Posts filed under ‘Green Organizing’
How Can I Get My Family to Recycle?
It’s not always easy to get everyone on board when you want to start or expand recycling in your home. It’s easier for some family members to throw things in the trash rather than sort recyclable materials. Here are a few tips that might help you build the recycling habit and responsibility in your household:
- Start by finding out what kind of recycling is available in your area. Not every site will accept any type of material. If you can decide what you can easily collect and dispose of, your more likely to follow through.
- Distinguish a specific place for recyclables in your home. Set it up in your garage, on your porch, or in another easily accessible place from your kitchen, since that’s where so many of your recyclables will come from.
- Educate your family by showing them examples of materials to recycle and explaining how to prepare those items – washing and rinsing, removing labels, lids, etc.
Tread Bins
- Use bins or containers that are specifically labeled. Have one for plastics, glass, newspapers, magazines – whatever you decide to collect. Choose bins with handles so you can easily transport your recyclables. Our Tread Bins are perfect for this purpose!
- Find out if there are recycling pick-up services in your area. You may have to pay a few extra bucks a month, but these services make it so easy to recycle. Sometimes you don’t even need to sort! Here are a few sites that might help: http://www.recyclingcenters.org/, http://www.kab.org/, or search Google with the phrase “recycle in (your town or state).
Remember – the more convenient you make recycling, the faster your household will jump on the bandwagon.You’ll be teaching your children responsibility and you’ll be making a difference for the environment as well!
Go Green By Composting
Kitchen Composting Pail
Organized A to Z has a new product that might be unfamiliar to some you, but during our “Go Green” month, it’s a great time to introduce it. It’s a composting pail, and it’s just what you need to recycle kitchen waste and benefit your garden and yard at the same time.
This well-designed pail blends in well with any kitchen while offering the convenience of removing your kitchen waste from sight and preventing any unpleasant odors. It comes with a charcoal filter and lid that seals tight.
Composting is a great thing to do for the environment. You not only reduce garbage waste, but you nurture the soil and feed plants with very beneficial organic nutrients. If you’ve never tried a compost pile before because you’re concerned about the possible odor or appearance, here’s your chance to overcome those obstacles.
I’ve found this great article at eHow.com to give you step-by-step directions to learn how to create one on your own! It’s the ultimate “go green” activity!
How To Recycle Items that Clutter Your Space
February is “Go Green” month at Organized A to Z, and we are encouraging you to find ways to conduct your daily activities in a more eco-friendly way. Organizing your home or office is more than just finding a place for everything you have. It’s also about recognizing ways to reduce consumption by knowing what you already have available and using your space in a more efficient way. By cleaning out the things you no longer need or want, you can increase the amount of space you have for the things that you need.
Sometime people collect clutter because, even though they don’t need some of the things around their house, the items are still in good condition and perfectly usable, and they don’t want to throw them out. Or, they might keep items that don’t work because they are just not sure how to dispose of them properly.
The EPA estimates that 75 percent of our waste is recyclable! Professional organizers are trained to help our clients find ways to recycle and/or safely dispose those items. Here are some suggestions and resources that you will find helpful to do just that:
Electronics - The Web site Earth911.com is full of tips and guidelines to help you recycle things such as cell phones, radios, TVs, computers, video games, MP3 players, and telephones. In fact, many manufacturers will accept and process their electronic brands for free, and some retail stores also make it easy and inexpensive to recycle.
One note – if you recycle your computer, make sure to scrub that hard drive or find a recycler that will do that for you. You don’t want to give away valauble personal data!
Household items – Some household items, like batteries or CFLs, contain dangerous materials and should not be thrown in a landfill. Enter your zip code at Earth911.com for a list of recycling centers and retail stores taht wil accept these items for recycling. Also watch your local newspapers for a community-sponsored “hazardous materials” disposal day. You can bring your old bottles of household cleaners to these events to guarantee safe disposal.
Automotive - Garages are notorious for being areas that collect unusable “junk.” You probably all know someone who uses the garage as a storage area rather than a place to park their vehicles. For those that change their own oil, used oil can be a huge inconvenience. Look for places that accept used oil for recycling. You might check with your local mechanics shop, as many heat their businesses with used oil. Old car batteries are also a nuisance. Many retailers will accept the used “core” when you purchase a new battery, and many automotive repair shops and recycling centers will also accept them. Be sure to wear gloves and protective eyeware when handling them.
What are your suggestions for disposing of items that shouldn’t be thrown in the trash? Throughout this whole month of February, we would love to collect your recycling ideas and suggestions post them for other readers. Contribute by leaving a comment on this blog post.
Organized A to Z will continue to post about eco-friendly organizing throughout February, and we are continuing to add “green” items to our product line. Look for the “Eco-Friendly” category on our Web site.
