Although many capsule manufacturers have developed strategies to give a second life to the plastics used to make these capsules, many of these capsules end up in the landfill.
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Should I reuse coffee capsules?
Some creative people have used social media to share different ways of reusing or even making homemade capsules to reduce waste.
Alternatives to reusing coffee capsules
There are many alternatives to these capsules on the internet, here is a list of the best options.
Use of old capsules
Some creative people have discovered that they can reuse coffee pods with a few simple steps.
Materials for reusing capsules
- Aluminum
- Two capsules of any brand
- Ground coffee of your choice
Process for recycling capsules
This procedure is one of the most complex, but also one of the most effective. You should only follow the following steps:
- You must completely clean one of the pods by cutting off the bottom of the pod and cleaning it thoroughly to remove flavors and odors and removing the aluminum cap from the top.
- Then reassemble the capsule. There are two possibilities. Either you cut off the bottom of the other capsule as well, or you cut some aluminum to complete that part. If you use aluminum, you can punch small holes with a pen so that the coffee can flow through.
- Once the capsule is fully assembled, you can add the coffee of your choice.
- When the lower part is assembled, one can seal the capsule.
If you have followed all the steps, you can use the capsule as usual and enjoy your coffee.
Make homemade capsules
Although it sounds difficult to make homemade coffee pods, it’s actually very easy and here we explain everything you need to do.
Materials for making homemade capsules
For this alternative you should have the following materials available
- Cooking paper or filter paper
- 1 flat scoop (the size of the capsules)
- A glass that fits on the measuring spoon
- Ground coffee of your choice
How to make the homemade capsules
- To make homemade capsules, you should follow the steps below.
- In the measuring spoon you need to put the paper filter.
- Then put the coffee of your choice in the paper filter.
- Smooth the surface of the coffee with the help of the glass.
- Finally, close the paper filter
This is a simple and very quick way to replace coffee capsules.
Specialized manufacturer of sustainable capsules
There are capsule manufacturers who want to solve the pollution problem and therefore have developed stainless steel capsules. These capsules can be easily washed and reused.
Stop using disposable capsules?
Negative aspects of capsule reuse
Many of the above solutions can have a positive impact on the environment. However, you should be aware that these practices (with the exception of metal capsules) can affect the performance of your capsule coffee machine, so it is not recommended to use any of these methods frequently.
A positive aspect of reusing capsules
When you make your own coffee pods, you can choose the variety or even make the blends you want.
Metal capsules are an excellent option as they are specially designed for our coffee machines. However, they are subject to availability, i.e. the manufacturer must produce capsules specifically for your coffee machine, as not all of them work in our coffee machine.
Conclusion
Finding alternatives to capsule pollution is an excellent idea, but in the end, and thanks to the coffee machine manufacturers, rather complicated to solve.
