Want to recycle as much as poss!!!

dawnylou

Hi all,
Just hoping to get a few pointers from you all.
I am looking to start recycling as much as possible from now on.

Things I do already:
* I have 3 canvas bags which I use for all of my shopping whenever possible
* My weekly shop is done online and all carrier bags are handed back to the delivery driver
* All paper, glass and cans are put in Kerbit

However I know there is so much more that I could be doing!!

How can I line my kitchen bin without having to resort to binliners?
Is there a way to recycle plastic bottles, cardboard or any other grocery packaging??

I would be interested in everyones ideas on what more can be done.

Many thanks

Dave_Brooker

dawnylou wrote: »

Hi all,
Just hoping to get a few pointers from you all.
I am looking to start recycling as much as possible from now on.

Things I do already:
* I have 3 canvas bags which I use for all of my shopping whenever possible
* My weekly shop is done online and all carrier bags are handed back to the delivery driver
* All paper, glass and cans are put in Kerbit

However I know there is so much more that I could be doing!!

How can I line my kitchen bin without having to resort to binliners?
Is there a way to recycle plastic bottles, cardboard or any other grocery packaging??

I would be interested in everyones ideas on what more can be done.

Many thanks

Alot depends on where you live, and what your councils schemw is, our plastic goes in a recycling bin along with grocery packets and cardboard, which I thought happened everwhere...

Are there no plastic bottle banks near you?

cazrobinson

compost: wigglywigglers.co.uk or contact your council - some have veg waste disposal schemes

washable nappies: see wen.org for details

get a milkman/lady instead of plastic bottles. see dairycrest.co.uk to see if they deliever in your area

clothes: to chairty shops, ebay, have a recycle-clothes-evening with friends and grab a bargin!

furniture: check with council to see if they run a goods-to-poorer families scheme and recycle furniture

get a rucksac if buying things from town, rather than getting lots of plastic bags to put things in.

use water from bath to water plants (if you use natural products).

hths

caz

dawnylou

Thanks guys.
Ok first of all I do not know of any area near here that recycles plastic. I have googled looking for places in the North East because if there was a bank that recycled these within perhaps an hours walk then I would gladly do this, but I cannot find one?

We do not make compost, but our garden is very small and we have a puppy so she would probably try to eat it anyway!
We do not yet have children - but we will be using terry towel nappies when the time comes!
We considered a milkman, but have taken a liking to Cravendale as it seems to stay fresh for longer!?! And unfortunately this only seems to b available in plastic bottles. We only go through 2 bottles a week, but I would still much rather recycle the packaging.
And would you believe that today after work I made 2 bags of clothes up - one for charity and one for Ebay! (When I get the time! lol)
No furniture - just moved in and all we want to get rid of is the shoe cupboard which Nana has already claimed! lol
I use canvas Tickled Pink shopping bag, never carriers.
I only bath about once a month now, have converted to showers.

I have emailed the council also asking them for advice as I will consider anything that may help.

zippybungle

Sorry to gate crash your thread but I have a question too.
I try to recycle all that I can (glass, paper, tins, cardboard, plastic bottles, batteries, paper, aerosol cans,reuse my own bags and use washable nappies on my son :A ).

Anyway I am confused about those cartons which fruit juice somes in (eg, Tropicana juice) - can I recycle these? if so, is it classed as card? Would I have to cut the plastic spout off first?

Also I am a bit confused about the different types of plastic, eg the thick, usually blue or dark red coloured plastic cartons that mushrooms sometimes come in (I normally choose loose mushrooms, but will buy the ones in plastic if they are reduced). Can these be recycled in the same way as plastic bottles? I bought some pasties from Sainsburys the other day which came in a very thin clear plastic tray, on the packaging it said the plastic was recyclable - again does this go with the plastic bottles? My local council doesn't collect plastic from the kerbside but I take the bottles to a nearby plastic recycling bank.

Thanks,

Zippy x

cazrobinson

fruit juice cartons are made from terapak, which is very difficult to recycle.

they are made up of a layer of coated cardboard, aluminum sheet and then plastic coated.

best solution is buy these from milkman/milklady (in washable milkbottles), or in plastic bottles to recycle afterwards.

our council only takes plastic *bottles* rather than all types of plastic. i've seen plastic trays still left in recycling even though the binmen have been.

another solution is re-fills. some independant shops do this. buy washing-up liquid in bulk and then decanter into smaller bottle by the sink. same with washing liquid, cleaning fuids etc. much better than sending the bottle for recycling and using more energy, to provide another product.

the other side of recycling is to *buy* recycled goods: binbags, loo paper, drinking glasses etc this will stimulate the economy in recycled goods. they are now better quality than previously, so the loo paper doesn't feel like scratchy ones you used to get.

hths

cazrobinson

oh, and rechargeable batteries are much better for the enviroment too. Non-rechargeables discarded into landfill are a lethal. the heavymetal leak into water supply over time and damage health. expensive, but worth having. we have kids and so many of their toys need batteries, as well as the remote control!

kbrumann

Sainsbury's kindly provides (plastic) bags to return batteries by post. Unfortunately, the UK does not have a good battery recycling infrastructure. Currently too many batteries are going into landfill.

Linda32

zippybungle wrote: »

Also I am a bit confused about the different types of plastic, eg the thick, usually blue or dark red coloured plastic cartons that mushrooms sometimes come in (I normally choose loose mushrooms, but will buy the ones in plastic if they are reduced). Can these be recycled in the same way as plastic bottles? I bought some pasties from Sainsburys the other day which came in a very thin clear plastic tray, on the packaging it said the plastic was recyclable - again does this go with the plastic bottles?

As I understand, those items which which state, "can be recycled", should also say "where facilities exist", which dosn't much help, I know.

These one or two ways in which you can get around this recycling business though. For instance, instead of buying fruit juice in packets which can't be recycled, you can buy diluted fruit juice, I don't mean squash by this, but it is available in supermarkets. I know some peeps don't like supermarkets but they do provide an awful lot of choice in one place. (Not trying to turn this into a supermarket debate btw)

Regarding bin liners, I havn't got an alternative,

(apart from if you do happen to have a carrier bag, then use these, at least that means there being reused, rather than filling up your bin)

But say for instance you buy tomatoes in a punnet, if you grow your own food / flowers then you can use these for sowing seeds in. But if not then I put them straight in the dustbin.

That way your not filling you bin up with those and not getting through bin liners quite so quickly, saving money too.

If you buy cakes then refuse to buy the ones with lots of cream on, which by there very nature need alot of packaging to prevent them being squashed. Look out for the one's in celophane.

cazrobinson

if i buy cakes - i'll buy the ones with fresh cream on...



because they're yummy!

; )

C_Ronaldo

cazrobinson wrote: »

if i buy cakes - i'll buy the ones with fresh cream on...



because they're yummy!

; )

and how is your post helpful

back on topic, have you checked what facilities are in your area, we have cardboard, plastic bottles, paper, tins, glass, light bulbs u can take down to our tip