Shar left us a message on our “Suggest An Item” page:

I have increasing numbers of empty Purina one cat food bags.

Because they are plastic foil they are not accepted by my local council for recycling. [I’m in uk]

Bag has a zip lock. Sturdy item. Not sure what to do with them. I would gladly donate them to somewhere if I knew a place that re-used them.
size: 23 cm width / 27 cm height. Folds flat. At present these add to landfill. {cringes}

Any ideas how to recycle / re-use? [I do not have a garden or balcony, so no independent outdoor space]

We’ve asked about plastic pet food bags before but it seemed to be slanted towards big dog food bags – the size that can be used as grow bags or sealed rubbish/garbage bags. So any ideas for these smaller ones?

The zip lock element is interesting – making them easily water resistant if not full-on waterproof. I was reading the other day about the importance of having copies of all important paperwork (personal identification, bank details, insurance stuff) grouped together in a sealed easy-to-grab folder in case of an emergency – but someone else on the forum pointed out that such a file would be an identity thief’s dream — putting it in something like a couple of Purina bags would make it a lot less obvious. That would only use up one or two though – so any other suggestions?

(I’ve contacted Purina to see if they have any recycling advice: if they reply, I’ll add the info here.)

We’ve had an email from Cassondra asking:

How can I reuse/recycle clorox wipes containers?

I hadn’t heard of Clorox wipes but my friend Google tells me they’re the same type of dispensing containers used for many types of wipes (baby wipes, screen cleaning wipes, etc). Like with all disposable wipes, the first thing I’d say is reduce your use of them if you can. Use a washable/reusable cloth instead – either a standard dishcloth or a specially designed cloth for use with just water, no additional chemicals needed.

But to answer the question in hand, chances are, you can recycle the container with your standard plastic recycling. I’m not 100% sure about Clorox ones but most of the ones I’ve come into contact with and checked have been made from polyethylene (PE) plastic, which is widely recyclable.

As for reuses, without any modification at all, they’re good string, twine or yarn dispensers in the garden or for crafts – the container protects the yarn from the elements/cat-attack and you just pull it out as you need it. You probably won’t need more than a couple of those though so any other ideas?

This week, we’ve had a vaguely spring cleaning inspired week here on Recycle This and looked at a few cleaning related questions – so far, reusing/recycling bleach bottles, making homemade dishcloths/pot scrubbers, and reusing/recycling air fresheners. Today though, I’d like to hear your tips and suggestions for reducing waste from cleaning – for going plastic-free and aerosol-free.

Plastics seem to be a core part of modern cleaning products now – from the cleaning solution bottles to the sponges, the film the sponges are wrapped in, many mop buckets and dustpans and brush sets. The latter things may last a while but the former are likely to end up in the bin very soon. Some bottles can be recycled but the sponges and any film-type packaging can’t be. Even more traditional eco-friendly cleaning solutions such as vinegar often come in plastic bottles these days (or at least they do if you bulk buy them).

Similarly, plastic pump-action spray bottles have replaced some cleaning product aerosols but they’re still very common for polishes & foaming sprays (such as oven cleaner) — and aerosol recycling is not exactly common. (They can be recycled and some areas do collect them kerbside, but most don’t.)

Have you made any efforts to reduce the amount of plastic waste generated due to cleaning? Have you swap to different products to reduce plastic packaging waste? We’ve talked about making dishcloths/scrubbers – but any other suggestions for reducing the use of plastic sponges?

And what about aerosols? Have you got any advice for moving away from them?

Inspired by clearing out of bathroom cupboards this morning, I thought we’d have a cleaning themed week here on Recycle This. We’ve covered various cleaning related things in the past – pump action spray bottles, washing powder packaging, “freshener” shakers and reducing the amount of cleaning products used – but there are still a few things we could think about reusing, recycling, upcycling & reducing.

We’ll talk about more specifically cleaning alternatives later in the week but bleach, and so bleach bottles, is a candidate for reduction. There are alternatives to such harmful stuff in plastic bottles. But some people are a bit “prise it from my cold dead hands” about bleach and will never be parted from it, no matter what us vinegar loving hippies say.

All the ones I’ve checked have been made from HDPE – type 2 plastic – and most areas that collect plastic collect resin code 2 plastics so they can be recycled but I think reuses might be harder to identify. They feel less reusable than, say water bottles or pop bottles – because of the chemical residue, because they’re thick opaque plastic and in the case of some of them, a quirky bent neck for getting under toilet rims.

Anyone got any reusing/upcycling ideas though? Do you do anything with yours or do you just throw them into your recycling bin?

On the Suggest an Item page, Wendy recently explained:

We recently bought a new mattress after our Sleep Number bed (piece of junk, don’t get one) malfunctioned. We’ve saved the frame, which is made of black plastic and a lot of the cloth-like stuff that went around the air part. I was wondering if anyone had some nifty ideas for using this stuff. I am considering using the frame for raised beds or even a sand box.

If it’s how I’m imagining it, I’d make it into a raised bed — heck, I’d make just about anything into a raised bed at the moment. I get a bit obsessed about finding things I can grow stuff in at this time of year. If you already have enough bed space (you lucky duck!), it might be suitable to use as a frame for climbing plants – or if it’s light, you could cover it in clear plastic and make it into a giant cloche/row cover.

(Last time we asked about mattresses, someone posted a link to this radical recycling article – how to use every bit of an old spring mattress. It might be a bit too much for most people but I love the idea of a spring trellis.)

Any other suggestions? Any non-gardening ideas for people less obsessed than me? ;)