jeudi 30 janvier 2014

Recyclables Include Much More Than Bottles, Cans

By Lenna Stockwell


Yes, soda cans and water bottles are among the things that we know to be recyclable but do you know that there are still several other items in this list? Note that before you throw away an item to put into the heaps of trash belonging to local landfills, consider first whether it can be recycled or not.

When it comes to batteries, most Americans simply toss these small and seemingly unrecyclable items because they are not as aware that they can be recycled and in fact, should be, given its mercury content. Batteries manufactured before the year 1997 should be recycled most importantly because these are the ones which contain higher amounts of mercury as opposed to the newer versions. There are many battery stores whether online or the brick-and-mortar ones who accommodate people who would like to drop off used batteries. You will even find places which offer recycling for rechargeable batteries and the lithium ones.

If you are using printers then you are sure to have ink cartridges which are among the recyclable items around. Don't be surprised if stores offer discounts or upfront payment, even when it is but a small amount in exchange for these cartridges. You see, parts of these items are being used for making other products because of its highly recyclable materials like aluminum and thermoplastic.

The clothes you wear are definitely candidates for recycling. Aside from the commonly known recycling of clothes via donations to charity stores, those which are stained, threadbare or torn may be recycled as well. Whether they become rags for cleaning or materials used for insulation, these pieces of clothing can actually be converted into most anything useful.

One common type of light bulb is the compact fluorescent light bulb. This is definitely not something that you want to end up at the landfill, because they do contain a high amount of mercury. These are easy enough to recycle as several large stores, such as Home Depot and IKEA have recycling programs for these types of bulbs.

It should be common understanding that thermoplastic is recyclable indeed, as all thermoplastic can be melted down and reused. This includes much more than water bottles, though. For instance, items made out of acrylic or PVC or perhaps nylon can be recycled. Thermoforming companies use this type of plastic to create a huge variety of common products as well as all that custom thermoplastic packaging that protects millions of consumer items. Typically, thermoplastic identified with a code of 1 or 2 can simply be tossed into your recycling bin, but more and more cities are allowing all types of thermoplastic into these bins as all of these items can be recycled.




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