We’ve all heard the phrase “Reuse, reduce and recycle.” But are we consciously putting this into practice at home every day? I’m here to give you a few tips on how to make this a daily habit and why recycling is so important. Every little thing we do can make a difference when it comes to our environment, so let’s discover and practice recycling at home every day.
Recycling at Home
Recycling can be so easy and when we do, we conserve energy, reduce waste and make our communities more sustainable. It also makes our planet a more beautiful place to live. So where do you start? Here are some helpful tips to get you off on the right track with recycling at home.
Recycling bins
First thing’s first, you’ll need to make sure you have a recycling bin, and keep it close by in your garage. That way you’re not going too far every time you need to throw something away. Trust me it helps. We keep our bigger bins right outside the garage, so we keep the smaller square recycling bin in the garage right near the door for easy drop off.
Read labels
These days, thanks to the How2Recycle label system, many brands are helping their consumers understand how to recycle their products in a really clear and helpful way. That’s one of the reasons why I love shopping at ALDI, because I know all of their brands will have this recycling label system on them.
To read more about the How2Recycle label system, check out how2recycle.info
Find your drop off location
Plastic bags and plastic wraps can’t be recycled in the bins. But there are drop off locations where you can recycle these plastics. Check this site to find out what plastic you can recycle and where your closest location is. Ours is right outside of our Publix. I keep all of our plastics in a bag until I’m ready to drop it off and grab it on my way to the store.
Did you Know?: Tips & Tricks for Recycling at Home
Here are some common questions I’ve run into on my journey to recycling awareness:
How do you recycle coffee pods?
If you have a Keurig or similar coffee pot at home to make individual cups of coffee, you can recycle the pods, but there is a process. First, you need to remove the top, using your finger to wedge into the hole at the top and discard it. You can empty out the coffee grinds and compost them, or save them in a container and use in the shower as an exfoliating scrub. Then, you need to remove the filter and discard that. Rinse the pod and recycle! You can also get one of these handy dandy contraptions, which helps speed up the process.
The only thing is, they don’t work on the generic Aldi pods and that is what we use.
Are letter envelopes recyclable?
We all get so much junk mail. Instead of tossing in the garbage, recycle it! This is a great site that outlines all the household mail that is recyclable so you can feel confident you are not tossing something that can be recycled.
How to recycle makeup containers?
This is something that I’ve seen a lot of articles about. My best advice is to do some research on your makeup brand’s website to find out more about their bottles and what is recyclable. Some companies have incentives for bringing in empty containers. Like the Back 2 MAC program that offers you a free lipstick for every 6 empty containers you bring back to a participating location. BeautyCounter has also been dedicated to making their packaging recyclable and has that information available on each of their product pages. I believe that makeup retailers could do more to provide recyclable services to its consumers, so I am hopeful that, with this being top of mind, we’ll start seeing this more and more.
Do you have any questions about recycling? Let me know in the comments below!
And if you are looking for some fun ways to get involved in Earth Day awareness, check out this post, 5 Simple Things You Can Do to Protect the Earth. Also, stop by this post for a sweet poem I wrote in honor of Earth Day, which is coming up!
