How to create your own string of plastic bottles

Guest Blogger – Clare

Plastic bottle strings are in vogue here at DPPEA. The strings are going out all across the state to organizations publicizing the plastic bottle ban going into effect Oct. 1. Can’t get your hands on one or want to make one for your own use? Here’s how DPPEA made them:

Items you’ll need: 30-50 plastic bottles, power drill, fishing line, croquet needles or wooden skewers, duct/scotch tape and large plastic bags.

1. Clean and dry the plastic bottles. Methods we’ve used: hand dipping them in large bowls of water or in a bathtub and laying them outside on the grass to dry.

2. Using the drill, make a quarter inch hole in the bottom of each plastic bottle. You can toss the caps if you haven’t already.

3. Measure out about 25 feet of fishing line per string (note: 50 feet of plastic bottles equals one second of plastic bottles trashed in North Carolina). We usually get around 27 bottles on each 25 foot piece of line, hence the statistic “North Carolinian’s throw away 100 plastic bottles per second.”

4. Using a square knot (http://www.ehow.com/how_7536_tie-square-knot-properly.html) tie one end of the fishing line around your needle/skewer.

5. Connecting the line to the first bottle is the tricky part. We have a knot specialist on hand ready to connect the line to the first bottle. He starts by inserting the skewer (with the line attached) into the bottle mouth and out the drilled hole, then by tying the line (using a square knot) to the bottle’s mouth. However, if this is as complicated for you as it is for me, I suggest getting crafty and using duct tape or by maybe tying one end of the line to the skewer and the other end tied tightly around the bottle’s mouth.

6. Once your first bottle is tied, proceed to “string” the remaining bottles by inserting the skewer into the drilled hole and out the bottle’s mouth.

7. Towards the end of the string, leave enough room for you to tie the end of the string to the last bottle’s mouth (again, you can use a square knot or your old friend duct tape). You also want to leave a little slack here so the bottles are not extremely taught, otherwise they will be difficult to transport.

8. We put the completed strings into oversized plastic bags or clear garbage bags to leave room for the bottles to fold up onto each other.

Now you have your very own plastic bottle string! Spice yours up by alternating green and clear plastic bottles or making the drilled holes larger and stringing the bottles with Christmas tree lights! Just don’t’ forget to let your audience know about the plastic bottle ban!