Practical Tip of the Week

Rezone Your Recyclables

You want to pare down, but the recyclables pile up.  Life’s fairly groovy if your trash hauler offers weekly curbside recycling.  It’s even better when they offer a wide range of acceptable waste.  But what if that’s not your situation?  What if you need to wait until the next community recycling event rolls around or until you have the opportunity to drive to a drop-off center? Or what if all the nearby recycling centers are closed due to a pandemic?

In the meantime, we can get a jump start and neaten things up as we go along.  Community events typically require presorted recyclables.  With 7 or more categories of plastics, storing can result in a hailstorm of unsightly piles that you need to sort through slowing you down before heading on your way.  To save time, if you have room, which I know is a rarity, presort.  With a few easy steps (provided you have storage space), you can create a system that will allow swift action. 

This system in the photo was designed for typical items included in a local twice yearly recycling event as well as some local drop-off sites such as Agilyx for polystyrene foam or plastic bag bins at the grocery store.  If you are located in the Portland, Oregon metro area, Agilyx has 24 hour/7 days a week drop-off access.

Consider making the trips a social event (under “normal” circumstances or do so following safety guidelines. Carpool to save gas, have an extra set of hands for toting, and pass waiting times much quicker. A zoned recycling system enables others to quickly combine their waste into your labeled boxes.  As a reward after you drop-off the recyclables, go to lunch to celebrate (in a safely distanced way of course).

Pre-Clean

• Wash all recyclables before tossing them in your bins or boxes. Vermin or bugs will make your life tougher and waste time.
• For peanut butter, coconut oil, jam jars, and tomato paste cans, and other sticky gooey containers, toss them in the dishwasher to save scrubbing time and excess water use. Plastics may melt a bit causing deformation, but if you’re not reusing them, no harm. Just be careful not to nest them too close to your favorite dishes or glassware.

Create Labels

• Make labels for items that you frequently need to store such as plastic bags, plastic caps and lids, numbered plastic containers, household hazardous waste (HHW), electronics, textiles, etc.
• No need to waste lots of time on fancy labels unless that will entice you to use the boxes. 
• Use large print so they’re easy to read. 
• Use scrap cardstock or cardboard. The thicker the paper, the longer it will last. Repurpose cardboard from dry cleaning shirts if you have any.
• Color code for quick identification if you like.
• Some plastics are unlabeled or difficult to read, therefore, set aside a box for “unknowns.” 
• Rather than taping or using adhesive labels, try binder clips so that if items need to be reallocated because a box is too small and another is too large, it will allow quick transitions without wasting resources. 
• You may wish to create a miscellaneous label for the odds and ends like water filters or items you will be sending to facilities such as Terracyle. 

Box It

• Grab some boxes. Repurposing is preferred if you have extras lying around. 
• With covid, I’d advise letting boxes you’ve acquired from stores to sit for a few days to air out before working with them.
• Liquor stores are a resource for used, clean boxes.
• Be wary of boxes that have held fresh foods as there could be undetected bug infestations in the cardboard.
• Boxes tend to work better than bags as they are sturdier and upright, but use what you have available.

Note, not all the plastic # codes are shown here because several are included in the weekly bin pick up by the waste hauler. Those containers are placed directly in the recycling bin.

If you need additional ideas for organizing your recycling zone, reach out to ThePracticalSort.com.