Cardboard Balers and Compactors

Cardboard Baler Guide

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What is a cardboard baler?

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

Overall, a cardboard baling press will help you to more easily recycle your cardboard and sell it to the recycling industry.

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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 it together.
5. Place a pallet and eject the cardboard bale onto the pallet.

Instruction video: HSM V-Press (how does a baler work?)

Cycle time and hourly bale output

The time it takes to compress cardboard waste into a bale depends on the type of baling machine but also on the experience of the operator 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 together 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 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 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 efficiency of the operator. Sometimes you can find in the specifications you can find the hourly bale output of the baler. This tells you how many bales the compactor produces per hour. Small-sized cardboard balers can produce 3-5 smaller bales per hour and the larger sized baling machines can produce 1-3 large bales per hour. But keep in mind, these numbers are average and the real output for your company 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.

Video: Bramidan B-series vertical cardboard baler

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Why use a cardboard baling press?

Why do you need a baling machine and what are the benefits of a company having its own cardboard compactor?

• Reduces the volume of cardboard waste and save valuable storage space, it can reduce volume up to 95%.
• Reduces waste removal costs by reducing the frequency of collection.
• Environmentally friendly solution for high volumes of cardboard waste.
• Better revenue for your cardboard waste material.
• A vertical baling press occupies minimal floor space.
• A dedicated machine improves the quality of the cardboard waste stream.
• Less cardboard will end up on landfills and more gets recycled.
• Transporting baled cardboard makes transportation by your waste disposal company more efficient and convenient.

Which companies use a baler?

Is a vertical cardboard baler a machine that your business can benefit from? Well, does your company produces lots of cardboard waste on a daily basis and are you looking for a solution? Then a cardboard compactor is perfect for reducing the volume of your cardboard waste, like boxes and other 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.

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How does it help with waste management?

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

In order to reduce transportation costs, and thus waste costs 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, the compressed bales are much more efficient to transport for waste collection companies, because they are able to collect more weight in a more compact form.

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Pros and cons of cardboard balers

Pros:

• Significantly reduce volume of cardboard waste
• Save on valuable storage space
• Reduces costs of waste collection
• Most smaller balers are easy to use
• Increases value of your cardboard on the recycling market
• 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
• Additional tools and supplies need to be purchased to comfortably use some balers, such as: wheeled container, strapping wire and pallets. Take a look at 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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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 types?

Overall, a vertical baler is intended for smaller companies that want to have an easy to use heavy-duty baling solution for their cardboard waste, while a horizontal cardboard baler is intended for industrial use and compressing larger amounts of cardboard waste.

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Small or large cardboard baler?

Do you need a small or a large-sized baling machine for your business? It all depends on the amount of cardboard waste you need to process on a daily base and the available space you have at your facility to place the cardboard baler.

Key takeaways

• Overall, large balers produce bales that are about twice larger than those of small to medium size balers.
• Small or medium balers produce bales that weight 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.
• The average pressing power of a larger baler is usually at least 150% of the pressing power of a small to medium baler.

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Costs, maintenance and leasing a cardboard baler

A cardboard compactor/baler is a fairly pricy investment. The prices of basic vertical baling press start around $5,000 dollars, while high-end industrial balers can cost all the way up to $1.5 million. But don’t worry you can also opt to purchase a used cardboard baler, or you can even choose to rent or lease one for a fixed cost per month from one of the cardboard baler manufacturing companies.

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 sight to take care of everything.

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Buying checklist for cardboard balers

Before purchasing a cardboard baler there are several criterion and characteristics to concider when you are busy chosing the specific model and make that you want. Below you will find an outline of all the criterion and characteristics you may want to give thought to during this decision process.

Necessary Checklist

• Build quality – As these machines are used in industrial and warehouse areas they have to be able to withstand heavy-duty usage. Because of this, a sturdy metal housing is strongly recommended.
• 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 a variety of factors, such as available space and amount of use.
• Power required– Most large balers cannot be plugged into your average power socket. They need more power than that. For example, HSM V-press 860 L requires a voltage of 400V. This is an important feature to be aware of. Nevertheless, there are smaller balers that may be powered by a normal power socket. However, as the power socket voltage can vary per region we advise you to do your own research on this.
• Capacity/bale size – the capacity of your baler 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 dimensions of the bales 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?

Extras 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 lock of the door should be considered, which can be 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 are molded to fit on your forklift, while normal bales must be 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 efficient – Although balers are industrial machines which generally make quite some noise there are models that 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 is time come pick up the waste. However, the purchase of a baler in general and the use of this program should be discussed with your waste hauler prepurchase.

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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 important 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 can be ejected from the baler. Therefore, you need a pallet to hold the cardboard bale once it is ready 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 scale so you can weigh the carboard 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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Manufacturers of cardboard balers

Which manufacturers build cardboard balers? Listed below are a number of reputable manufacturers:

North America:

• Bramidan
• HSM
• PTR
• Ver-tech
• Mil-tek

United Kingdom:

• Bramidan
• HSM

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Factsheet: Cardboard Balers
Download Free PDF

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Step Up: Recycle, Reuse & Reduce

The three arrows of the recycling symbol represent the three main stages of the recycling process: recycling, reusing and reducing. Together the arrows form a closed loop. Step up and implement eco-friendly replacements in your daily life.

Join the movement! Step Up the waste hierarchy together to a goal of Zero Waste.

By Recycling.com/ 20 November 2019 Shares