Are You Recycling Plastic Water Bottles?... A Quick Tip Before You Recycle 'Em

Did you know this?...

When you're recycling plastic bottles (water bottles, for example), never leave the cap on the bottle itself.

Why?

via H2Oforyou.com

According to Jessica Jenson of Low Impact Living:
They just chuck any bottles with lids on them".

Hmmmmm.... I did not know that.

The folks at the recycling plant simply won't take the time (or expend the energy) to take lids off of plastic bottles.

It makes sense when you think of all the millions of bottles they must receive... but still. That means you'd actually be wasting your time & effort spent recycling if you toss a water bottle into the "plastics" bin with the lid on it!

FYI, Jessica was the "green expert" who appeared on "Living With Ed" on HGTV last night. I liked the show. And I liked Jessica. (I just signed up for the Low Impact Living newsletter, too.)

Okay, the take-away here is:
Throw the lids in the trash, and recycle the plastic bottles alone.

I'm sure my friend, Jeffrey already knew this. But I obviously still have a lot to learn.

Max

I’m conducting a short survey to determine what consumers know about biodegradable bottles. It only takes a moment and doesn’t gather personal information.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=fktlqEFDW1aNgZgWodfrRA_3d_3d

Thanks.

Max

http://www.ensobottles.com

Bill

The lids have a sealent in them to keep them from leaking that jams up the recycling machine.

jan

Aveda has launched a great new program for recycling plastic lids! Go to Aveda.com/caps for info. I have an extra large crystal vase that was rarely used...it's now the "cap bin."

Lori

I know that whole foods market can recycle them in some locations now. They are doing a program called Gimme 5. It is recycling all #5 containers that things like yogurt and sour cream come in. What I didn't know either was that when you recycle those into a bin they also may throw those away. At least here in Florida. I just found out that the caps could be recycled.

lindsey

I agree, don't just throw the lids away! I have been saving mine for a long time now, and just looking for where or how to recycle them. If not, then I was just going to make a collage out of them.

zakeeya

recycling is fun

Anonymous

Don't throw the lids in the trash, they can be recycled!

Sonya Fulgham

Why must the lids be removed from the bottles? All of the info that I have read says to remove them but doesn't say why or what happens if you don't.

Lisa

I'm wondering - to keep animals from going through my recyclables, I saw on a TV show that you can put an "L" shaped slice in gallon jugs to stick the cat food cans in them. Do recycling plants just throw these away also?

Anonymous

I was wondering about the cap ring as well. I have noticed that the cap usually has a different material glued to the underside of the cap to seal the container. This material might not be recyclable even though the plastic is, so the ring might still be recyclable.

Household Tips

Search