Two Recycling Tips For Your Business

Posted on: 11 August 2015

If your business is like many others, it likely generates a shocking amount of trash over the course of a day. Unfortunately, this type of trash generation can be particularly harmful to the environment. But commercial recycling services, like E.L. Harvey & Sons, have made it possible for businesses to greatly reduce their damage to the environment. Yet, you may have only recently started to consider using these services for your enterprise, and if that is the case, the following couple of tips can help you to avoid some common recycling issues. 

Use Soap And Water To Rinse Out Plastic Containers

Plastic bottles and other containers are commonly used to store food, beverages and industrial chemicals, and these bottles are among the more common recycled items. However, many people fail to take the time to rinse out these bottles before they place them into the recycling bin. This can make your bin sticky or contaminated with harmful chemicals because these substances may leak out of the bottles. 

To eliminate this risk, you should always thoroughly clean out food and drink containers using soap and water. Industrial chemicals may require special steps to clean and you should follow recommend disposal guidelines when cleaning out these containers. 

Keep Your Recycling Bin Covered

Many people make the error of simply placing their recycling bin outside without any form of cover protecting it. This can allow water to get inside the recycling bin, which can ruin the items you are wanting to recycle. When paper and cardboard become wet, they can foster the growth of molds, which may eliminate the ability of these materials to be recycled. 

Ideally, you will want to keep the bin in a covered shed or garage until it is time for the recycling to be picked up. For those that are unable to do this, it may be best to buy a tarp to place over the container until it is needed. This will help to deflect much of the water from storms away from the recycling bin. 

Recycling as much as possible is important for businesses that are interested in lowering the amount of environmental damage they do. Yet many business leaders are not very familiar with recycling, and this can cause them to make errors. By understanding the importance of rinsing out plastic containers and the benefits of keeping your recycling bin covered, avoiding the common problems that arise from these mistakes will be much easier for you. 

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