Quick Project: How To Upcycle a Food Can into a Cheese Grater
It's amazing how clever people are becoming with recycling, and this project to turn a tin can into a cheese grater is simply creative brilliance.
29/05/2020
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Crafters and DIY enthusiasts are coming up with brilliant ideas when it comes to recycling tin cans, like this cheese grate made by recycling a food can. Designed to be practical but also to look good, these cheese graters are simply wonderful in a new way of recycling tin cans. You can see more of Antonio Arico's rustic designs on their website.
Making your own cheese grater using a clean food can is a quick and easy project that only requires a drill / driver and drill bit, and we have included a video below that takes you step-by-step through the project. The video doesn't explain how to make the decorative board for the cheese grater, but it's easy enough to see that you need to cut a couple of slots to fit the can into once cut in half, and then to drill a hole if you want to hang up your cheese grater.
YOU WILL NEED:
Ruler
Permanent marker pen
Drill / Driver
6mm HSS drill bit
Scrap piece of pine
Router and slot cutting router bit
120- and 180-grit sandpaper
HERE'S HOW:
1. Wash the can and wipe dry and then use a ruler to mark the locations for the holes to be drilled using a marker pen. There's no rule here but consider how a conventional grater is set out and see the video below for more details.
2. Drill the holes with a 6mm HSS or twist bit. Take the other end of the drill bit and use to push in the top section of the hole.
3. Sand inside the can with 120-grit sandpaper. DO wear safety gloves when doing this. Rinse and dry the can again before use.
4. To make the holder, first cut the can in half using a Dremel Multitool or similar cutting tool. Measure the width of the can and choose a piece of scrap wood slighter wider than this, as per the images above and below.
5. Use a router and slot cutting bit to cut grooves into which the can will fit. When the grater needs to be cleaned it can be easily slid out of the grooves.
Check out the video below for step-by-step instructions for making a cheese grater by recycling a food can.