Recycled nappies make laminate flooring insulation

A pilot scheme is currently trialling how to recycle nappies to save them from being dumped in landfills. The Pura NappiCycle project collects nappies and other hygiene products from Bristol and takes them to South Wales to be processed into fibre materials used for panelling, notice boards and under-laminate-flooring insulation.

The scheme is a partnership between nappy maker Pura and NappiCycle. Guy Fennell, the founder of Para, explains that the number of disposable nappies which end up in UK landfills every year is around three billion; these can take centuries to break down. He wants the government and businesses to invest in the expansion of NappiCycle. Fennell says:

"The success of this phase of the trial is just the start – we want to bring this nappy recycling service to households throughout the UK."

NappiCycle and Pura have agreed on a five-year plan to launch more large-scale trials in the hope of developing the recycling technology to break down all absorbent hygiene products.

Households that install laminate flooring in North Wales could soon be using insulation materials made from recycled nappies. High-quality laminate flooring insulation helps keep the floor warm and adds an extra layer of cushioning that feels comfortable underfoot. Laminate flooring insulation is available from various reliable providers.

Although laminate flooring insulation often contains recycled materials, only a few types of them currently incorporate this new technology. However, that could soon change as nappy recycling schemes are expanded.

Modern manufacturing technologies have made up to 85% of the materials in modern laminate flooring recyclable.