Making a more closely connected circular economy. Making things.
made by pigeons makes lamps out of discarded PET bottles without any new 'filler' plastics mixed in the recycling process. A more closely connected circular economy means having a more direct connection between waste and final product. Taking control of the entire process makes it possible to limit the harm done in producing things. So every lamp is made directly from waste PET bottles to finished product, currently by one person, in Muizenberg.Get your lamp!
Image of printed lamps
A bit more about how the plastic ends up in your lamp
  • The first step is collecting the bottles, which, sadly, is almost too easy. The system for collection is currently adhoc; from friends, family, neighbours or even the found in the street or on the beach. But if you have a good source then let me know here.
  • The bottles ideally need to have a pretty consistent thickness, as an uneven filament means an uneven extrusion. It's also best to find bottles with minimal branding or adhesive, as this is difficult to remove and requires the use of solvents.
  • Once the bottles are cleaned and prepped, any ridges need to be smoothed out. This is done by pressurising the bottle and rotating it over a heat source for a short time.
    • Close up of many PET bottles
  • With cleaned and smoothed bottles in hand, it's time to start turning them into filament. I cut the bottles into a long helical strip that's about 5-10mm wide (this depends on the thickness of the bottle walls). It's almost like trying to peel an orange very precisely.
  • The strip can finally be loaded into a custom made and designed pulltrusion machine. There are many out there, notably JR3D, that require parts from an existing printer but the made by pigeons pulltruder is made from simple scrappy components that can be found anywhere such as an old PC power supply, hot glue gun and a car windshield wiper motor.
    • Strips of PET plastic coiled neatly
  • The filament comes out pretty wet, and short - which is not ideal for 3D printing. PET is hygroscopic, as many printed plastics are, and each bottle only yields about 30 grams of filament. So the pieces are dried and then joined together to form one long continuous strand (which is easier to print with).
  • Once sliced, pulled, dried and joined the filament can finally be loaded onto a spool and stored in a dry-box to keep the moisture out.
  • Finally the lamp can be printed and be on its way to your shelf!
    • Image blue plastic strip hanging in front of a white wall
    A bit about me.
    Hello. I'm Keelan.

    I spent my childhood hammering scraps together and making things in the garage, which led me to decide on studying mechanical engineering at university in the hope it would lead to a career of making things out of less scrappy materials.

    But reality kicked in and bills had to be paid so I started my career in software. Even though I was lucky to work with great people, after a few years of office work I felt an urge to do something with my hands.

    So I bought a 3D printer and instead of doing something reasonable, with my limited experience I decided to print exclusively out of finicky recycled plastics. Smort.

    Then there were months of trying and, at best, seeing incremental improvements, butting up against my lack of experience and difficult materials, I finally had something I was proud of; and a process that can hopefully be used to make more things I'm proud of.

    Any more questions? maybe they've been answered here.
    Image of a man standing in front of a moving blanket.
    As with anything there are places and things could be improved. Below is a list that will be maintained to say where what the failings are and to track how and where they've been overcome.
    Things to Improve
  • Currently the tops and bottoms of the bottles end up back in recycling.
  • Lids and labels end up back in recycling / eco bricks. I'd love to make something out of the PP bottle tops.
  • Still use new plastics in the components for the light. Switches, lamp holders etc.
  • Failed prints don't have a home yet. Failed prints are used in sculptural one-off lamps where the lampshade is heated up and molded by hand into unique interesting forms.
    • If you see anything that can be done better please let me know here.
    A workshop showing a drill press with a hillside in the background./
    made by pigeons is a small-scale light producer and recycler based in Muizenberg, Cape Town.
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