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sisal twine
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<blockquote data-quote="cowtrek" data-source="post: 437842" data-attributes="member: 2847"><p>It doesn't "rot" in the classical definition of the word, meaning,"decomposing by the action of parasites, insects, and microbial lifeforms into it's component natural elements" (IE think of a dead cow) but it 'decomposes' chemically through the action of ultraviolet light present in sunlight degrading the plastic to the point where the polymer chains making up the plastic molecules break apart easily and the the plastic disintegrates. For an example, hang a plastic Walmart bag out on the fence in a sunny spot for a month or two and come back and pull on it... after awhile they are as brittle as paper ashes that have been burned. Plastics exposed to sunlight (actually the ultraviolet light part of sunlight) have to have UV stabilizers or inhibitors in them to hold up any length of time, elsewise the UV will start deteriorating the plastic and it will disintegrate, including poly twine. Somebody along the line figured out that if you make cheap poly twine without sunlight inhibitors that it will dry out and disintegrate like dry chaffy straw after being exposed to sunlight for a while. They then realized that they could actually sell this 'inferior' twine at a premium as self-degrading or biodegradable and thus actually charge a premium. There's probably more to it than that, as they probably actually put some chemicals in the plastic as it's made to accelerate the process or something, but that's the general idea. </p><p></p><p>As I said, I wasn't particularly impressed with it, because it has a lot of the same disadvantages as regular plastic twine as well as a higher price than regular poly twine but a bit cheaper than sisal, but with some of the disadvantages of sisal as well... </p><p>If it isn't exposed to sunlight it will not degrade, just as regular plastic with UV inhibitors will not. Thus I had some of this 'biodegradable' twine tangled up in some matted hay that peeled off the bottom of a bale I had unloaded in winter, that was protected from sunlight by being on the bottom of the bale when the bale was stored, and had been mixed up and covered by the muck on the bottom of the bale, and when I shredded around the barn that spring the shredder actually did pick it up and wrap it on the shaft, because it had not been exposed to UV so it hadn't disintegrated. The end that was sticking up was faded and somewhat brittle but not brittle enough, and the twine pulled out of the muck was still green (though dirty) and strong, so I had to cut it out from under the shredder anyway. BUT, in loading bales that had been baled the summer before, the twine on top of the bale would pop very easily when I was trying to load it on the trailer, because it had been exposed to the sun for two summers and was VERY dry and brittle. SO, I concluded that I could either 1) pay the most money for sisal twine that would rot and pop on BOTTOM and let the hay bales get ragged and blow on the trailer, or 2) pay a little less for 'biodegradable' plastic twine that would rot and pop on TOP and let the bales blow on the trailer, and still wrap on machinery if it was shaded on the ground, or 3) save that extra money and use the cheap regular poly twine and just use a little extra diligence in getting it off the bale and keeping it contained in as small an unloading area as possible to minimize spreading the crap around. </p><p></p><p>Oh, and BTW I have had sisal that was up off the ground where it stayed pretty dry out in the meadow get wrapped up on machinery too, and when it gets into a bearing or seal or shaft it can be just as much trouble as plastic, maybe more! Darn stuff can be VERY hard to cut because it's a little moist, but brittle enough that you can't hardly pick it out because as soon as you get a grip on it the end breaks off! Lesson: Sunlight 'rots' the plastic, moisture rots the sisal! </p><p></p><p>Yall take it easy! OL JR <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="cowtrek, post: 437842, member: 2847"] It doesn't "rot" in the classical definition of the word, meaning,"decomposing by the action of parasites, insects, and microbial lifeforms into it's component natural elements" (IE think of a dead cow) but it 'decomposes' chemically through the action of ultraviolet light present in sunlight degrading the plastic to the point where the polymer chains making up the plastic molecules break apart easily and the the plastic disintegrates. For an example, hang a plastic Walmart bag out on the fence in a sunny spot for a month or two and come back and pull on it... after awhile they are as brittle as paper ashes that have been burned. Plastics exposed to sunlight (actually the ultraviolet light part of sunlight) have to have UV stabilizers or inhibitors in them to hold up any length of time, elsewise the UV will start deteriorating the plastic and it will disintegrate, including poly twine. Somebody along the line figured out that if you make cheap poly twine without sunlight inhibitors that it will dry out and disintegrate like dry chaffy straw after being exposed to sunlight for a while. They then realized that they could actually sell this 'inferior' twine at a premium as self-degrading or biodegradable and thus actually charge a premium. There's probably more to it than that, as they probably actually put some chemicals in the plastic as it's made to accelerate the process or something, but that's the general idea. As I said, I wasn't particularly impressed with it, because it has a lot of the same disadvantages as regular plastic twine as well as a higher price than regular poly twine but a bit cheaper than sisal, but with some of the disadvantages of sisal as well... If it isn't exposed to sunlight it will not degrade, just as regular plastic with UV inhibitors will not. Thus I had some of this 'biodegradable' twine tangled up in some matted hay that peeled off the bottom of a bale I had unloaded in winter, that was protected from sunlight by being on the bottom of the bale when the bale was stored, and had been mixed up and covered by the muck on the bottom of the bale, and when I shredded around the barn that spring the shredder actually did pick it up and wrap it on the shaft, because it had not been exposed to UV so it hadn't disintegrated. The end that was sticking up was faded and somewhat brittle but not brittle enough, and the twine pulled out of the muck was still green (though dirty) and strong, so I had to cut it out from under the shredder anyway. BUT, in loading bales that had been baled the summer before, the twine on top of the bale would pop very easily when I was trying to load it on the trailer, because it had been exposed to the sun for two summers and was VERY dry and brittle. SO, I concluded that I could either 1) pay the most money for sisal twine that would rot and pop on BOTTOM and let the hay bales get ragged and blow on the trailer, or 2) pay a little less for 'biodegradable' plastic twine that would rot and pop on TOP and let the bales blow on the trailer, and still wrap on machinery if it was shaded on the ground, or 3) save that extra money and use the cheap regular poly twine and just use a little extra diligence in getting it off the bale and keeping it contained in as small an unloading area as possible to minimize spreading the crap around. Oh, and BTW I have had sisal that was up off the ground where it stayed pretty dry out in the meadow get wrapped up on machinery too, and when it gets into a bearing or seal or shaft it can be just as much trouble as plastic, maybe more! Darn stuff can be VERY hard to cut because it's a little moist, but brittle enough that you can't hardly pick it out because as soon as you get a grip on it the end breaks off! Lesson: Sunlight 'rots' the plastic, moisture rots the sisal! Yall take it easy! OL JR :) [/QUOTE]
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