Sensible uses for used chip bags?

We don't eat many bagged snacks, but Himself turned up yesterday with a mostly-eaten bag of potato crisps and shared the remains with me. Which left me with a nice big shiny bag that seemed like it should have some sort of sensible use rather than just being thrown away. I'm not even certain it can go in the recycling bins.

Anyway, I found this video for inspiration, which left me with a load more questions...



They use an iron to join the bags together. Do people still have irons? I mean, I have this one, which was in this house when we bought it and still has some old coals in it, but I've never even attempted to use it...



Is is harmful in any way to iron plastic? In the video they used a sheet of paper between the bag and the iron but would harmful chemicals be released and then breathed in? Or is it safe?

Is there another way to join them? Duct tape seems as though you'd be investing just as much new material into a project as you'd be saving by re-using the bags. Can they be sewn? Any tips on how to do that sensibly?

And then, most importantly, what actually useful things could I make out of them? If I make a survival blanket without coating it with ironed-on sheets of plastic, would it stay together? Is it worth it? What about a windscreen shield for the truck? Or lining for a haybox? Though I already have one of those so I probably don't need another... Any other ideas that are actually worth pursueing?

Is it worth asking the boys to collect any for me when they see them?

I see no reason why chip bags could not be sown.

Plastic feed bags are sown to close.

Wow, nifty ideas.

I love the idea of a foil blanket, as we've been thinking of getting some space blankets for our earthquakes kit.

I never really thought about this before as chip bags have been recyclable here for something like 20 years.  I forget what isn't recycled in other parts of the world.  But you have to take them to the depot, we can't get home pickup because they are too light weight and might litter.

Lately, I've been tempted to buy some chips as the package might be useful for diorama making https://permies.com/t/377410/art/Making-tiny-worlds-art-called

Feed bags are made of plastic mesh, they can be sewn. Chip bags are made of Mylar, which is why they are shiny inside and they don't sew, they rip really really well if you perforate them. Not sewable.
If I had a terrible urge to do something like a blanket of them I'd do double cloth layers and slip them in, but thet blanket would not be washable.

I use them to carry snacks, I put in DRY not going to go bad snacks, and fold the top them heat seal with a vacuum sealer type thing or an iron would work too.
I also have some I have put cous cous, a packet of spices, and a bouillon cube. Seal it up. When you want it, put it in a cup, cover with cold water, put a lid to keep bugs out, let it sit all night. Stir well. Breakfast. It's survival food, not exciting. Oatmeal works the same way, whatever flavors won't go bad, cold water, cover, sit overnight. No heat required.  

I wouldn't do that ironing in the house -- but right in front of an open garage-door would be OK. I wonder if it would be sturdy enough to build a winter tent out of.

In the UK it seems most crisp (chip) bags are made of Polythene with a metal (Aluminium) layer to make them more air resistant (and less recyclable ) to make the crisps last longer. Poiythene is pretty innocuous as plastics go - just a Carbon and Hydrogen chain, so unless there are additives to the plastic (like colours and demoulding agents...) any fumes given off are not worse than wood smoke. However, you wouldn't want to breathe that in either! In the website linked in the video that organises making survival blankets for people sleeping rough (crisp packet project) they suggest if you're making a whole blanket to use a special facemask, or do it in a very well ventilated area. The individual packets apparently iron together with hardly any fumes, but they then laminate them into a stronger material for the survival bags, with an extra layer of polythene either side and that may generate more fumes thus a mask/ventilation is wise.

crisp packet project items

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I'd be interested in the reflective nature of the material - good for lining a seed starting area to give seedlings more surround light. You could put some behind wall radiators (not really hot ones, like wood stoves, but ones using hot water for example) to reflect more of the heat back into the room. A windscreen shield, as Burra suggests, is another great use - they would make easy removeable sheets to stick in house windows too to reflect heat in or out depending on the season. Maybe over a greenhouse in winter to keep warmth in.... If it weren't for the likely flammability of them I'd suggest they could make good heat barriers in other parts of the house too, but I think that would be advisable only in emergency situations, not as a long term solution.

Off topic: I remember as a child we found out that if you put a crisp packet under the grill (toaster?) they would shrink and you could make miniature crisps packet badges, although I'm not sure why you would want to !!

Pearl Sutton wrote:Feed bags are made of plastic mesh, they can be sewn. Chip bags are made of Mylar, which is why they are shiny inside and they don't sew, they rip really really well if you perforate them. Not sewable.  

Mylar seems to be metallised PET (polyethylene terephthalate) which sounds scary, but is basically Carbon and Hydrogen again, but with Oxygen atoms as well. It is basically the same stuff they tend to make pop bottles from.

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It melts at a higher temperature than polythene, so would be more difficult to fuse the packets, but otherwise the comments about polythene packets would still apply. I don't think you could sandwich this with plastic so easily either since I think sheet PET is less commonly available, but maybe as mylar is stronger, it wouldn't be so neccessary?