Question: Could the BabyLegs DIY trawl be used to collect microplastics in my sink?

warren is asking a question about babylegs
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by warren | October 29, 2018 17:02 | #17422


Odd question, i know, but after reading this great guide on analyzing plastics forensically, I was thinking about the kinds of products we use in our homes, and if it would be possible to collect a sample before they go down the drain somehow, perhaps for comparison, and perhaps also just to see what we are potentially washing down in our own homes.

Example - could we spit sparkly toothpaste into a small version of the trawl and rinse through it to isolate plastic beads?



2 Comments

Hi Jeff, Yes! You can rig up a hacked BabyLegs to work at the start or end of pipes, from spitting to sinks to dryer vents to sewage outfalls. Really you just need the tights and a way to keep them open & in place. We've emptied tubes of facewash into the tights and run water through them to isolate microbeads before and it worked quite well.

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Would the amount of stuff collected by putting a nylon on my washer outweigh the amount it might contribute. I wonder how long it would last before needing a change?

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