Vertical Cardboard Baler

Compress Cardboard Waste into Compact and Recyclable Bales
Updated on May. 25, 2021 | Authors: Pim Brouwer & Brent Nijssen

With a vertical cardboard baler you compress voluminous cardboard waste into small and compact bales. By compressing cardboard waste, you reduce the volume of the material. This saves up floor space and also the cost of waste collection.

Cardboard Baler Categories:

There are generally two types of cardboard balers: vertical and horizontal cardboard compactors. We look into vertical cardboard balers for light, medium and heavy-duty use from HSM, Bramidan and Mil-tek. Vertical balers are also known as downstroke balers. Check our vertical baler buying guide.

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Best Cardboard Baling Presses

Which vertical cardboard compactor suits your needs? The list below contains three categories of cardboard baler machines, for light-duty, medium-duty and heavy-duty use. Per category, we recommend three cardboard balers for your inspiration from Bramidan, HSM and Mil-tek.

Compare the best baling presses in one overview

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Light-Duty Balers for Cardboard

Light-duty vertical balers are relatively compact and affordable machines for compressing cardboard waste in an economical way. These low-volume cardboard baling presses are ideal for creating free space in restaurants, hotels, gas stations, offices, print, and packaging or smaller stores because of their small footprint.

A light-duty compactor is also perfect when you have a low-volume of daily cardboard waste or when there is a tighter budget available to invest in this machine.

PRODUCT FEATURES

• Waste volume: Small / low volume
• Bale weight: Up to 100 kg / 220 lbs

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#1 | Bramidan Baler B4

Efficient, powerful and small footprint baler

The Bramidan Baler B4 is a ‘mini’ downstroke cardboard baler with a high press force. It has a very low noise level of less than 60 dB. The compactor has a small base area and is easy and convenient to operate.

The baler automatically ejects the cardboard bale when compression of the cardboard waste is ready. You can also use the Bramidan Baler B4 for plastic foil and paper waste.

More information:

Official product sheet

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#2 | HSM V-Press 610

Compress cardboard on minimal floorspace

The HSM V-Press 605 is a compact, but powerful baler with more than 5 HP of pressing power. This 480 V baler helps to reduce the volume of cardboard, mixed paper, or foils in an economical way. Fill the chamber with cardboard waste and the machine starts the pressing process after the door is closed with the handwheel door lock.

The keypad with text display shows the current status of the baling process. The cardboard bales are strapped with polyester tape and can be ejected automatically onto a pallet for easy transport.

More information:

Official product sheet

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#3 | Mil-tek 2305

Fully compliant with EN16500 standards

The Mil-tek 2305 is an easy-to-use cardboard baler with an automated bale-out mechanism. The baler is powered by compressed air and is free from electrical and hydraulic components. You can use this compact cardboard compactor for baling cardboard and plastic waste. The chamber is relatively deep, which makes it easier to put in large or bulky waste items.

This baler runs low on noise and low on energy and is fully compliant with EN16500 safety features, which makes it an ergonomic, safe, and easy to use baler.

More information:

Official product sheet

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Medium-Duty Balers for Cardboard

Medium-duty vertical balers compress cardboard into bales that fit on standard US pallets or EUR pallets, for easy transportation. These medium-volume cardboard baling presses are ideal for big-box stores, retail shops, hotels, restaurants, manufacturing facilities, factories, wholesalers, food producers, and distribution centers.

A medium-duty compactor has a wider opening than a light-duty baler and thus is able to compress large and bulky cardboard boxes without the need to break them down first. These powerful machines are available in single-phase and three-phase power.

PRODUCT FEATURES

• Waste volume: Medium volume
• Bale weight: Up to 250 kg / 550 lbs

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#1 | Bramidan Baler B20

Suitable baler for many industries

The Bramidan Baler B20 is a powerful and versatile compactor for cardboard waste, plastic foil, and waste paper. The finished bales are optimal in size, so they fit on standard EU or US pallets for easy transportation.

The B20 compactor has a pleasant low noise level of under 62 dB, has a short press cycle, and is easy to operate. The volume of cardboard is reduced a lot, because of the high compression ratio.

More information:

Official product sheet

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#2 | HSM V-Press 820

Large baler with small footprint

The HSM V-Press 820 Plus is a vertical baler machine for compacting medium to large volumes of cardboard waste. The compactor produces around 2-5 cardboard bales per hour. You can load your cardboard boxes and sheets into the machine by folding them down the upper half of the door. When folded down, the door functions as a table for convenient storing and filling the machine with cardboard waste.

The massive press ram, robust press plate, and solid steel cutting rollers offer high pressing power, so your cardboard is compressed into a compact bale.

More information:

Official product sheet

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#3 | Mil-tek 2306

Powerful compactor for medium-to-large volumes

The Mil-tek 2306 is a powerful two-cylinder cardboard baler that uses compressed air instead of an electrical hydraulic mechanism. The vertical baler has a large and wide pressing chamber, so large cardboard boxes fit easily into the baler for compressing.

The compactor is straightforward to use by your employees. Just load the material, close the door, and the Mil-tek 2306 vertical baler does the hard work for you. With the automated bail-out mechanism, you can eject the tight bale on a pallet. Two powerful cylinders create dense and heavy bales.

More information:

Official product sheet

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Heavy-Duty Balers for Cardboard

Heavy-duty vertical balers are powerful machines to compress bulky, voluminous cardboard waste into easy-to-transport bales. These high-capacity cardboard baling presses are ideal for warehouses, wholesalers, manufacturers, large distribution centers, large hotels, retail stores, supermarkets, and recyclers.

A heavy-duty baler can reduce the volume of cardboard up to 10:1. This makes it an economical and efficient alternative to a regular waste dumpster. A vertical downstroke cardboard baler requires less space, it reduces the volume of your waste, the bailer saves up time, and it reduces the cost of your current waste collection and dumpster rental.

PRODUCT FEATURES

• Waste volume: High volume
• Bale weight: Up to 650 kg / 1430 lbs

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#1 | Bramidan Baler X50 HD

High-quality baler for compacting heavy-duty materials

The Bramidan Baler X50 HD is a powerful compactor for producing heavy cardboard bales of up to 1,000 lbs. This durable, high-quality and heavy-duty baler compacts your waste materials quickly and efficiently. Besides cardboard, you can compress aluminum, tin cans, hard plastics, foil and waste paper.

This large baler is safe to use via an electrical control panel, all moving parts are located inside the baler. A perfect sustainable solution for compressing high volumes of waste.

More information:

Official product sheet

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#2 | HSM V-Press 860 plus B

Powerful baler for making 1,200 lbs bales

The HSM V-Press 860 plus B belongs to the top model from HSM in the V-Press series. This powerful cardboard baling machine generates 60 tons of pressing power and produces compact bales with a weight of around 1,200 lbs per bale. The baler is suitable for compressing cardboard waste as well as plastic film or foil. These bales are ready to be marketed without requiring any further pressing.

When a cardboard bale is ready, it is ejected automatically onto a standard EU or US pallet for transport. The high-capacity press chamber can hold high volumes of (bulky) cardboard packaging waste, so it is perfect for large warehouses, manufacturers, and large retailers.

More information:

Official product sheet

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#3 | Mil-tek 2509

Compact baler for compacting large volumes

The Mil-tek 2509 can handle large volumes of cardboard and/or plastic waste quickly. Despite its high power, this shredder is fairly compact and thus requires minimal floor space. Perfect for when floor space is scarce. The compactor machine has an extra-wide feed opening and pressing chambers, so breaking down cardboard boxes isn’t always necessary.

The two powerful cylinders are powered with compressed air, which ensures constant pressure. This results in dense and heavy cardboard bales, with a compression degree of 85-90%.

More information:

Official product sheet

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Product Experts:

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Vertical Cardboard Baler Guide

Tackle your cardboard waste overflow with a vertical baler

• Improving recycling rates
• Cutting waste handling costs
• Save time and effort handling cardboard waste
• Compress cardboard waste into compact bales
• Reduce space needed at your business for waste handling
• Sell cardboard bales for recycling to the paper industry

Learn more about cardboard balers below.

Navigation:

What is a cardboard baler?

An industrial cardboard baling machine is a crusher for your cardboard. It compresses cardboard waste, such as boxes and cardboard plates, into tightly compressed bales with a powerful engine’s hydraulic mechanism. The bales’ size depends on the baler machine’s capacity, but generally speaking, most cardboard bales have the depth and width of a standard pallet.

Overall, a cardboard baling press will help you to more efficiently recycle your cardboard and sell it to cardboard recycling firms or paper mills.

Why do you need a cardboard baling press?

Why do you need a baling machine, and what are the benefits of a company’s cardboard compactor?

• Reduces the volume of cardboard waste and saves valuable storage space. It can reduce the volume of cardboard by up to 95%.
• Reduces waste removal costs by reducing the frequency of collection.
• Environmentally friendly solution for high volumes of cardboard waste.
• More revenue for your cardboard waste material.
• A vertical baling press occupies minimal floor space in a warehouse.
• A dedicated machine improves the quality of the cardboard waste stream, increasing the value.
• Less cardboard will end up in landfills, and more gets recycled reducing the environmental impact of an organization.
• Transporting baled cardboard makes transportation by your waste disposal company more efficient and convenient.

What companies use a compactor?

Is a vertical cardboard baler a machine that is beneficial for your business? Well, does your company produces lots of cardboard waste on a daily basis, and are you looking for a solution?

A cardboard crusher is then perfect for reducing your cardboard waste volume, like boxes and other kinds of cardboard packaging. There is all kind of companies and industries which make use of horizontal or vertical cardboard balers:

• Supermarkets
• Retail outlets
• Restaurants
• Offices
• Convenient stores
• Warehouses
• Agriculture companies
• Schools
• Recycling centers
• Distribution centers
• And so on…

As you can see, the list is pretty diverse. If you are looking for a solution for your cardboard waste, then a cardboard baler may present your company with the ideal solution.

Large or small baler?

• Overall, large balers produce bales that are about twice larger than those of small to medium-sized balers.
• Small or medium balers produce bales that weigh half or even a quarter of bales produced by large balers.
• The footprint of a large baler is up to four times the size of small to medium balers.
• A larger baler’s average pressing power is usually at least 150% of the pressing force of a small to a medium baler.

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Vertical versus horizontal cardboard compactor

There are two main types of cardboard balers, a vertical baling machine, and a horizontal baling machine. So, what is the difference between the two cardboard crushers?

Overall, a downstroke baler is intended for companies that want to have an easy-to-use heavy-duty baling solution for their cardboard waste to improve waste separation and save on waste hauling costs. In contrast, a horizontal cardboard baler is designed for industrial use and compressing larger amounts of cardboard waste and is mostly used by recycling companies themselves or organizations with huge quantities of cardboard.

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Internal or external moving parts

Most vertical balers have their moving parts, such as the pressing cylinders and strapping rolls, visible on the top of the machine. But you can also opt for a baler where the moving parts are hidden and protected inside of the machine.

As you can see in the image below, the right vertical baler requires less space.

A baler with external moving parts is generally less expensive. But it requires more vertical space. When you want to station a cardboard baler in a room or area (such as a warehouse rack) with limited height, then a baler with integrated parts is an option. The downside is that baler machines with internal parts are more expensive. Besides that, not every manufacturer has this type of baler in their range.

Bramidan is a manufacturer with a wide range of balers with internal or external moving parts. Most of their clients opt for a baler with external moving parts. Customers that do want a baler with integrated moving parts do this mainly for space-saving reasons, a smaller group want this machine because of its sleeker look and design.

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Door types

Cardboard balers all contain a door, but how you open or close the door is all up to your preferences. For instance, you can choose a double door baler where the door is split in half. Or you can get a baler with a loading flap, where the door tilts towards the operator. There are also balers with a sliding door, which requires less space. Lastly, you can opt for a cardboard baler with an automatic sliding door.

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Pros and cons of cardboard balers

Cardboard is a rather voluminous and space-consuming waste stream, especially cardboard boxes. Non-compressed cardboard waste is also a relatively expensive type of recyclable material in terms of transport costs for waste collection companies. The reason is that there is a lot of ‘useless air’ in the waste material, which is inefficient and costly to transport.

To reduce transportation costs, and thus waste expenses for your company, it is worthwhile to compress cardboard beforehand. Compact cardboard bales have a much smaller footprint, which requires less floor space in your company. Additionally, compressed bales are much more efficient to transport for waste collection companies because they can collect more weight in a more compact form. In summary, a cardboard baler is beneficial for the environment and for company finances.

Pros:

• Significantly reduce the volume of cardboard waste of an organization
• Save on valuable storage space in warehouses
• Reduces costs of waste collection by reducing transport movements
• Smaller balers are easy to use by employees
• Increases value of your cardboard on the recycling market by better separating waste streams
• An environmentally friendly solution for cardboard waste with less waste on landfills

Cons:

• The baler itself takes up space in your facility
• It is an expensive device, but it is an investment which is paid back by lower waste hauling cost and increased price for cardboard
• Additional tools and supplies need to be purchased to comfortably use some balers, such as wheeled containers, strapping wire, and pallets. Take a look at our recommended tools
• The machines are not 100% automated, so it takes time for the operator to load, strap and unload the cardboard

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How does the baling process work?

1. Prepare the machine with baler strapping wire.
2. Fill the baling machine with cardboard waste material.
3. Close off the door and start compressing.
4. Open the door and wrap the bales with wiring to keep them together.
5. Place a pallet and eject the cardboard bale onto the pallet.

Cycle time and hourly bale output

The time it takes to compress cardboard waste into a bale depends on the type of baling machine and the operator’s experience because it takes time to prepare and load the machine with cardboard. The compactor presses the cardboard with a hydraulic press. However, after compressing the cardboard, the operator needs to strap the cardboard bale and eject it onto a pallet.

Ultimately, the specifications or user manual of a cardboard baler will tell you the average cycle time, as well as the hourly output. What is the difference, and what does it mean?

What is the cycle time?

The cycle time indicates the average time it takes for the cardboard baler to perform one cycle. A single cycle is a process of compressing the cardboard waste in the chamber with the pressing plate. On average, this takes up to around 30 seconds. But this doesn’t mean that you can make a cardboard bale in 30 seconds. You need to repeat this process multiple times to create one bale of cardboard.

What is the hourly bale output?

The production time of compacting cardboard packaging waste to a bale takes up multiple cycles. The average time to produce one bale depends on the type of material, the availability of waste materials at the site, and the operator’s efficiency. Sometimes you can find in the manufacturer’s guide manual specifications you can find the baler’s hourly bale output.

The output tells you how many bales the compactor produces per hour. Small-sized cardboard balers can produce 3-5 smaller bales per hour, and larger-sized baling machines can produce 1-3 large bales per hour. But keep in mind that these numbers are averages, and your company’s real output can differ.

What does a cardboard bale weigh?

When we look at a medium-sized cardboard baler, the HSM V-Press 860 plus, it produces a bale with the following specifications:

• Bale length: 47.24 in
• Bale width: 30.71 in
• Bale height: 47.24 in
• Bale weight: 1058.21 lb

However, the weight of a bale varies based on the size of the baling machine and on the weight of the cardboard waste material.

Read more about the weight and size of a cardboard bale.

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How much does a cardboard baler cost?

A cardboard compactor/baler is a reasonably pricy investment. The small vertical baling press prices start around 5,000 dollars and Large cardboard baling presses around 10.000 dollars, while high-end industrial balers can cost up to $1.5 million. You can also opt to purchase a used cardboard baler lowering the upfront costs, but it will require maintenance earlier than a new model.

Cost of leasing a cardboard baler

A cardboard baler is a substantial investment that’s why manufacturers enable companies to lease or rent a cardboard baler. The lease or rent a cardboard baler mainly is negotiated on a fixed cost per month from one of the cardboard baler manufacturing companies.

Maintenance cardboard baler

If you are thinking about buying or leasing a new baler, it is important to note that some manufacturers can offer you a maintenance contract. These maintenance contracts allow you to be worry-free when it comes to maintaining or repairing these large machines, as a manufacture approved technician will visit the site to take care of everything.

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Tools, supplies, and accessories

Besides a cardboard baler, what other supplies do you need to start baling your cardboard?

• Wheeled container – Place wheeled containers for cardboard waste at centralized areas in and around your company. Once full, these wheeled containers can easily be transported to the baling press.
• Strapping – To keep a compressed bale in a compact form. It is crucial to strap the bale with metal wire or another strong binding material to prevent it from falling apart.
• Pallet – When a bale is ready, it will get ejected from the baler. Therefore, you need a pallet to hold the cardboard bale once it gets prepared for transportation.
• Pallet truck (with scale) – To transport the pallet with the cardboard bale, a pump truck or pallet truck comes in handy. We recommend a pallet truck with a scale so you can weigh the cardboard bale on the go.
• Self-dumping hopper – This attachment for a forklift can be used to store, transport, and dump cardboard material in the area of the cardboard compactor. Read more about self dump hoppers for fork trucks.

A pallet and a pallet truck are recommended tools (image source).

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Buying checklist for cardboard balers

Before purchasing a cardboard baler, there are several criteria and characteristics to consider when choosing the specific model and making that you want. Below you will find an outline of all the requirements and features you may want to give thought to during this decision process.

Necessary Checklist

• Build quality – As these machines get used in industrial and warehouse areas, they have to withstand heavy-duty usage. Because of this, we recommend sturdy metal housing.
• Baler types – Dependent on the amount and dimensions of space you have available and how you will use the baler, a choice needs to be made between a horizontal and vertical baler. Additionally, some balers can compress substances other than cardboard, such as plastic.
• Size of baler – How big or small your baler should or can depend on various factors, such as available space and amount of use.
• Power required– Most large balers cannot get plugged into your average power socket. They need more power than that. For example, HSM V-press 860 L requires a voltage of 400V. The electricity need is an important feature to take into account. Nevertheless, there are smaller balers that a standard power socket may power. However, as the power socket voltage can vary per region, we advise you to do your research on this.
• Capacity/bale size – your baler’s capacity and the dimensions of the final bale that comes out is an important criterion to consider. These are also important to contact your waste hauler about as the bales’ dimensions will affect them too.
• Safety features –Does the baler comply with safety regulations? And what type of safety features does it have?
• Maintenance – How much maintenance does the machine need? Can you do it yourself, or does someone professional need to come to do it? Is a maintenance contract possible?
• Warranty – How long is the warranty of the baler? And what kinds of malfunctions does it include?

Features and extra Checklist

• Door specifications – The door size and direction in which the door opens can vary per baler. So before the purchase, you should think about what feed width or door size you prefer and whether the door should flap or slide shut from bottom to top or if it swings left to right with a single or double door. Furthermore, the door lock should be considered, a bell-crank lever, a hand wheel door lock, or a hydraulic lock.
• Pallets or recessed bale – Some balers produce recessed bales while others do not. The difference between a recessed bale and a normal one is that recessed bales get molded to fit your forklift, while regular bales must get placed on a pallet before being transported. Not needing pallets can save a lot of storage space and some money as well.
• Noise level & energy efficiency – Although balers are industrial machines that generally make quite some noise, some models are advertised to be quieter than others and more energy efficient.
• Automated hauling option – Some balers can be programmed to notify your waste hauler when it comes to picking up the waste. However, the purchase of a baler in general and this program’s use should be discussed with your waste hauler repurchase.

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Manufacturers of cardboard balers

We recommend the following manufacturers of cardboard baling machines:

Bramidan

Bramidan is a family-owned company that was founded in Denmark in 1975. They are one of the fastest-growing suppliers of balers and compactors in the United States but are also internationally active with sales offices in the Netherlands and Poland.

Bramidan is well known for its bright orange powerful balers which can crush cardboard, plastic bottles, and plastic foil, among other things.

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HSM

HSM was founded in 1971 by its still current director, Hermann Schwelling in Salem Germany. The family business is active worldwide and are known for their German-built quality balers, shredders, and perforators.

The values that the company encompasses are flexibility, self-awareness and corporate social responsibility, which is all reflected in their philosophy of “great products, great people”.

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Mil-tek

Mil-tek was founded in 1992 in Denmark manufacturing air-powered balers and compactors designed to minimize waste. They have expanded to 60 locations in 30 countries. “When the first Mil-tek machine was developed it was created to meet a specific set of criteria: A low-noise, small-footprint baler which was safe and easy for staff to use.”

This concept still remains an integral part of their business, the goal being to help businesses optimize waste handling to minimize time, space, and money be wasted on waste.

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Cardboard recycling advice

What can your business do to improve the reduction, reuse, and recycling of cardboard? Read our Cardboard Recycling Guide.

Recycling solutions for warehouses

• Best Cardboard shredders to reuse Cardboard
• 10x tips for recycleable packaging
• How much is a cardboard bale worth