Sunday, October 21, 2012

Tips for using the Green Bin

We just recently started using our cities Green Bin - I was a little skeptical, and REALLY worried about smells and bugs etc....Before I started using it I asked a LOT of questions of people that were using them already, so I thought I would share some tips.


  • use yard waste bags to line the green bin, instead of the liners that are meant for it (the yard wasted bags are slightly larger and don't fit as well - but it is manageable and MUCH cheaper - of course, you don't need to line it - but I do)
  • make use of your empty cracker and cereal boxes - use them to hold dry food waste (toast scraps, cereal, etc) when they are full you can put that right into your green bin
  • if you want to line your kitchen catcher, you can buy paper lunch bags for WAY WAY cheaper than the liners - 2 will fit in the bin, and once they are full throw it into your green bin
I have only been using it for about 6 weeks, but haven't run into any issues yet. We have been keeping it in the garage, and as long as my vehicle fits it will stay there over the winter. If not, then it will be kept outside of our garage.

We haven't had any issues with smells in the garage - really, it isn't any different than having the waste in the garbage. 

Our city is going to bi-weekly garbage collection in a few weeks - which makes using the green bin much more appealing.....we won't have waste sitting in the garage for 2 full weeks.

Do you have tips for using the green bin? I would love to hear them - leave me a comment!

7 comments:

  1. In our community we have been using the big green compost bins for several years now. I love having the bin and being able to compost everything from yard waste to food scrapes. We don't line our large bin but we do line our kitchen compost bin with compostable bags...I buy the no-name store brand and they fit the little bin perfectly. We're very careful to tie the bag securely before putting it in the large bin. Our compost is collected bi-weekly as well and we are also able to put out, in addition to the bin up to 4 bundles of yard waste as long as it is in bundles less than 4 feet long or in compostable bags. Between compost and recycling we have reduced our bi-weekly garbage down to 1 bag.

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    1. thanks for the visit! It is always interesting to hear how others do it

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  2. I had no idea you could use old cereal boxes in your green bins!

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    1. anything that is paper or animal based can go in it!

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  3. Thanks for an informative article about green bins! Because our household is so large, we have 2 green bins. Just last week when trying to empty it, I poured garbage juice on my own foot. Yuck!

    Jenna
    www.snymed.blogspot.ca

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  4. Interesting! We do not have this service here. Sounds like a great initiative!

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  5. Great practical advice. Thanks for sharing!

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