These guys were at the "Sacred Craft " show in Ventura. I spoke with Steve Cox and he showed me their very unique program of recycling PU foam dust into new blanks. If you want to think green, this is one way to reduce wastes going into landfills while recouping money for stuff you throw away.
Steve explained to me that for every 50 lbs of PU foam dust I accumulate (sorry, no mixing EPS with that), Green Foam Blanks can produce about 5 blanks! Now the number varies due to size of blanks desired. He had some blanks there as well as some nice looking “Lost” boards made from the foam. They also have a program where they will take old team boards and recycle them into foam.
The latter part of this statement runs contrary to what the “4th Annual Green Issue of Surfing Magazine” states that: “Neither PU nor EPS foam is recyclable once it’s in the composite structure of surfboard”.
Not true!
Curiously enough, this statement appears after they present a full page 70 “At Random” on “Mad Scientist Joey Santley” of Green Foam Blanks. So kudos for promoting awareness but a slight flub in the process.
With all the hoopla about MDI Cane and soy based foam, the virtues of sustainable bamboo and hemp products, corn based resin, linseed, and other eco friendly and/or sustainable products, THESE GUYS DESERVE A LOOK.
There is some question as to if these guys are still around. They were working with Scott at Just Foam who is in the process of relocating offshore. Surfding who posts regularly on Sway’s stated that he hasn’t been able to get hold of them for weeks.
Let’s hope this green approach didn’t go brown and die like spots in my lawn.
This approach is unprecedented toward a greener (or sustainable) approach in our industry. It is right in order with the recycling of oil or grease from kitchens to be used as bio diesel in cars, and then some. considering the high degree of cnc machining in today’s surfboard industry, the vac systems diverting the foam to collector bags makes recycling a no brainer.
I would think Obama bucks should be readily available to expand this eco responisble buiness. I’m also wondering if anyone out there has used Resin X that claims no VOC’s in their system, and availability and price info.
Since I posted this announcement, I have not been able to get a response from these guys. Surfding also hasn’t rec’d any responses to calls he made over the past month. Anyone else have any luck?
Green Foam is alive and well. There is no mystery to the Blank at Michaels shop- I brought that blank to Michael for Scott Storm to get a board shaped- Scott has been MIA- so Michael has not shaped it.
I personally spoke to Michael the other day about the blank- so there is no Mystery. I just signed up fpr swaylocks because I saw these posts and wanted to make sure you can get in touch.
Just this week 20 Mayhem Green Foam boards were shaped. We made another bright yellow one for Kolohe Andino that will be in the water in a few days.
Wardo, Cory Lopez, Donovan F, and many others ar riding Green Foam. So please contact any of them to get REAL input about the quality of Green Foam Blanks- They will be happy to speak to you.
So- If any of you have any questions about Green Foam- Please contact me directly - get a blank- shape it and see for yourselves what it is about. We are expanding internationally- and we could use your support.
You will find our G products in the GREEN ROOM Stores- Do some research and look at the retail business model of the future.
Our efforts represent exactly that--- Efforts- to make our industry a cleaner one- We are not wiling to wait for a government mandate to find better solutions- we are doing it because we are surfers and we care more about the environment than a clean white board. We as an industry can do better- We as a company are trying to do better. We - as individuals- need your help.
GF…thank you for responding. Of all the responsible approaches toward making our industry ‘greener’, your’s tops the list. I’ve seen piles of bagged foam dust sitting in the trash or going into dumpsters from high volume shops and now there is NO REASON to do so. This isn’t too different from a friend of mine that gets used grease from bakers to run his car.
Although my production is small compared to the corporate based factories, I am still developing my lean manufacturing approach and your business dovetails beautifully with that concept.
Thanks again for your update. The big question people want to know is how much a blank costs for this approach once you turn in your fifty lbs. of foam dust? What is the cost for a 6’3" blank once recycled…where is the info for blank choices, stringers, delivery? …and the rest? How does the progam work?
I bought a bunch of Green Foam blanks after they went out of business. But, full of bubbles, glue chunks, stringer wood chunks, etc. not worth the effort, even though they were dirt cheap. Maybe recycled eps is better, I dunno. Seems like there would be similar problems?
If you return your eps dust/fragments/offcuts to a blower they can put them back into “non-virgin” foam. We manage to recycle about 60-70 percent of our waste foam.
