The ordinary:
For those who believe that by recycling you can help save many resources of this planet, the news of creating something worthwhile from old trash crates is inspiring. It not just gives you hope but also allows you to think of better ways to do it. Every one of you must be aware of the importance of milk crates in your life, they are long lasting and super durable and thus in a way good for the environment. A typical crate has the potential to last as long as 30 years, which literally means that you need not remake them repeatedly, and thus resources of the planet are saved, but all this comes with a catch. The crates are easily recycled and new crates can be created from them, but once they reach the end of the road and end up in a dump yard or a landfill, these same milk crates create an environmental hazard, as they take thousands of years to decompose. This may not be a very concerning problem if you do not take into consideration that thousands of crates end up in the dumping yards every day. Most of it happens because people are unaware that something worthwhile and good can be created from these waste crates. Some stunning creations have been made using the same discarded crates by recycling them and constructively using them to create some ingenious structures.
Inspiration:
With the ever increasing pollution levels, there is a great need to recycle and reuse what all can be savored. The milk crates and other bottle crates are very hard to decompose and may even last a few thousand years in the soil, thus increasing the pollution levels of the environment. To keep it in check, effective measures must be taken to ensure that the crates are recycled and utilized in a manner that is less harmful for the environment and with the usage of the milk crates in making stunning architecture, you can not only better utilize these wastes but also show others an effective way to reuse what has been discarded.
The extraordinary:
The crates are primarily made from hardwood or plastic and are used for transportation of materials, especially bottles from one place to another. It is a shame that most people are still ignorant about the recycling of the waste materials. These crates can be utilized to create wonderful structures that are durable and impressively stylish and designer. The crates can be used for making small or large, permanent or temporary, public or private constructions that are very energy effective and efficient, and above all very durable.
The target group:
The construction of buildings and structures from wasted crates can be easily done by those who are environmentally conscious, have a little creativity and have lots of waste crates readily available to them.
Related trends:
The latest trends are very suitable for the usage of waste crates to make astonishing structures. Five cool structures made from the waste crates of milk and beer are listed here.
1. Slumtube
The Slumtube is a very energy efficient structure made from recycled materials. The Slumtube uses discarded Pallets and other natural materials like clay and straws, and converts them into a wonderful looking and yet very cheap house. The characteristic feature of this construction is that it only withstands high but also low temperatures. These shelters are both durable and weather proof and can last for a real long time.
2. Green-walled living pavilion
This awesome architectural and artistic feat was a result of many waste old crates and a tinge of ingenuity. This displays not just recycling but also greenery and clearly sends a message of living in a cleaner and greener planet by preserving what all can be saved. The structure is over 10 feet tall and gives you a perfect place to relax on a sunny day. The crates were purchased from old customers who had discarded them as useless. The undersides of the crates are utilized to grow Liriope grass, which can easily thrive in shade and gives the entire structure a natural green appearance. The design is very environment friendly and is very pleasing to the eye.
3. Milk carton castle in Granada
The Milk Carton Castle utilizes more than 50,000 recycled milk cartons in a sprawling area to create a life size castle. It is perhaps the biggest recycled material made structure ever made. It has even turned into a sort of tourist attraction as people flock to see it. The scale of the structure is so large that when viewed from a distance, it looks like a real castle (only a little smaller in size). The largest tower of this castle measures an impressive 29m in length and 1407m in width.
4. Pallet house
The Pallet House has been designed by Pils Gregor and Andreas Claus, both students of the University of Vienna. The Pallet house has been constructed by recycling used pallets. The house is very energy efficient, modular, and very affordable. It is perhaps one of the most promising low-cost housing that is really durable and easy to make. The house was first made in 2008 in the Gaudi European Student Competition and has ever since become very popular and has been presented in many more shows and competitions as a perfect model and cheap house. The Pallet house is very easy to construct and thrives on a very simple and realistic design. It is also very easy to relocate from one place to another and thus suitable as a mobile home too.
5. Boxel Pavilion
This is a truly stunning marvel, unbelievably made from recycled waste crates. It proves that with proper engineering and ingenuity, even waste beer crates can be transformed into something so wonderful. It has been constructed using more than 2000 beer crates and surprisingly requires very less floor space and has been designed specifically to use minimum possible surface to project a superb design with the usage of proper lightening. This marvel was not very easy to design and required several connection and load tests to be performed by the engineering team. The crates are held together in position by means of simple screws and slats. The entire Boxel Pavilion was constructed by engineers in merely a week.