Non-motoring > Repairing polypropylene Miscellaneous
Thread Author: WillDeBeest Replies: 14
View Threaded 

New Fri 13 Sep 13 15:36 
 Repairing polypropylene - WillDeBeest
Mrs Beest dropped the lid of our ostensibly metal kettle. The lid survived but the finger grip for pulling it out broke off. The lid is actually a plastic disc with a metal edge that clips into the body of the kettle, and the recycling code is PP, which I take to be polypropylene.

Now I have various glues around the house and garage, some of them especially for plastics, but none of them claims to be able to stick polypropylene and most specifically exclude it. So what's my best bet?

What is actually broken are two little tubular protrusions through which pass the screws that secure the finger grip. Would melting the plastic a little with a soldering iron (if I can find mine; haven't seen it since we moved house) be better than anything chemical?
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 15:41 
 Repairing polypropylene - Fursty Ferret
It's a thermoplastic so don't see why not, though you'd be better using a hair dryer or heat gun over a soldering iron.

Sugru (Google it) is a handy way to fix awkward stuff provided you were given Play-Doh as a kid.
Reply to this message | Report message
      1  
New Fri 13 Sep 13 15:50 
 Repairing polypropylene - WillDeBeest
Ah, that's the stuff whose inventor I heard talking to Peter Day on R4 the other week. I was driving and didn't catch the name of the product, so I'll investigate. And yes - Play Doh, Plasticine, that funny red self-setting clay...did them all.
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 17:03 
 Repairing polypropylene - CGNorwich
£11 !!!!

You can get a new kettle for less


Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 17:07 
 Repairing polypropylene - Runfer D'Hills
>>You can get a new kettle for less



Not one a gentleman, ( LEC owner ) would buy though, one would imagine anyway...might be wrong of course...

( sniff )

:-)
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 17:53 
 Repairing polypropylene - CGNorwich
"Not one a gentleman,"

I guess this is more your sort of thing. ;-)


www.johnlewis.com/sage-by-heston-blumenthal-the-tea-maker-kettle-silver/p489169#tabinfo-ratings
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 17:09 
 Repairing polypropylene - Haywain
Be careful if you wave a heat gun anywhere near plastics. When my water butt developed a fine crack in the bottom, I thought by the gentle application of heat, I could get the two sides to melt together. Nothing happened until, suddenly, the plastic on the two sides shrank and a great chasm opened up - thereby ensuring no chance of a repair and a visit to the dump.
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 18:10 
 Repairing polypropylene - WillDeBeest
Funny you should mention that, CG. I was browsing idly for possible replacements today and came across the same thing. Not for the kitchen but as a bedroom tea device it has much to commend it - just not the price.
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 18:37 
 Repairing polypropylene - CGNorwich
A "bedroom tea device" Good God man, that's what servants are for.
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 18:52 
 Repairing polypropylene - Runfer D'Hills
Goblin teasmaid...
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 19:35 
 Repairing polypropylene - Fullchat
You could try some of this: www.repairproducts.co.uk/page20.htm

or this but it is black: www.consumablesexpress.co.uk/adhesives/q-bond-adhesive?gclid=CK7H66uBybkCFebJtAodaykAwg

I've had some good results on motorcycle plastics. Even the glue in the kits is better than Superglue.

But by the time you have had the stuff delivered you are near to the price of a new kettle.
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 19:36 
 Repairing polypropylene - bathtub tom
>> Goblin teasmaid...

They're alright, but I've found you can't get replacement teapot lids any more - unless anyone knows otherwise?
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Fri 13 Sep 13 20:07 
 Repairing polypropylene - Dave
Nothing will stick (glue) PP, so you can only use heat to melt and weld.
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Sat 14 Sep 13 11:42 
 Repairing polypropylene - WillDeBeest
Had a closer look this morning and concluded that the broken surfaces are too small for glue (if there was one) or melting / welding to form a strong enough bond. But I also reckoned that if the screws had been 5mm longer, the grip probably wouldn't have snapped off in the first place. So I found some that are and screwed them into the body of the grip. Result: probably more solid now than when it was new.

Kitchen sorted. Now where can I try one of those Blumenthal tea machines?
}:---) ~D)
Reply to this message | Report message
       
New Sat 14 Sep 13 12:42 
 Repairing polypropylene - madf
Plastic Padding (for mending water pipes) is excellent. Mended a split at the bottom of our greenhouse 45 gallon plastic drum with it 25 years ago. Despite overwintered full of water - which frequently all freezes- lasted until 2009.Did it again - expect it will last a similar period.

Disadvantages, grey and a wet mix so need to be constrained by masking tape, smoothed down carefully and painted( as it is grey)
Last edited by: madf on Sat 14 Sep 13 at 12:42
Reply to this message | Report message
       
Latest Forum Posts