What is a Can Crusher and How Does It Work?

Recycling is an important part of managing a business’s waste disposal. And the recycling of cans is one of the recycling methods that has been around for the longest. Ensuring that we create as little waste as possible is essential for our planet right now. Every business has a duty to ensure that they do what they can to reduce their waste and recycle what they can.

A can crusher is a device designed to compress aluminum or steel cans, whether they are empty, full, half-full, line rejects, or off-date products. Its primary purpose is to facilitate easier recycling by reducing the volume of waste materials. Using a can crusher offers several advantages.

How Does a Can Crusher Work?

Can and tin crushers can be bought in a range of different sizes – suitable for a range of different sized cans from small drinks cans as used in pubs and restaurants, to large drums.

Different can crushers work in different ways. Here at QCR, we have several different-sized can crushers. These include:

The QCR 101 is suitable for crushing waste items with a volume of up to 30 litres, using pneumatic power. It can be used to crush small tins, cans, and drums up to the maximum volume and reduce the volume by up to 90%. As the crusher is pneumatically powered, there are no electric parts, so it is easy to clean and maintain. The small crusher stands upright, which means that it takes up little ground space, and also has a drain to release any residue left in the can.

The QCR 30HDXL can crusher is suitable for crushing receptacles with a volume of up to 30 litres, but instead of pneumatic power, it uses hydraulic power. This gives it a pressing force of eight tonnes and can reduce the volume of the can by 5:1. The QCR 30HDXL also has a drain that enables you to remove any residue that is left within the cans.

The QCR H3 can and bottle baler will compact cans or bottles directly into bales. As opposed to the previous models which crush each can separately, the QCR H3 crushes large amounts of cans into a bale which can then be stored on pallets and collected by your waste collection company. It uses hydraulic power to crush cans of any size with a compression ratio of up to 90%.

It can be a little trickier to crush large drums such as oil drums. The QCR 207L Drum Crusher does just the job, able to crush drums with volumes of up to 207 litres, with a drain-away function of a maximum of 35 litres. The QCR 207L Drum Crusher uses hydraulic power and has a compression ratio of 6:1.

Guide to Crushing Cans

Regardless of the size of cans that you are looking to dispose of, if you are going to use a can crusher, the process is very simple. However, before you start, you need to ensure that the operator has been properly trained on how to use it to avoid any hazards or accidents. It is also very important before you use your machine that it has been maintained properly. See our can crusher maintenance tips to help.

1. It is not essential that you clean the cans before you crush them, however, it can be a good idea to rinse them out with water first to help to protect the can crushing machine.
2. The can should then but put inside the crusher in an upright position in the way that you wish it to be crushed (with the ‘weakest edges on the sides).
3. Close the door and operate the machine to crush the can.
4. The can will then either be deposited or you can open the door to remove the crushed can.

Can crushers are suitable for a wide range of different environments, including restaurants and bars, car garages, hospitals, painting companies, and manufacturers. With a can crusher, you can dispose of your tin and can waste neatly and store it to be collected by your waste collection company. This can also help you ensure that you are recycling as much as possible.