Manual Rubbing (For Small Quantities)
If you only need a small amount of beads for a craft project, you can break the foam down by hand.
- Wire Brush or Rasp: Rubbing a block of polystyrene against a rough metal rasp, a coarse wire brush, or a piece of heavy-grit sandpaper will quickly break the bonds holding the beads together.
- Manual Friction: Rubbing two blocks of expanded polystyrene together over a deep container will cause the individual beads to pull away from each other and drop into the bucket.
- Note: This method creates a massive amount of static electricity, causing the lightweight beads to cling to your hands, clothes, and nearby surfaces.
DIY Foam Crushers: For home or small-shop use, you can build or buy a small EPS grinder that uses a series of pins, dull blades, or textured rollers. Instead of cutting the foam into jagged flakes, it gently tears the blocks apart along their natural structural boundaries, popping out perfectly rounded beads.