pots and pans. Use them as-is, or
cut them into any desired shape to best fit your pots and pans.
Keitharoo
Marybeth Norton says use cds as a hanging mobile. Paint cds
add stick on decorations cut hole in them put string or wire and
make a hanging mobile. Cleverer way to scare birds!!
John
says – use the cds to scare away not only birds, but rabbits
too. Pesky things eat at your carrots and other fruits/veggies.
- First, stick 7 or 9 unwanted
cd’s to each other with a glue (so that the written label won’t be
seen). Make two more sets in a similar manner. Now stick one end of
a cd set (which will be a side) to the end of another set which will
be the base of the rack (L-shaped). Then stick one more set which
makes the other side wall.Make 3-4 “U” shaped sections as above. Now glue each of these sections on top
of one another. Finally you have got a small jewellery rack. Note– make
sure that you support the sides of cd’s whilst gluing and until the
glue has dried to keep them firm make the rack steady.
Atson
Thomas
I used a cd to make a
switchplate for my daughter’s room. It’s really pretty and modern. I
just traced her old switchplate on the cd to mark the switch and
screw placement. Then I used a drill to make all the holes and
cleaned up the switch hole with a dremel tool sander.
Mari Rick Colvin
Make a lovely original
earrings tree. Drill small holes in a stack of cds; Using a large
dowel (which fits the center of the cds), score the dowel at three
inch intervals); Glue the dowel to a round or square wooden base.
Spray paint the dowel and the base. Slide the cds over the dowel,
inserting into the grooves. Voila a cool looking earrings tree.
Lise Lirette Ernest J.
Theriot
Casey Z.
I am in the
process of using some old cds to create a Christmas tree. The
bottom row would be as wide as you wish and then proceed upward as
you eliminate a cd from each row. To prepare the backside,
glue two cds together so you don’t have any unpleasant labels
showing. Add some bows and Christmas balls, hang a shiny bow
at the top to use as a hanging device and enjoy.
Donna The Microsoft DevNet
packages come quarterly in sets of over 15. Each is a different
jewel tone so it had a real appearance of Christmas decorations
during the daylight hours. The view at night was even more
spectacular. I was concerned about the reflection, too, but the
headlights hit the CDs randomly hung and often moving with the wind.
They were visible from a block away. I met the school bus to
let the children know that the software was old and boring – just in
case they were tempted. Setting the CDs in cement
for garden step stones was not as successful. They did not retain
the holographic effect evenly and looked mottled or just like plates
of plastic.
“Showey”
Pappy Price
Cut a CD in half with old scissors you
do not mind dulling.
Then cut one of the halves in half. You
will use 3/4 of it to make one angel.
Using 4 1/2 inch paper doilies ($1 for
100 at DollarTree), fold one in half with a little larger half on
one side and glue it over the half CD with the larger half over the
printed side of the CD. Use the plain area of the CD as the front.
Then fold another doily in quarters and
fit it over the 1/4 CD and glue it on.
Looking at the photo, glue the
2 parts of CD’s together at the angel’s waist.
Using a 1 inch mirror, button,
sequin, seashell, anything you have that is close to that
size- as her head, glue it on with just the bottom touching
the top as shown.
Loop a ribbon for her hanger
and glue it on the back of the head.
Tie a matching bow at the
waist.
Cut a tiny silver or gold piece
of tinsel, etc. as the halo and glue it on.
I like to use the long garland
that has a wire in it and has the loose stars on it for the
halo. You only need about 1/2 to 1 inch for the halo.
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She
shines so pretty under the Christmas lights, she is easy to store
flat, and she is very inexpensive to make. You can also use them to
decorate gifts. I make them with pastel ribbon for a baby gift
decoration. I take them to hospitals inserted in a card for a sick
person. I put them in with a graduation or birthday gift.
Lainey
Lee. Heather
Use
as a candle coaster. With shiny side up place votive or small
candle in the hole. Candle will burn and make a cool reflection.
Also,
put two cds, shiny side up on the rear (bottom) with duct tape.
This will serve as a warning!
Todd and
Amanda Anand Ghurye Carlos
Saul
Draw or trace any design onto the printed side of the
CD. Place the CD on a piece of marble. Using an electric
stencil cutting tool, cut out the design from the CD. The marble
seems to keep the tip of the tool a bit cooler so that cut edges are
very smooth. If you want a design with “looser” edges hold the CD
in your hand while using the stencil cutter (be very careful though).
I have used this technique to make lapel pins as gifts
and to create ‘branches’ which I glued to a 24-in cone (on which I had
strung mini-lights) to make a Christmas tree which I then donated to a
local charity for their Showcase of Trees fundraiser – it won a ribbon.
Tina
van de Wal.
Robbie
Hay
Carol
Molina Anon (I
wonder why!!!) Jon
Pocock
Shani
Lawrence
Laura
Eccles Nicole
Jean
Gormally
CD
Wall – drill holes at 3, 6, 9 and 12 o’clock and attach together with
cable ties in a large poster size lattice. Put nylon string
through the top ones and hang as a picture.
If
you have a dark work space and limited light, stick them to the sides
and under anything hanging over the desk and then aim the light source
at them. You end up with way more light than before due to the
reflection.
Clara
Phillips
anonymous
We do not have many
decks in the U.K. but this suggestion may be useful for preventing house
martins from nest building on the outside of houses. I have
been taken to task with regards this suggestion. Terry Jones
points out that these little birds travel thousands of miles from
Africa, eat tons of insects and cause no harm. If the droppings
bother you nail a piece of plastic at right angles to the wall beneath
to catch them and wipe it off each year.
A really
original suggestion received from Jayne Grant.
They would
make an excellent marker for an adventure trail. Hang the CDs
from trees, fences, signs etc. to make a trail for others to follow
behind you. This would be especially effective at night,
somewhere dark, where torches would have to be used to see the
reflective surfaces. Mark the other side of each CD with
a letter from a phrase or name and when the kids following the trail
get back to base they can arrange the CDs to find the answer to the
quiz.
I am
sure this could be adapted to treasure trails for adults etc. – thanks
Jayne!
They make a tool to attach to trees/shrubs/even
laying on the ground (put a stick in center hole to keep in place –
doh!) to either mark your trail, preventing circular routing, or,
signalling for assistance.
SargeDude
Cover for Square tissue box
– Use 6 cds of different colours or all gold looks good also.
The cd for the top has to have the big circle removed in order for
the tissues to come up through it. With a tiny nail heated on
the stove burner, burn four tiny holes in each cd opposite each
other and fasten together with gold cord. Form 5 together, one
for the bottom and four for the sides, and insert tissue box.
Pull a tissue half way out and put 6th cd on top and fasten all
together. – Use 6 cds of different colours or all gold
looks good also. The cd for the top has to have the big circle
removed in order for the tissues to come up through it. With a
tiny nail heated on the stove burner, burn four tiny holes in each
cd opposite each other and fasten together with gold cord.
Form 5 together, one for the bottom and four for the sides, and
insert tissue box. Pull a tissue half way out and put 6th cd
on top and fasten all together.
Ms. Match
Please be careful when heating the nail on a stove burner.
It may be safer to use a small drill.
Tyler
A
variation on the above would be to stick them onto a polystyrene wig
stand which could be used as an ornament or, perhaps even a
headphone holder!!!!!
Pile them
up and see how far you can kick all of them. Get your friends
to see if they can beat your score.
Lemm
S
Game
– Draw a large target on the ground made up of several
different size circles inside each other. Place scores
in each circle, with the smallest inner circle being the largest
score. Then roll the CDs on their edge towards the target (similar
to bowls). Where the CD comes to rest (flat) is the score
earned. If it covers a line no score is given.
Vase/Bowl
– melt over a can in the oven to make dishes for flower arrangements
or sweets etc. (Apparently this works with tomato paste cans and
vinyl records).
– melt over a can in the oven to make dishes for flower arrangements
or sweets etc. (Apparently this works with tomato paste cans and
vinyl records).
Nancy
CAUTION – I have received the following warning from Elliot Clayton
regarding heating CDs in the oven
I was
reading about what to do with spare cds or cd roms, and one suggestion
involved putting them in the oven to melt them. This can be
dangerous because the silver dye is toxic. When the plastic melts
in the oven, there will be no protection for this layer of dye.
Be
very careful though, they get very hot. Make
sure you ask first!
Chris Heavey
Jim
Kline
Nancy B.
Mount them
on plyboard using ply disk in center and screw. The slight
depression in middle of cd will give it a focal point. Sun
light can then be focused on to a single point to heat a water
circulation or placed behind greenhouses, sun room to direct light
in during winter. By varying the tension in the centre
it can be tuned to winter diffuse light or summer focused light.
It may be
possible to make a projector of the suns
rays for viewing by passing the suns rays down a tube to the CD back
to a secondary mirror at 90 deg. and projected safely to a white
card. The tube will help stop light scatter and the low
reflective quality of the CD and colour cast could prove
interesting. It could be used to building models of telescopes
etc. if only for educational purposes.
Mr. Paul
Moore
I would
like to add a little warning here though – be careful when placing
anything like this to catch sunlight as it can cause damage.
My mother once left her spectacles on an upholstered chair and the
sunlight came through the window, shone onto the lens and burnt the
upholstery on the chair. This could have caused a very nasty
fire.
Stick them
to the ceiling in a child’s/teenagers bedroom.
If younger children have trouble sleeping, tell them to count the
CDs.
Tracey Jolly.
Mask
for Mardi Gras, masquerade parties etc. by glueing two CDs
together so that the center holes line up with your eyes. Poke
two holes in the outer edges of the mask, string something pliable
through them.
Camellia Pasque Woodsorrel
Andrea Sullivan
One of the
most popular ideas was “frisbees” –
Childs’
game – decorate the print side and then use clothes baskets, empty
plastic milk jugs, mixing bowls, laundry baskets etc. as targets of
different values. The targets can be moved to increase point
value with relative difficulty. Decorating the targets is also
a potential craft activity.
Thanks Tiffany, with similar suggestions fromBarb Harstine, Kelsi, “Msbossy….”,
Terry.
An
anonymous contributor also mentioned frisbees but made the very
important point that dogs should not be allowed to catch them as
they break very easily.
Place Tags –
For dinner party place settings – apparently
“sharpies” write on them.
BLADEBRAD
Jeremy Degler
“cougie..”.
Clocks
Amanda B.
Francie
Mr.
Bob Miller
Paula.
Mary
Goff
Use Cds or Dvds to make a clock – use glossy
magazines to make the front picture of the clock or print your own
and stick to Cd or Dvd with pritt stick glue then using wood glue to
make the front water proof (it dries clear); then add clock motor
and fingers, set hands at three o’clock to set them properly,then
set the right time and hey you have a personally made clock.
Steven Moran
J.
Walls
Lamp
– Stack them together and make a lamp out of
them.
.
Anonymous
The electrical
cable could be threaded up through the centre holes and the lamp fitting
would fit in the top centre hole. All wiring should be carried out
by a qualified electrician. Christmas
Decorations
R.B.
Thread
ribbon through the centre and tie a nice bow in holiday colours and
hang on your christmas tree. This makes a nice project for the
little ones and they reflect the light nicely.
Stephanie Sirois
Purchase a
small resin figurine and glue it to the centre of the CD. It
will appear to be skating on the pond.
Drill a
hole in the top side of the CD. Glue a recent picture of your
child onto the CD. Take rick-rack, lace or glitter flue and go
around the raw edge of the picture. Hang on tree with green
dental floss.
Purchase a
small nativity scene. Take 2 CDs and connect them with a small
hinge. This will reflect the scene from bottom and back.
Siren
Anonymous
Gary
Buchholz
It has been
brought to my attention by Cyn Richardson that both of these ideas
are very bad as the shattered cds contain toxic materials and sharp
slivers which, if left on the ground (especially when shattered in the
air!!) will pollute the earth and leave dangerous sharp things around
for people and/or animals to step on. It could also be very
dangerous to have sharp slivers flying through the air.
Sheri Crouse
Gary
Buchholz
Gary
Buchholz
Gary
Buchholz
Decoration
–
mailboxes,shoes, etc.
Fridge Magnets
–
put self sticking magnets on the back.
Picture frames
– put a wallet size picture on them: design a picture wall,
tree ornaments, rear view mirror decoration.
“blessed”
Jeannine Taylor
Put two
disks together and wind wool through centre hole, over edges and
back through centre hole. Continue in this manner until
disk completely covered with wool and the centre hole is full.
Cut wool around outside edge, between two disks. Gently separate the
two disks in order to allow you to tie through middle. Pull disk
completely off (or cut away) and you are left with a pom-pom.
Ms. Catherine Kennedy. I do
feel the centre hole may be a little small in comparison to the
size of the disk so it may be better to take out the centre
circle before starting. This will, however, increase the
amount of wool required.
“mnorton”
Draw a square around the
CD on a piece of paper making sure you leave about an inch all the
way around. Cut the square out and you now have a pattern.
Cut two squares from polar fleece or terry cloth. Sew along
three sides with right sides together. Turn right side out and
insert the CD. Sew up the remaining side. You now have a
lovely coaster. Make yourself a whole set.
Use a drill to make tiny
holes in the CD. Use the holes to keep track of these
earrings. Necklaces can be threaded through the centre hole.
Hang them from fruit trees
etc. to discourage birds from pecking the fruit. Not only
effective but they reflect the light nicely.
All three
tips from Stephanie Sirois
Tina
Reflectors
– Make emergency reflectors by taking two pieces of 1″ x 2″ boards,
making sure that one is slightly shorter than the other. Place
a hinge on one end so it will be collapsible . Drill a hole
into the longer piece of wood and attach the CD through the centre
hole with a wood screw. Now when you are in trouble you can
mark a path to the car so on-coming traffic can see you.
Cut a 2″ x 4″ piece of
lumber. Stain and finish to protect against moisture. Attach 3
CDs that have been cut in half so that they were all facing the same
direction. Attach a piece of wood to the back and drive it
into the ground when you campsite is established.
Parking aid
– Take a strip of 2″ x 4″ lumber as tall as needed for the height of
your garage. Mark the spaces on the wood and drill holes
to attach the CDs with wood screws. Now it will be easy
to see how far the back of the garage is so there won’t be any
fender benders.
Locator
– Hot glue two CDs to the outside of your circuit breaker box.
It makes it much easier to see when the lights are out and you need
to find the box to check the breakers.
All the above are courtesy
of “Siren”
Placed beside each other and fixed on a flat roof
may reflect sunlight and cool the roof and house.
Brian Farrugia
We got a whole load of them things and used them as
roof shingles on our outhouse. We put that shiny side up so as to
keep them outhouse cooler in the summer-time. I only wish they
didn’t have them dam little holes in the middle.
Jimmy-Bob Lee
Can be used as reflectors for demarcating car
parking spaces at parties where the parking lot is not well lit.
ndahura
Here are a my original boring
suggestions:- 1:
Make into mobiles they catch the light most effectively 2:
Stuck on wall in chosen design. Can act as mirror and, once again
reflects light. 3:
Hang on sticks in the garden to keep birds off plants. 4:
Unusual, but safe, handbag mirror. 5:
Decorate folders by placing on the front and covering with sticky
back plastic. 6:
If you get enough, put around a room to form a border or dado rail. 7:
Strung together vertically and made into a blind. 8:
Coasters
For other interesting
suggestions visit
http://www.make-stuff.com/recycling/cd.html
NOW IT’S DOWN
TO YOU
email your suggestions to me
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