Some observations… use neodymium magnets preferably dipped in epoxy or some other water proof coating. Also, use them in calmer water somewhere in your system. Where I’ve seen you had the welding right angle tool the water was running too fast for the very low magnetism of the magnets. FYI, a free source for such magnets is a stationary exercise bike that uses magnets to induce drag against the main cast wheel. All of the magnets are neodymium magnets and are really easy to remove from the bike. I have like 30 of them and they are very strong. Running high speed water across them will wash a lot of steel downstream. You have to give the magnets a chance to grab them. Only a few seconds off slowing down the flow will work. Trash day is a great time to find recumbent exercise bikes with magnetic resistance. I use them for cleaning my workshop floor but I’ve given a lot of thought of building a separator like you are using. Also, I noticed you use window screen in some of your filters. I found only recently that Home Depot sells a variety of screens based on the bugs you have. Here in PA we deal with “no see ems” which requires a much smaller mesh in the screen. It is about half or less passing of material. The sunscreen is even finer but would probably clog your system. I’ve always thought that sluices should have windshield wipers (like the ones on a back of an SUV) to clear such screens automatically. I’m retired now so maybe as a hobby I’ll chase down valuable metals for no other reason than to be a part of the scrappers guild. I watch a LOT of such channels and think I should give it a try. Keep on doing what you do as you inspire people like me to not let perfectly good recycle material go back into product production. Keep it Up!
What if you put it into a big tank with a powerful stirrer first. Wouldn't that knock the plastic off the copper and then you could run what settles at the bottom through the sluce?
I like your thinking. that was actually a prototype I built to prove the concept. when I rebuild it with all the knowledge I got from this, it’s gonna have a few up grades. I have an idea for a hydro cyclone and something similar to what you’re talking about. I’m always open to suggestions thank you.
Yes, I’ve thrown BX cable right in there. I was easily able to separate the copper from the aluminum, but I needed one more tray to separate the aluminum from the insulation. The weight is very similar but I ran some of the insulation and aluminum by itself and was able to separate it out.
Hey when you run your granular do you get static shocked when you pull out your ground up copper ,cause I get shock super bad on my product and was wondering if anyone esl does to ,and how do you stop that
Check your grounding wire and make sure the machine itself is grounded. Most granulators were made for plastic, so the metal could be making static while it grinds. I use to grind up micro fish cards for information destruction and would sometimes get a small static shocks from those. We would run the machine for about 5 hours straight and when we cut it back to 2 hours, the static shock went away. But check that machine ground wire and maybe upgrade it.
At the end of your system you have a screen mounted ,what kind of screen is it and how is it mounted ,it kinda looks like it has a flange on it ....this is the point I'm at on mine but stuck on how to build that can u help ?
I had some screen patio material, also a couple of soffit vents for the roof your house, they were like 3 x 8 or something aluminum frame with screen material already in it. I just glued it together and use screws where I could. If you have pictures or videos of your project I could probably give you some ideas
@@ProjectShopFl ok,do you have any more info on where I can get one and what modification u did to it cause I'd like to get one for myself for my copper
@@mikemuniak4711 I paid $400 for it at an auction. I removed the original motor and put a faster one and sped it up. I also inlaid a thin sheet of metal and hand drilled every single hole for the screen. The one that came with it was too large and was not liberating all the copper from the plastic. Took me two tries to get it right first time the holes were too small had to go back and make them all slightly larger.
I’ll try and find some photos for you and as for the purity I’m not sure but the mill I sell to has never complained after I learned to check the type of wire before chopping the wire. Some communication wire has number two copper hidden in it sometimes. I’ve never had an issue as long as I made sure I only put number one copper in the machine.
Hello again , what size screen do you use in your plastic granulator? 1.5 mm or 2.0 ? I would like to use something like this for branded house wire. Lamp cords tv cords stuff like that.
I don’t know at the moment I’d have to check. But I do know the holes that came with it were to big it wasn’t liberating the plastic from the copper enough. I took a sheet of metal and welded on the inside and hand a drill every hole to a small diameter. And lamp cords TV cords is fine number two copper and will probably require a smaller screen. But too small and it clogs. Mine was trial and error.
I never really timed it, but the water sluice worked way faster than the granulator. If I had to guess I’d say the granulator could do 200 lbs per hour. It really depends on how it’s prepped or pre-shredded the smaller the better.
Why some many magnets , and why a copper flapper ,does it matter what kind of material or did u just use what you have ,trying to build my system to work like yours ,very nice job
The magnets are to pull out any steel, mainly from wire nuts that make their way through. The copper flappers are to break the water tension and to assist with liberate in the copper from the insulation. What type of granulator do you have? Do you have any videos of your set up?
@@ProjectShopFl I have a 3phase HP Cumberland 8x12 granluatior with 5/16 screen in it ,I don't have video of it and not sure how to send you pic of it set up .I think I need to make 1/4 screen for it to grind smaller
@@mikemuniak4711 I have a Facebook page called project Scrap. I made it for people to upload how to videos and Scrap and videos. You can post your videos there and pictures and maybe I can help you
@@mikemuniak4711 I was using three Harbor freight pumps, but not submersible. Am I opinion it wasn’t enough water. I have a pool pump now but I will be using and maybe even the original harbor freight ones. I don’t know how fast your feeding the copper so maybe you don’t need as much flow. I was trying to dump 5 gallon buckets as fast as possible.
I’ve actually tried that, first time way too much soap. LOL I’m not wanting the plastic to sink I want the plastic to float, I just want The copper to sink
@@ProjectShopFl it will stop you losing your fine copper in your plastic. It’s trail and error. Add a little soap at a time till the copper sinks. It’s what I do for a living recycling copper. We use a wet table to separate our fines for the plastic.
@@kennywhoo1 I would love to see that your process. Do you have any videos? That whole set up was trial and error it was just a prototype to see if I could do it with scrap. Lol
actually that's beautiful all kidding aside 2 buckets per clean-out on the sluice of course no miners moss I would think its fun at a job when you see wire and think oh boy time to fire up frankensluice
when the world ends I will come looking for you it will need people like you I hope you take this as a compliment because thats how I mean it
Thank you I do take that as a complement
Great set up the best I've seen yet
Thanks
Some observations… use neodymium magnets preferably dipped in epoxy or some other water proof coating. Also, use them in calmer water somewhere in your system. Where I’ve seen you had the welding right angle tool the water was running too fast for the very low magnetism of the magnets. FYI, a free source for such magnets is a stationary exercise bike that uses magnets to induce drag against the main cast wheel. All of the magnets are neodymium magnets and are really easy to remove from the bike. I have like 30 of them and they are very strong. Running high speed water across them will wash a lot of steel downstream. You have to give the magnets a chance to grab them. Only a few seconds off slowing down the flow will work. Trash day is a great time to find recumbent exercise bikes with magnetic resistance. I use them for cleaning my workshop floor but I’ve given a lot of thought of building a separator like you are using. Also, I noticed you use window screen in some of your filters. I found only recently that Home Depot sells a variety of screens based on the bugs you have. Here in PA we deal with “no see ems” which requires a much smaller mesh in the screen. It is about half or less passing of material. The sunscreen is even finer but would probably clog your system. I’ve always thought that sluices should have windshield wipers (like the ones on a back of an SUV) to clear such screens automatically. I’m retired now so maybe as a hobby I’ll chase down valuable metals for no other reason than to be a part of the scrappers guild. I watch a LOT of such channels and think I should give it a try. Keep on doing what you do as you inspire people like me to not let perfectly good recycle material go back into product production. Keep it Up!
Thanks for all the suggestions, I like the windshield wiper idea.
What if you put it into a big tank with a powerful stirrer first. Wouldn't that knock the plastic off the copper and then you could run what settles at the bottom through the sluce?
I like your thinking. that was actually a prototype I built to prove the concept. when I rebuild it with all the knowledge I got from this, it’s gonna have a few up grades. I have an idea for a hydro cyclone and something similar to what you’re talking about. I’m always open to suggestions thank you.
Do you have any ideas on how to separate aluminum from copper wire in a system like that
Yes, I’ve thrown BX cable right in there. I was easily able to separate the copper from the aluminum, but I needed one more tray to separate the aluminum from the insulation. The weight is very similar but I ran some of the insulation and aluminum by itself and was able to separate it out.
So cool
Thank you
Hey when you run your granular do you get static shocked when you pull out your ground up copper ,cause I get shock super bad on my product and was wondering if anyone esl does to ,and how do you stop that
I’ve never been shocked. LOL I wonder what could be causing that. Is the machine shock and you or the copper?
@@ProjectShopFl it seems to be all the rubber insolulion when I go and clean it up
@@mikemuniak4711 That’s ironic that the insulation would be shocking to you. LOL
Check your grounding wire and make sure the machine itself is grounded. Most granulators were made for plastic, so the metal could be making static while it grinds. I use to grind up micro fish cards for information destruction and would sometimes get a small static shocks from those. We would run the machine for about 5 hours straight and when we cut it back to 2 hours, the static shock went away. But check that machine ground wire and maybe upgrade it.
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
👊👍
At the end of your system you have a screen mounted ,what kind of screen is it and how is it mounted ,it kinda looks like it has a flange on it ....this is the point I'm at on mine but stuck on how to build that can u help ?
I had some screen patio material, also a couple of soffit vents for the roof your house, they were like 3 x 8 or something aluminum frame with screen material already in it. I just glued it together and use screws where I could. If you have pictures or videos of your project I could probably give you some ideas
What did you make to chop that wire up so small ,I need one for my set up
A modified plastic granulator I bought an auction for $400
@@ProjectShopFl ok,do you have any more info on where I can get one and what modification u did to it cause I'd like to get one for myself for my copper
@@mikemuniak4711 I paid $400 for it at an auction. I removed the original motor and put a faster one and sped it up. I also inlaid a thin sheet of metal and hand drilled every single hole for the screen. The one that came with it was too large and was not liberating all the copper from the plastic. Took me two tries to get it right first time the holes were too small had to go back and make them all slightly larger.
What size screen are you running in your granulator
@@mikemuniak4711 I don’t remember I’ll be breaking that thing out of storage soon and I will do a complete breakdown on it
Could you please send photos of separated copper?
What about purity of final product?
I’ll try and find some photos for you and as for the purity I’m not sure but the mill I sell to has never complained after I learned to check the type of wire before chopping the wire. Some communication wire has number two copper hidden in it sometimes. I’ve never had an issue as long as I made sure I only put number one copper in the machine.
Hello again , what size screen do you use in your plastic granulator? 1.5 mm or 2.0 ? I would like to use something like this for branded house wire. Lamp cords tv cords stuff like that.
I don’t know at the moment I’d have to check. But I do know the holes that came with it were to big it wasn’t liberating the plastic from the copper enough. I took a sheet of metal and welded on the inside and hand a drill every hole to a small diameter. And lamp cords TV cords is fine number two copper and will probably require a smaller screen. But too small and it clogs. Mine was trial and error.
Do you have a flow rate of material per hour? Is this viable for phone wire, christmas light wire, and computer wires?
I never really timed it, but the water sluice worked way faster than the granulator. If I had to guess I’d say the granulator could do 200 lbs per hour. It really depends on how it’s prepped or pre-shredded the smaller the better.
Why some many magnets , and why a copper flapper ,does it matter what kind of material or did u just use what you have ,trying to build my system to work like yours ,very nice job
The magnets are to pull out any steel, mainly from wire nuts that make their way through. The copper flappers are to break the water tension and to assist with liberate in the copper from the insulation. What type of granulator do you have? Do you have any videos of your set up?
@@ProjectShopFl I have a 3phase HP Cumberland 8x12 granluatior with 5/16 screen in it ,I don't have video of it and not sure how to send you pic of it set up .I think I need to make 1/4 screen for it to grind smaller
@@mikemuniak4711 I have a Facebook page called project Scrap. I made it for people to upload how to videos and Scrap and videos. You can post your videos there and pictures and maybe I can help you
@@ProjectShopFl one more question ,what kind of pumps are you running I'm use a 1/3 1600gph HARBOR freight submersible pump
@@mikemuniak4711 I was using three Harbor freight pumps, but not submersible. Am I opinion it wasn’t enough water. I have a pool pump now but I will be using and maybe even the original harbor freight ones. I don’t know how fast your feeding the copper so maybe you don’t need as much flow. I was trying to dump 5 gallon buckets as fast as possible.
Which granulator do you use? I dont know about stuff like that, is a granulator which is desingned for plastik also working?
Nice Video
My granulator is a plastic granulator that I modified slightly to chop copper.
Thank you
You sound like a gold miner talking about the sluice. :)
That is exactly where I got the idea for this.
Frankensluice, that’s a great name for it. So what does the yard buy it as No1, or bare bright?
Thanks for sharing.
It’s in between. It goes like this #1 bare bright, # 1 Chops, #1 copper, #2 copper, #2 chops. At least that’s how it is in Miami
Add washing up liquid to the water. It will help the copper and plastic to sink.
I’ve actually tried that, first time way too much soap. LOL I’m not wanting the plastic to sink I want the plastic to float, I just want The copper to sink
@@ProjectShopFl it will stop you losing your fine copper in your plastic. It’s trail and error. Add a little soap at a time till the copper sinks.
It’s what I do for a living recycling copper. We use a wet table to separate our fines for the plastic.
@@kennywhoo1 I would love to see that your process. Do you have any videos? That whole set up was trial and error it was just a prototype to see if I could do it with scrap. Lol
How do you crush wire like a sand
With a granulator.
actually that's beautiful all kidding aside 2 buckets per clean-out on the sluice of course no miners moss I would think its fun at a job when you see wire and think oh boy time to fire up frankensluice
😂😂😂