How do I recycle old clothing?

This is one of the items that’s taken a while to catch up to glass, metal, etc. There are some really great ways to recycle clothing, but sometimes they can be hard to find. Search locally and there is often local textile recycling partners.

Denim/Jeans - Madewell, and Gap (they do it occasionally), will take your old denim jeans and turn them into insulation for homes. To boot - they’ll usually give you a credit on purchases in their store.

Clothes - We are currently testing this, and will report back. For Days is an ethical clothing brand that offers the Take Back Bag. This is a good sized bag that you can keep in your closet as your items are getting old, ratty, etc. Once it’s filled, you scan the QR code on the bag, get a prepaid label and ship it back. They work with various recycling partners to divert the goods from landfills.

Here is a list of the items they take:
Socks, underwear, sheets, pillow cases, towels, linens, shoes, and handbags in any condition.

Shoes - Here is a great list of various ways of how to recycle old shoes of all types.

Glasses - I personally have done it through the Lions Club (there is usually a receptacle at Walmart), but here is a great list of options. Embarrassingly, I still had ALL of the glasses I’d worn since the 3rd grade.

Wool Socks - This is a really cool one. I hate throwing away a wool sock with holes in it - but otherwise still a very nice sock! Smartwool’s got you here. You can mail them your old socks (doesn’t have to be Smartwool brand). Check out the process here.

How do I get rid of batteries?

There are a couple of options here. You can often take these to a hazardous waste facility because of the battery acid. Batteries Plus will take them - be prepared to pay a small disposal fee.

Pro-tip: Keep a fabric bag in your car to put dead batteries in. They’ll be ready to dropped off when you have time.

How do I get rid of/recycle light bulbs?

You may have to make two trips to properly recycle different types of bulbs.

Incandescent bulbs - can be thrown away since the material is small and hard to recycle. But some hard-to-recycle centers like Eco-Cycle/CHARM take them.

CFL (coil) and Fluorescent - contain mercury and gases, need to be taken to your local hazardous waste facility.

Halogen - throw these away.

LED - these can often be recycled, even in single-stream. Check your local recycling service, your local Home Depot, Lowes, BatteriesPlus or a hard-to-recycle center.

Pro-tip: Keep a fabric bag in your car to put dead bulbs in. They’ll be ready to dropped off when you have time.

How do I get rid of propane tanks?

There are some interesting options here, depending on the size of the propane tank.

For small green propane tanks (camping) - many National Parks have a safe place to recycle them. The current list of parks is: Yellowstone, Rocky Mountain, Bryce, Joshua Tree, and Shenandoah. Many hazardous material facilities also take them for scrap metal.

For larger BBQ propane tanks (homes) - Hazardous waste often takes them, but you can also trade these in for a refilled tank (usually less since you’re returning a container).

Make sure your propane tank is empty by following these steps.

How do I recycle/get rid of mylar (helium) balloons and tanks?

Mylar balloons are made of a plastic that can be recyclable. Check with your local city/county recycling to be sure.

Since most helium tanks are made of steel, they can be recycled if emptied properly. Check your local hard-to-recycle or hazardous waste location to make sure. Here are some tips to make sure your helium tank is empty before you recycle it.