Five Recycling Tips

Here are some tips to help you be a successful recycler.

What's that - if you remember to carry the can out to the curb, you are already successful?
Well,  I hate to tell you, but if you aren't following your local rules, your items are probably just ending up in the landfill anyway!    Items that do not meet the standards of the program that they are entering will not be recycled.  Following a few simple rules will make your recycling efforts truly pay off.

1. Take the cap off

This may sound silly, but if you put the top back on your soda bottle or jelly jar, chances are it will not make it to the recycling center.  The container and the cap are not made of the same materials and therefore cannot be recycled together.
Most recycling centers do not have the state of the art facilities required to recycle items and tops/caps together and certainly cannot afford the man-power to manually remove the tops from all of those containers, so they just wind up in the landfill.

2. Remove the labels

Many  programs do not require that labels be removed anymore, but some still do, depending on how state of the art your local facility is.

3. Separate Items

Many programs do not have the equipment to sort items into different types.  If your program requires that you separate aluminum from bi-metal, then do it!  The same goes for different paper types, glass, etc.

4. Wash it out

Most programs do not require everything to be washed, but certain substances can contaminate everything they come in contact with.  These include motor oil, detergents, and paints, just to name a few.

5. Pay attention to the numbers

The numbers on the bottoms of plastic containers indicate the type of plastic they contain.  The higher the number, the more difficult they are to recycle.  Most programs only recycle number 1 and 2.

To sum it all up, you really need to check the rules in your area and abide by them.  Some programs are more state of the art than others and operate at a higher level of automation than others.  Don't waste your efforts by skipping a few simple steps.