The average person produces approximately 2.3 kg of “solid waste” or trash per day. Thankfully, you can recycle many everyday household items to help promote a cleaner, greener environment. Recycling and reusing items can help produce less waste that goes into landfills, ultimately harming our soil, air and water. We’ve come up with some helpful lifestyle tips to show you how to recycle your trash, along with which items can be recycled and which cannot. There are also some creative DIY upcycling ideas to keep you and your family busy and the planet cleaner, so read on to learn more.
How to recycle at home
The first step in recycling your trash at home is to follow the three R’s rule - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Here are some tips on how you can start practicing each of the three R’s at home.
Reduce
Plan a beach weekend getaway that includes cleaning up the shore by removing the trash you find. This is a great way to teach your family and friends about littering and ocean pollution.
Reduce your consumption of plastics by filling a reusable water bottle with tap water. You can always refill this bottle when you get thirsty instead of buying bottled water that includes plastic. Water bottles are not typically biodegradable, so they can become a serious environmental nuisance.
Avoid buying fruits or vegetables in the plastic packaging or plastic bags you see at the supermarket. Instead, bring a reusable shopping tote with you and fill it with fresh fruits and vegetables.
Try to avoid buying items that come in excessive packaging. You can also do this when sending out shipments by reusing envelopes and cardboard boxes. When you order items like clothing and shoes online, look for retailers that are committed to using less packaging too.
Reuse
When you go camping or on picnics, stock up with reusable cutlery, glasses and plates rather than using disposable items that will end up in landfill. Practice this same concept in your kitchen at home and stick to dishes and cutlery that will last for years instead of being thrown in the trash after every meal.
Say no to using plastic straws and disposable coffee cups. Instead, bring a stainless-steel insulated travel mug with a lid and a metal straw with you whenever you’re getting coffee or tea on the go.
Take into consideration there are other household items such as your mattress covers that you can reuse.
Recycle
Separate your trash by type by placing biodegradable, non-biodegradable, and other types of waste in different coloured containers at home. When you separate your items by type, it’s much easier to recycle them and keep the process smooth.
What are the materials you can recycle and how do you do it?
Glass, metal, paper and plastic are the most common items you’ll need to separate for household recycling. Here are some tips to show you the best ways to recycle these materials.
Paper
Break down and flatten cardboard boxes so you can fit more into the paper recycling container.
You can recycle virtually anything made of paper, including envelopes, wrapping paper, greeting cards, magazines and newspapers.
All sorts of cardboard can also be recycled, including toilet paper and paper towel tubes.
Glass
Glass can not only be recycled endlessly, but it also has lots of applications for reuse. Make sure you recycle glass bottles, jars and containers as often as possible since this material doesn’t break down, even after several runs through the recycling process.
Dispose of glass items safely in special glass-crushing containers whenever possible. Be careful when handling glass and wear protective gloves and eyewear if you’re handling large glass items or a lot of glass at once.
Try to keep items like windows and mirrors separated from household glass items like empty bottles and jars. Most recycling centres need these items separated beforehand to ensure a smooth process.
Plastic
Not all types of plastic can be recycled in New Zealand. This also varies per region so take note of what types of plastics you can recycle in your specific region. This will be based on the numerical code (1 – 7) on the plastic item you’re wanting to recycle.
The New Zealand Government has a plan to phase out problem plastics around the country.
Metal
Almost everything made of metal in your home can be recycled, including empty spray cans, tin foil, and soda cans. Crush your aluminium cans before putting them in the recycling bin to make more room.
Check to find out whether you can recycle electronics with the rest of your metal items. Many computers, video game consoles, and other electronic items contain dangerous chemicals, so they need special handling to keep them from getting into the soil and waterways.
Food Waste
You can use household food waste to make homemade compost, which is excellent for healthy and organic gardening. This mixture is perfect for fertilizing your trees, flowers and vegetable garden.
If you want to make compost, you can use eggshells, discarded fruits and vegetables, nutshells, coffee grounds and tea bags. You can also add organic matter like tree leaves, grass clippings, wool and fur to your compost.
Battery Recycling
Sometimes a product manufacturer offers battery recycling as a service to their customers. If you’re nowhere near a battery recycling centre or your product was manufactured overseas, you may want to contact a local electronics store as sometimes they accept old batteries for recycling.
Creative ideas to upcycle your trash
Here are some fun and creative ways to upcycle your household trash and turn it into something new.
Plastic bottle DIY’s: Make homemade ornaments with plastic containers or use them as gift boxes. Plastic also makes great planters, bird feeders, and even little toys and dollhouses for the kids.
Glass bottles: Design your own DIY lamp or candle holder with an old glass bottle. Glass is also great for doing various art projects or simply decorating it with paint and other embellishments to use as home décor.
Light bulbs: Make some fun holiday crafts with old light bulbs like sparkly Christmas decorations or ornaments. They’re also a great choice to make mini terrariums or containers for air plants.
Metal: Old forks and spoons, as well as cans, are perfect for making a variety of unique items like a custom key holder, beautiful jewellery or a fun mirror. Old cans make excellent cookie cutters, too.
Clothing and bedding: Get creative and use an old pair of jeans to make a funky “jeans chair.” Old bedding can be torn or cut into smaller pieces and used for cleaning rags. Any type of fabric is also great for reupholstering furniture if you’re really feeling crafty.
Coffee grounds and tea bags: You can use coffee grounds as a fertilizer for your garden. Place dried coffee grounds or tea bags in the freezer as a deodorizer, too.
Old furniture: Don’t toss old furniture onto the curb. Refinish it with a fresh coat of paint, change the hardware, or add some distressed detailing to give it a second life.
Tin cans: Remove the label from old tin cans and decorate them with wrapping paper to turn them into pretty homemade vases or planters.
Paint buckets: Use an empty paint bucket as a charming ice bucket for entertaining. Clean the paint container thoroughly and cover the outside of the bucket with some scrap fabric or wrapping paper for a fun finishing touch.
Keep these smart and simple tips in mind to help increase your recycling and upcycling efforts at home. When you recycle your trash, you’re not just helping the environment, you’re also helping the economy and your own budget too. Upcycling household items is a fun way to find new hobbies as you come up with endless new ways to make unique creations. Don’t forget to show your family and friends how to follow these handy recycling tips in their workplace and school. With a little bit of creativity and some easy effort, you can begin to go green while reducing your environmental footprint.
At Millbrook, we are committed to minimising our impact on the environment and continue to improve on our position as a sustainable hotel. For more details on our commitment, click here.
Original article by Andrea Lozoya
