How to bend acrylic glass at home. How to bend glass at home. Recycling or recycling glass at home

Those novice masters who will have to work with organic glass, are wondering how to bend plexiglass at home without compromising its technical characteristics.

Plexiglas is a popular material that is used when carrying out finishing works indoors and when decorating furniture.

Plexiglas is a popular material that is used for interior finishing work and furniture finishing. Using this material, you can add uniqueness to any interior. You can easily make photo frames and transparent cases for various devices from plexiglass at home.

The use of this material is due to the presence of a whole range of advantages over ordinary glass. The main ones are the following:

• low density compared to silicate glass;
• the material is less fragile due to the presence of an amorphous structure;
• high resistance to weathering;
• high impact resistance;
• the polymer is a non-splintering material;
• high level of transparency;
• the ability to change the shape of the workpiece.

All these properties have determined the wide popularity in the use of this material both in everyday life and in industry.

What parameters should be taken into account when bending glass?

Plexiglas is a thermoplastic material, which ensures that it acquires plasticity when heated. Organic glass during its production process can be formed under the influence of various temperature conditions, which determines the method of its manufacture.

The difficulty of carrying out the process of bending a workpiece to the required angle lies in the specific use of a source of thermal influence on the material. When carrying out the bending process, the direction of action should be taken into account heat flow from a heat source.

The difficulty of bending organic glass lies in obtaining a bend at a predetermined angle in the required location of the workpiece. To simplify the bending operation, it is best to use a directional flow source warm air for heating and imparting plasticity to the deformation site on the surface of the workpiece.

To prevent the formation of bubbles during bending, proper drying should be carried out before performing the operation of deforming the workpiece. Before performing the operation, you should practice on a small piece of organic piece.

If a blowtorch is used in the glass bending process, you can quickly heat the plexiglass to the required temperature to give it the necessary plasticity. To give the required bending angle, you can use a pipe of the required diameter as a mandrel.

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Principles of bending organic glass

To bend the workpiece, it is best to use a heat source that has a narrowly directed air flow.

Such sources can be a blowtorch, a gas burner, construction hair dryer with the appropriate nozzle. You can use weak heat sources, located linearly, to warm up the bend line.

In the absence of a narrowly targeted heat source, you can use a material with a low thermal conductivity. This material will be required for insulation from thermal effects. For this purpose, plexiglass on the side of the warm air flow is insulated with heat-insulating material, leaving a narrow strip open at the point of bending. Applicable thermal insulation material must be non-flammable. Asbestos sheets can be used for the protective layer. It is best to use various templates in the process of bending the workpiece to give the workpiece the required bend. Various metal pipes, corners and similar blanks can be used as templates.

After bending the plexiglass is completed, smooth cooling of the workpiece should be ensured. This is required to minimize the occurrence internal tension. After this, it is necessary to warm the workpiece to a temperature of 60-80°C for several hours to completely relieve the stress.

If nichrome wire is used to heat the glass, it may sag as a result of heating and increase the distance to the workpiece. This disadvantage can be compensated by using weights that allow the wire to be constantly in tension.

When carrying out the bending process, you should not put excessive pressure on the glass, as this may cause incorrect deformation.

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Method of bending organic glass

To carry out the glass bending procedure, you will need to be patient and careful; in addition, you should know how to bend plexiglass correctly in accordance with technological requirements requirements for the operation.

When carrying out work, you will need to have available following materials, tools and accessories:

• metal pipe or corner as a template;
• nichrome wire;
• blowtorch;
• Workbench;
• source of electrical energy.

When carrying out the procedure of bending organic glass, several technological steps should be performed. The main stages of the operation are:

• cleaning the workpiece;
• drying the workpiece;
• fixing the workpiece with tension on the nichrome wire;
• heating the workpiece and deforming it according to the requirements.

Before carrying out work, clean the surface of the workpiece from possible contamination.

Before carrying out work, clean the surface of the workpiece from possible contamination. The glass should be thoroughly cleaned of dust. In the presence of heavy pollution the glass should be washed. Then it is dried using cotton cloth. It is prohibited to carry out cleaning operations using abrasive agents. If there is contamination on the surface in the form of oil or grease stains, cleaning is carried out using gasoline or kerosene. The use of substances such as acetone or solvent during the cleaning process is prohibited, as they can damage the workpiece.

After cleaning the surface of the material, the plexiglass is thoroughly dried at a temperature of 80°C for one to two hours for each millimeter of material thickness. With a workpiece thickness of 3 mm, drying should be carried out for three to six hours.

After drying, the organic glass is fixed on a workbench, the place of future bending is heated using nichrome wire. The wire should be fixed at a distance of 0.5 cm from the workpiece. After heating the bending area, bending is carried out. If it is necessary to maintain the bending radius, appropriate mandrels are used.

Plexiglas, although durable, is a completely plastic material. It is this property that allows you to change it appearance, giving ordinary parts new forms. Often it is enough to simply bend the material, turning the plate into a three-dimensional figure. And usually, there are no difficulties with how to bend plexiglass at home, in the garage, in any workshop, and even in nature.

Basic rules you should know

Plexiglas is a thermoplastic material, and thanks to this it is able to change its shape. But if you want to bend it in only one place, local heating is necessary. The width of the area where it is produced should be several times greater than the thickness of the material. To ensure this, they use various ways.

How to bend plexiglass

Let's assume that we have a heat source, now we can start bending the plexiglass. But first you need to clean its surface. Dust and dirt, oil and grease stains must be removed from it. Do not use aggressive or abrasive substances. Oily stains clean with gasoline or kerosene. After washing or being in a humid environment, the material must be dried at the rate of 1-2 hours for each millimeter of thickness. It is worth considering that if cleaning is carried out poorly, then in the future air bubbles may form in places of deformation.

Now they mark the line of the future fold and begin to warm it up. When plexiglass heats up, it becomes plastic and can be bent. This is usually done according to some kind of template. So, you can bend plexiglass into a pipe if it is to be used as a frame. Various techniques showing how to do the job are shown in the pictures.

Nichrome thread is often used to heat plexiglass. How to bend plexiglass using this approach is shown in the video:

In this case, you will additionally have to use some kind of voltage source to heat the wire. Another way to bend plexiglass is using gas burner- shown here:

Remember the main rule: to bend plexiglass, it should be softened in in the right place. How this is done does not matter; the heat source can be anything.

Changing the shape of the same plexiglass is quite simple. A little effort, and its usual strip will turn into convenient stand or take any form you need. All you need to do is heat the future bend to the required temperature.

Modern organic glass, due to its properties, has gained great popularity in various industries and in everyday life. It is successfully used in the automotive industry, in the production of greenhouse structures, interior doors, advertising structures, individual elements building facades, various designs in the radio-electronic industry. Due to its light transmittance and large color scheme it is made from various lamps production and household use(flashing lights, running lights).

Main features of working with organic glass

To achieve good results when working with bending organic glass, you should take into account its features. They will allow you to get rid of possible defects and waste of material. Bending plexiglass at home is not a complicated operation.

When choosing a material, it is necessary to clean the workpiece, it is better to rinse it clean water and remove all small particles that are on the surface. This occurs due to education electric charge on a surface. It is necessary to avoid the use of any abrasive materials, even the smallest fractions. This will lead to a significant decrease in the transparency of the future part. After washing, professionals allow the organic glass to dry for 24 hours, preferably at room temperature. If time is limited, you can use a hair dryer. In this case, it is necessary to observe the thermal regime. The temperature of the directed air flow should not exceed 80 °C. For getting good result use an empirical approach that allows drying times to be calculated. According to this approach, you need to spend one hour for every millimeter of glass thickness. Therefore, if the glass is 3 mm thick, it must be dried for at least three hours.

After drying, you can begin work. However, it should be remembered that it is more expedient to heat the required area on the opposite side from the bend surface. If you need to get a given internal corner, warm up outside glass

The heating temperature must be taken into account. Plexiglas like material made from organic compounds, can not only heat up, but melt and even catch fire. Professionals advise maintaining the heating temperature at approximately 150 °C. If, in addition to the task of changing the surface configuration, there is a need to fill a certain form organic glass, it must be heated to a temperature of more than 170 ° C.

An important feature is the need to heat an area of ​​organic glass that is three times the thickness of the glass. When bending glass 4 mm thick, a strip 12 mm wide should be heated. For material with a thickness of more than 5 mm, it is necessary to heat it on both sides along the line of the planned bend.

After completion of the work, it is necessary to cool the part without using quick ways cooling (flow cold water or air). Such haste can lead to the formation of internal cracks, bubbles, and deformation. Therefore, to obtain the required bending angle, it is necessary to carefully follow the technological sequence.

Methods for bending organic glass

The most well-known principles for bending plexiglass are:

1. Using a hair dryer.
2. Bending in hot water(by boiling method).
3. Using special nichrome wire.
4. Using a metal pipe.

It is advisable to divide the entire technological process into two stages. The first stage is the so-called preparatory stage, the second is the main stage, the bending process itself.

Preparatory stage

This stage involves preparation the necessary tool and the workpiece itself.

Depending on which method is chosen, the following tools and equipment will be required:

• a vice or several clamps for securing the workpiece;
• manual or mechanical cutting tool(this could be a hacksaw, an electric jigsaw);
• form for bending (usually a metal pipe is used, wooden block, tabletop or other equipment capable of providing the required bending radius);
• abrasive material for smoothing the edges of the structure;
• water container;
• source electric current(can be variable or constant);
• soft liners to prevent mechanical marks from a vice or clamps on the surface of the part.

Any operation of bending organic glass involves heating it. This can be heating the immediate bend or the entire part, if its dimensions are not large. For these purposes they use various sources heat.

Using a hair dryer

If it is necessary to bend a large piece of organic glass or a fairly long part, a powerful hair dryer is used as a heat source. Its power should be such that it allows heating a sufficiently large area of ​​the part.

The sheet is clamped in a vice, or if this is not possible due to large sizes use several clamps. With their help, it is fixed to the tabletop. Celebrate future line fold and gradually carefully warm up the area adjacent to the line of the future fold with a stream of hot air. After softening this area of ​​plexiglass, bend it to the required angle. The resulting part is cooled naturally for the required time.

Bending in hot water (boiling method)

This method is considered by professionals to be the simplest and least energy-consuming. To implement it, practically no special tool is required.

Its implementation is as follows:

• the prepared container with water is heated so that the water begins to boil (the size of the container is chosen so that it can be used to freely work with the workpiece);
• V boiled water lower the plexiglass part and hold it there for five minutes (the time depends on the thickness of the part);
• After the workpiece is well heated, it is necessary to remove it and give it the required shape.

The peculiarity of this method is that you have to work with a fully heated workpiece. Therefore, it is necessary to provide methods of protection against high temperatures.

Using special nichrome wire

This method is considered the most technologically advanced. To implement it, a special nichrome wire and a constant voltage source are used. The power of the source must ensure heating of this wire to the required temperature.

The process itself is implemented in several stages.

1. The workpiece must be thoroughly dried. Without this operation, moisture bubbles may form in the bend areas, which can cause damage. Negative influence for strength at the bending point, will reduce transparency and significantly worsen the appearance. Drying must be done in accordance with the recommendations given earlier.
2. The finished part is fixed on the surface of the workbench. Nichrome wire is pulled over the intended bend line. The height from the surface of organic glass should not exceed five millimeters. It is not advisable to apply preliminary markings to the sheet with a pencil, marker, or other dyes. Heating the bend can cause the dye to diffuse into surface layer organic glass. It is almost impossible to remove such a strip.
3. The wire is connected to the source direct current. It will be more convenient to work if the source is adjustable. In this case, there is the possibility of a gradual increase in the strength of the electric current passing through the filament, and therefore a gradual increase in the filament temperature. It is necessary to achieve a heating temperature of approximately 150 °C. It is from this temperature that deformation of organic glass occurs.
4. Having reached this temperature, the bend line will become plastic and part of the sheet will begin to bend downward under its own weight. All that remains is to give the workpiece the required angle. After completing the process you must give finished part cool down.

Using a metal pipe

This method is used if it is necessary to give the workpiece not just a bend, but a certain radius of curvature, and is also applicable at home. In this case, the workpiece of the required radius is used metal pipe. To carry out the operation, either the pipe itself or the bend is heated using a powerful soldering iron with a wide tip or a blowtorch.

Implementation sequence technological process as follows:

1. A cold sheet of organic glass is placed on top of a pre-fixed pipe. Mark the starting point of the bend.
2. With help blowtorch or soldering iron gradually heat the bend area. When the material becomes soft, manually carefully turn the sheet along the pipe, bending it to the desired angle. Using a soldering iron allows you to heat the bending area to the maximum temperature. This moment is easily determined by the crackling sound of the material.

If another option is used, the pipe is first heated and then a sheet of plexiglass is applied. A bend is made around the heated pipe.

The use of any of the listed methods involves working with such dangerous factors How:

• instruments and devices connected to high voltage;

Drawing of a bending machine for plexiglass

Therefore, in order to protect yourself during this work, you must follow safety regulations.

Advantages and disadvantages of organic glass

Organic glass has a number of advantages that have contributed to its great popularity. These include:

• has good anti-shock properties;
• relatively light weight(allows you to create complex and rather bulky structures);
• is an excellent dielectric;
• has high throughput in the entire range of the visible spectrum;
• quite resistant to atmospheric factors ( high humidity, various types precipitation, low temperatures);
• has good environmental performance (when heated, no harmful chemical elements are released);
• sufficiently high resistance to the effects of mildly aggressive agents;
• good mechanical properties(quite easy to process and deformable);
• has a wide range of colors;
• good operational safety (if damaged, no dangerous fragments are formed).

The main disadvantage of this material is its poor resistance to external influences from solid objects (scratches, cuts, and cracks quickly form). In addition, the formation of a surface electric charge due to its electrostatic properties can be considered a negative phenomenon.

Often the desire to make their home even more attractive and interesting prompts owners to use very rare and intricate materials in their work. Previously used for decoration vinyl records and metal alloys, matchboxes and scorched wood, textiles and leatherette, as well as much more: experienced master will find a use for everything. Today, polymer plexiglass has gained wide popularity, which can be used both for decorative purposes and as a material for creating intricate devices. household use. Thanks to creative approach, with skillful hands and certain knowledge, you can create truly unique objects from organic glass, which will later become your pride and decoration of your home.

A little about the material

The named material is a polymer alloy having high strength and at the same time maximum ductility (subject to use high temperatures). The composition of plexiglass includes amorphous polymers, which mainly consist of unfolded and linear macromolecules. This composition of the material allows us to achieve its absolute transparency, strength and lightness.

A new material that significantly expanded the capabilities of builders and designers

The advantages of plexiglass used as a material to create decorative elements interior are:

Therefore, organic glass is becoming increasingly in demand among jacks of all trades.

It is worth noting that completely different intricate little things can be created from plexiglass. These can be cute bookcases and fancy shelves, small aquariums or pots under houseplants, semicircular partitions in the room or simple countertops. In some cases, it may be necessary to bend the plexiglass at a given angle.

You can carry out this task at home, following the basic rules for working with plexiglass.

Several principles of working with plexiglass

Before you start melting and bending plexiglass, you need to learn several principles that will help you complete the work as efficiently as possible and without unnecessary waste of material.

• So, to form the part the right size it is necessary to cut a piece of material with the desired parameters from a whole plexiglass sheet. This will allow you to get the output economical consumption materials and higher productivity of work performed.
• For work, you must use only clean plexiglass. For these purposes, it is recommended to wash the material.

It is important not to use abrasive materials to clean plexiglass. Only a soft cloth and natural drying of the polymer fabric. Otherwise, noticeable and unsightly scratches and stains will form on the plexiglass, which spoil the appearance of the material and reduce its transparency.

• After washing the plexiglass, do not immediately begin bending work. Let the material dry. This will take at least a day in a dry room at room temperature. Or blow dry at 80 degrees Celsius.

The principle for calculating the time for drying plexiglass using a hair dryer should be as follows: 1 hour per 1 mm of material thickness in each area.

• When starting to heat plexiglass in order to deform it at the desired angle, keep in mind that heat treatment material must be carried out on the opposite side relative to the bending angle. That is, we heat the top of the material and bend it down.
• To bend plexiglass, it is enough to use a heating temperature of 150 degrees, and to melt the material and pour it into prepared forms, you need a temperature of at least 170 degrees.

Important: to properly bend plexiglass at home, you need to heat an area of ​​the material three times greater than its thickness. That is, if your plexiglass has a thickness of 3 mm, then in order to bend it evenly and beautifully, you need to heat up such an area along the line of the intended bend, the width of which will be equal to 9 mm. With this thickness of plexiglass, it will be sufficient to treat it with a heat device on one side of the material. If the thickness of the plexiglass exceeds 5 mm, then it will need to be heated on both sides along the intended fold line.

• After bending the plexiglass, it is important to let it cool naturally. Do not use water or cold air as a cooler. It may cause harm finished product in the form of cracks, bubbles, etc.

Ways to bend at home

Necessary materials

In order to give the plexiglass the desired configuration, you can use one of several popular methods:

• Heating the material using a hair dryer;
• By boiling;
• Using nichrome wire.

Depending on the method of bending plexiglass, you will need a heating element(hair dryer, nichrome wire or saucepan with boiling water). In addition, prepare:

• Hacksaw for metal;
• Vise for reliable fixation of the plexiglass plate;
• Shape for bending (pipe, block, tabletop, etc.);
• Abrasive material for grinding the edges of the product;
• A little water (to cool the material while cutting it).

Preparatory work

If your future product requires the use of a small piece of plexiglass, then you first need to cut it off from the overall fabric. To do this, securely fix the plexiglass in a vice and cut the required piece with a hacksaw. In places of fixation, do not forget to lay soft material, which will prevent damage to the plexiglass.

Can be used for cutting plexiglass hand saw, and a jigsaw

Important: use only a sharp hacksaw. Otherwise, the material may be damaged and deformed. Cool the cutting line with water while cutting plexiglass. This will avoid overheating of the plexiglass and its possible melting.

If a crack appears on the material during cutting, do not worry. You can remove it with a little trick: treat the edges of the split with chilled acetic acid. Using the method of shifting the plexiglass at the split site, allow acetic acid penetrate deeper into the pores of the material. Then squeeze the plexiglass at the crack. The material will melt and the polished crack will not be noticeable.

Bending by boiling method

This is the easiest way to bend plexiglass, requiring virtually no additional tools.

Remember to use protective gloves to avoid burns.

5. Leave the part formed from plexiglass until it cools completely.

Using a hair dryer

If you have to bend a fairly large piece of plexiglass, then use a hair dryer for this purpose. Its power will allow you to process large area organic polymer material in an extremely short time.

Using nichrome wire

Using nichrome wire carefully stretched under plexiglass, you can bend the material in a straight line without effort. To do this you need to do the following:

Video: bending plexiglass with nichrome wire

We present to your attention short video, which will clearly demonstrate how to bend plexiglass using nichrome wire.

Conventional glass, one of the most ancient and universally used materials, no matter how hard you try, cannot be bent. It will burst when heated. The situation is different with organic glass, thermoplastic transparent plastic, also called acrylic, acrylite.

In terms of its characteristics, a high-quality synthetic polymer is practically no different from ordinary glass. However, it is convenient because it can be easily bent if necessary. What needs to be done to make plexiglass change shape? Of course, heat it up. But first it must be prepared.

Drying the material

Removing moisture is necessary to avoid bending damage. The fact is that the internal structure of glass contains water particles, which, when heated, turn into a gaseous state. The appearance of air bubbles nullifies all the work and the product becomes defective. Pre-drying eliminates point accumulation of the gas mixture.

The glass is dried at a temperature of approximately 80 °C. If the element being processed small size, then at home you can use the oven. The drying time is determined based on the thickness of the heated part. So, with a value of 1 mm, plexiglass should be exposed to temperatures for one and a half hours. To dry material with other cross section time increases proportionally.

Preparing for bending

To work you will need a table or workbench. The workpiece is fixed in such a way that it can be easily bent down. For this purpose, a piece of glass is placed on the table, with a heavy load placed on top. The area subject to deformation extends further beyond the edge of the device used. The glass is prepared for bending.

Next, a heating element is taken, with the help of which the plexiglass will be bent - a nichrome wire connected to electricity through a device for regulating the current power. This could be a ballast resistor, a ballast capacitor, or a triac regulator. In addition, a metal tube heated by a burner is also suitable. The distance between the instrument and the glass should not exceed 1.5 cm.

Deformation process

A wire or tube is placed under the intended bend line and heated, respectively, with electricity or a burner. As the temperature rises, the glass begins to soften. When the material at the bending point is heated to a certain value, it itself will begin to bend under the influence of gravitational force and its own mass. There is no need to take any action. All that remains is to wait and remove the heating tool at the right moment.

In order for the glass to bend as required, a limiter should be installed. In this case, the edge being processed will rest against the device, and the curvature will reach the desired degree. If you do not take care in advance to fix the free part of the plexiglass in the appropriate position, it will be more difficult to fix the problem.

You should not rush during the process; putting pressure on the workpiece is not recommended. Bending should occur naturally to avoid defects.

How to bend plexiglass at home video