Things to Avoid Throwing in Your Regular Garbage

Posted by Action Compaction Equipment

There are some people who mistakenly believe they can throw just about anything into their garbage cans for weekly trash pickup. So they take an item like batteries and put it out by the curb with the rest of their trash on their designated pickup day and don’t think anything of it. But in actuality, batteries need to be dropped off at specialized recycling facilities and not thrown away with the rest of your garbage. Here are some other things you should avoid throwing away with your regular trash.

Paints, stains, varnishes, and more

When it’s time to dispose of paints, stains, varnishes, paint removers, and more, people usually do one of two things with it. They either put it out with their regular trash or dump it down the drain. Both of these options are terrible for the environment and could cause major problems down the road. Rather than doing either of those things, you should find a facility that accepts household hazardous waste and drop off your paints, stains, and varnishes there.

Electronics

You might not realize it, but there are many electronics that contain metals like lead and cadmium in them. Therefore, they cannot simply be discarded with the rest of your trash. Instead, there are usually specific drop-off centers located in many cities and towns for e-waste. These centers help prevent metals from infiltrating landfills.

Light bulbs

Both fluorescent light bulbs and compact fluorescent light bulbs contain small traces of mercury in them. While it’s not a terribly large amount, this mercury can seep out when a light bulb is broken, and obviously lightbulbs will get broken if you throw them out with your garbage. To prevent mercury from being released into the environment, you should take any florescent light bulbs to a household hazardous waste facility. These are just a few of the common household items that need to be disposed of properly. Action Compaction Equipment specializes in providing companies with the equipment they need to get rid of garbage and waste the right way. Call us at 801-565-1033 today to discover how we can help your company with waste management, recycling, and more.]]>