The alarming rate of production of various electronics and high-tech gadgets, and respectfully the ever-so-growing amount of e-waste that is being generated, calls for immediate strengthening of e-waste recycling and reusing systems. Here is an idea, how about turning the old floppy drives into DIY 3D printers?
I am a true believer that the best thing anyone can do for the environment is recycle and reuse materials. There is absolutely no way to say what is best to be recycled- paper, cans, plastics, bio-material, everything contributes equally. But e-waste is turning into a massive problem, which is growing much faster than anyone has ever thought.
Now, here is a great idea for everyone among us, who first has a stock of the good old floppy drives, second has a huge desire to own a 3D printer but does not have $300 at hand, third has some time to spare on a fun DIY project, and last but not least wants to do something great for the environment by not throwing away e-waste.
Here is a video of a great tutorial provided by the Instructubles user Mikelllc. If you follow the steps here you will end up with a fully functioning 3D printer, and comes down to a roughly $60.
All you need is: 2 standard CD/DVD drives from an old desktop PC, 1 floppy disc drive with a stepper motor, PC power supply and cables. The materials that are needed for this are roughly 80% recycled e-waste. With a bit of luck, you might be able to acquire them at no cost from a local waste station if you don’t have them laying around already.
The most important thing here is that the Sunday afternoon DIY project serves a much bigger purpose than fill up your time with making your own slightly geeky creation. It sends a message that e-waste does not have to end up at a dump site, it can actually be put into good use.
Just like the campaign that we told you about some time ago, which uses old cell phones to save the rainforest, this project serves as a great example. It shows that we can easily make use of what we already have. There is no need of continuous investment in yet another gadget that will sooner or later end up polluting nature.
Image (c) Mikelllc, Instructables
