Most people get this wrong: you can’t glue recycled plastic panels together.
Turns out—you can. You just need the right process.
Our Head of Production Peter teaches you how to glue Cleanstone. But honestly whānau I'm not happy about this...he's stealing my job...
Anyways, here's howyou can bond Critical. Cleanstone (our 100% recycled plastic panels).
• Clean it properly. Acetone removes release agents still sitting on the panel.
• Protect the surface. Tape around the edges so you don’t scuff the face.
• Rough it up. Sand with 120-grit in a cross-hatch pattern until the surface is dull.
• Prime it. A light coat of Permabond POP primer sets the bond.
• Glue it. Use a standard off the shelf, plastics compatible thick super glue—not the thin, runny kind.
• Finish it. A bead of glue around the edges creates a clean gasket.
That’s it. Even after a minutes, you’ve got a bond that holds.
But before you do this, consider at the end of life, you can only send panels back to Critical. for recycling because only we can work with the glue contamination.
With most fit-outs only last 5–7 years before being ripped out and sent to landfill, Every time you can repair, re-use, or bond materials instead of replacing them, we cut waste and carbon.
Research shows construction and demolition waste makes up 50% of total landfill in New Zealand. Small steps—like learning how to maintain and repair materials for reuse—have a massive impact on reducing that number.
So next time someone tells you “you can’t glue recycled plastic,” you’ll know better.
Would you try this in your next project?
Follow me if you want more practical ways to design and build with low-carbon materials. Or head to criticaldesign.nz to see how Cleanstone is already being used in schools, retail, and workplaces across Aotearoa.
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