How often are you given something you want to give back or never even asked for? (Well, I can think of about a dozen things when I think back to my wedding gifts. Of course, my thoughts then were something like “my god, WHAT were they thinking!” 🙂 ) But now I’m thinking more about the things that come our way from purchases or services.
Think about wire hangers from the dry cleaner, packing peanuts from shipments we receive, plastic bags that always seem to slip by us when we aren’t paying attention and burned out CFLs.
Well, they don’t need to become needless trash. Consider this the next time one of these things slip your way:
- Wire hangers – (hopefully you’re using an eco-friendly dry cleaner!… but) take them BACK to your dry cleaner the next time you make a drop-off. Most will accept them and reuse them.
- Packing peanuts – even if they didn’t come from a UPS shipment, they will accept them with a smile and reuse them too. Check here to find a location.
- Plastic bags – if I’m not vigilant and paying attention, a cashier always seems to manage to slip one in on me. Save them at home and many stores have collection bins at their entrance if your curbside recycling does not accept them.
- CFLs – so many people get hung up on the mercury content in CFLs, but keep in mind that most still contain only enough mercury to fit on the head of a pin and each new generation of CFLs has even less. However, when they finally do burn out, remember to dispose of them properly at your local Home Depot through their CFL Recycling Program. They’ll take them off your hands for proper disposal, free of charge.
Now, as for those hideous items I received for wedding gifts, well those were “given” too… in the way of donation. They do say “one (wo)man’s trash is another (wo)man’s treasure!”
Wonder if the Home Depot will take broken CFLs
Gus – guidelines are “unbroken” CFLs but in the event of a broken CFL, I do I have a post that tells what to do… but the key is to make sure they DON’T get broken! 🙂 http://www.momgoesgreen.com/the-light-goes-out-on-incandescents%E2%80%A6-hello-cfls-leds/
Gus – WAIT!!! I take that back!… Home Depot WILL accept them if they are broken, but you should follow the guidelines of my post mentioned above and THEN take them to HD… sorry for the confusion!
Awesome Doreen! Thanks – I had no idea HD took CFL’s…even tho my hubs prob does. I want to read abt broken ones since we had that happen once and I totally freaked! 🙂 TY Friendy!
.-= smilinggreenmom´s last blog ..I just had to have one…Urthbags ~ Review & GIVEAWAY!!!! =-.
my family actually does the plastic bag thing. we also usually bring our own paper bags. i used to work at food lion and they wasted way to many plastic bags.