How to dispose of a broken snowblower

With snow in the weather forecast, here's a timely note from our inbox:

How do I dispose of or recycle a broken snowblower?

If you receive recycling service from Montgomery County, you may request a curbside scrap metal collection for snowblowers (and similar lawn and garden tools). If the snowblower is gas-powered, drain it of fluids, as for a lawnmower.

We also accept scrap metal from County residents and businesses directly at our Shady Grove Processing Facility and Transfer Station.

To check whether you have Montgomery County-provided recycling service, use our Collection Day and Service lookup.

Thanks for your question, J.!

Need help knowing how to recycle or dispose an item or material? Try our "How do I recycle/dispose of..." tool, or leave us a comment.

I wonder ______ about the Dept of Environmental Protection - Earth Month

What are your questions? About what are you curious?

When you see the recycling truck driving down your street, of what do you think? What piques your interest when you deliver something to the Transfer Station?

What makes you curious when you walk past a stream… or a sewer, think about air quality indoors or out, or… ?

In short, what tickles your brain with an “I wonder…” when you think about the work of the County’s Department of Environmental Protection? Read an overview of our Department.

Why am I asking?

April is “Earth Month” for us! For the past two years, I’ve sent out daily, practical, environmentally-related tips in April.

This year, I want to take you behind the scenes into the work we do. Knowing your questions and interests will help us better tailor the stories we share.

What will I do with your responses?

On each Wednesday in April 2011, I’ll take you into one facet of our operations.

Get each dispatch as it’s posted to our blog, tweeted to @GoGreenMC, and sent out via email to our “GoGreen Tips” email subscribers.

I look forward to your replies!
--Susanne

Recycle your holiday lights!

Updated December 2, 2011: Visit our newest webpage for our most current information on holiday light recycling.

Updated: November 19, 2010

A few years ago, a resident asked us

Just wondering how i might recycle old christmas lights? (C9 size)

I did some research, and advised reuse or disposal as trash.

In 2010, we have a much better answer! We know of these local recycling opportunities for your working or broken Christmas and holiday lights.

• The Home Depot - all locations - through November 14, 2010
  • In Montgomery County:
    • Home Depot #2558
      14000 Georgia Avenue
      Aspen Hill MD 20906
      301-871-0603
    • Home Depot #2509
      7111 Westlake Terrace
      Bethesda, MD 20817
      301-634-3726
    • Home Depot #2550
      15740 Shady Grove Rd
      Gaithersburg MD 20877
      301-330-4900
    • Home Depot #2560
      21010 Frederick Rd
      Germantown MD 20876
      301-515-7944
    • Home Depot #2551
      2300 Broadbirch Dr
      Silver Spring MD 20904
      301-680-3500
• CVS/pharmacy - through November 20, 2010
  
• Lowe’s - through December 24, 2010
  
  • In Montgomery County:
    • Lowe's of Gaithersburg, MD #0223
      40 Market St
      Gaithersburg, MD 20878
      (301) 208-0400
• MOM's Organic Market - all locations - through January 31, 2011
  • In Montgomery County:
    • My Organic Market
      11711-B Parklawn Dr
      Rockville MD 20852
      301-816-4944
• Christmas-light-source.com - online retailer - year-round
• HolidayLEDs.com - online retailer - year-round

If you know of other local drop-off locations for lights, please tell us about them!

When your recyclables or trash are missed, please let us know

From our mailbag:

Our trash day is Monday, and our trash and recycling have been sitting outside since early Monday morning just waiting for some to come pick it up... When is it being picked up?? No one has bothered to tell us anything. This is ridiculous.

The recent record snowfall in Montgomery County presented significant challenges in providing refuse collection services. To protect the safety of the public and our workers, County-provided collection services were cancelled last Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Yard trim collection remained cancelled this week, but both recycling and refuse collection services were provided on a normal schedule.

The writer did not provide us with an address, so we cannot determine if he/she lives in the County or in one of the municipalities, nor can we investigate this complaint. Please call us at 240-777-6410, and we will be happy to look into it.

The challenges we faced in providing collection this week were numerous. In addition to the obvious difficulty in traversing county roads after the enormous snowfall, and with many single lane paths on two way streets, the volume of trash and recycling was nearly twice the norm. Snow banks created by plows blocked the view of many cans and bins from our collectors. Commonly used white trash bags were difficult to see, and no doubt we missed a few.

The residents of Montgomery County understood the extreme circumstances we faced. We have received numerous calls and emails thanking us for our outstanding work. In return, we would like to extend our thanks to you residents for your patience and understanding, and to the hundreds of our contractors’ employees who braved the freezing temperatures, driving and walking through miles of deep snow to collect our trash. And to our customers, please accept our sincere apology if your trash or recycling was missed.

As of the week of February 22, 2010, all collections, including yard trim will be back to normal. We will still be dealing with the after-effects of the snow for quite some time, and as a result running a bit late each day. But, we will be there on your scheduled day. Please help us by placing your refuse and recyclables near the curb in a visible, safe location by 7 a.m. on your normal collection day.

Thank you for your continued patience. If you have any questions, please call us at 240-777-6410.

-- posted by Robin Ennis, Chief, Collections Section, Division of Solid Waste Services

Can we recycle salted nut canisters?

From our mailbag:

Can we recycle salted nut canisters (cylindrical paper with metal bottom and metal top rim)?

Thanks for your question, D. Another resident asked us a very similar question a short while later. And, it's one we faced in my own household last month with a coffee can of similar construction -- we stood there in the kitchen, debating the pros and cons of the various disposal and recycling options... So, the topic is ripe for a blog entry!

Our recycling program cannot accept containers made of more than one type of material; so the nut (and coffee and similar) canisters would be a "no" since the metal rim and foil paper would be a contaminant of the mixed paper recycling process.

On the bright side, the plastic lid is accepted in our recycling program!

So, the bottom line is this:
if you don't have a reuse for it, please

• put the canister into your trash
• put the plastic lid into your blue recycling bin.

Update, 1/15/2010:

This post generated several reader responses – thanks!

You asked whether we still accept milk and juice cartons - which may have plastic spouts and lids - or juice and drink boxes. Yes, we do! Please continue to add these to your paper recycling.

The beverage cartons and boxes are recycled using a process called hydropulping. This process is able to separate plastics, such as the plastic spout or lid, from the coated paper fibers. On the other hand, the paper-type canisters can have layers of wrapping and metal which is difficult for paper recyclers to remove. While these containers may look similar, the processes for handling them do vary. Therefore, the canisters are not recyclable in our program.

Some of you suggested creative ways to make the most of your canisters:

• “I often have containers that have metal tops and bottoms and a cardboard body. I tend to take pliers to them and rip off the top and bottom and put them in our "metal" bin which we occasionally take to the Transfer Station metal area.” – submitted by M.
• “We use these nut containers to pour grease into, then let it harden or refrigerate it and put it into the trash. Keep grease from going down your drain.” – submitted by B.

Is yard trim collection year-round?

From our mailbag:

Does the County pick up yard waste year round or does it stop during the winter? We still have branches and sticks that we would like to put out with our recycle but want to know if the County will pick it up.

Thank you for your question, M. Yes, our curbside yard trim collection is a year-round service.

Please set your your branches and sticks out at the curb by 7 a.m. on your collection day, bundled, bagged in paper yard trim bags, or put into a labeled, reusable container.

If you need yard trim decals for labeling containers, you may order them online, or by contacting our Call Center at 240-777-6410. There is no charge for the decals.

What happen to the branches we collect as yard trim? We grind them up into mulch, which we offer back to the public at our Mulch Preserves.

Why are trash can lids replaced upside down?

We invite residents to share their comments via a survey about our recycling and trash collection service to them.

One recent survey respondent wrote:

Do not like that the can tops are "stuffed" inside -- but I guess that takes less time that putting them back on. Perhaps the crews should just leave the tops flat on the ground rather than stuffing them inside.

After collection, crews are not supposed to jam lids down into your containers. They are, however, supposed to place the lids back upside down.

Why upside down?

When crews replace the lids upside down, this signals their supervisors that the containers have been emptied. This way, the supervisors don't need to stop at a container, lift the lid, and check inside, which would be very inefficient, given that daily routes cover several hundred addresses, and many more containers.

Similarly, emptied wheeled paper carts are replaced with their handles facing the street, and recycling bins are replaced upside down after being serviced.

And regarding that badly cracked recycling bin in the photo and what to do about it, that's the topic of my next post!

How do we dispose of spray paint - latex & oil based?

From our mailbag:

How do we dispose of spray paint - latex & oil based?

Thanks for asking, B. We have information for oil-based paint and latex- or water-based paint on our website. But, that applies for products applied with brushes or rollers. For advice specific to spray paint cans, I put your question to our Hazardous Waste program manager.

Here is what I learned:

• Use up the spray paint product. Make sure the can no longer has pressure in it by holding down the valve until it is empty. Then, put the empty can in the trash.
• Or, bring the can to us at a Household Hazardous Waste drop-off site, and we'll extract any remaining product and depressurize it.

In addition to this advice... if there's an appreciable amount of product left in the can, and you no longer have a use for it, consider offering the can to your neighbors through your local Freecycle Network group.

Are rectangular milk and juice cartons recyclable?

Update, 12/7/2009: We now accept milk and juice cartons in our Montgomery County, Maryland, recycling program. Please remove the plastic caps from the cartons. Then, add them to your wheeled mixed paper recycling cart, place into a small paper bag or a small cardboard box with a secure lid, or bundle.

From our mailbag:

Are the 1/2 gallon rectangular shaped cartons that milk and orange juice come in recyclable? I just want to do the correct thing.

Thanks for your question, R.! Sorry, our recycling program does not accept milk and juice cartons because they are coated with a thin plastic film. In order to recover the paper fibers, they would need to be separated from this film layer. That's a step most paper recycling processes are not set up to handle. So, please put these cartons into the trash.

What kinds of wrapping paper are recyclable?

From our mailbag:

What kinds of wrapping paper are recyclable? I specifically wonder about the shiny, metallic paper that my wife likes.

Thanks for your timely question, M.! Metallic and foil papers do create a fine-looking gift presentation! But, as much as I hate to introduce any domestic discontent, please tell your wife (gently!) that we cannot accept foil- or plastic-coated papers for recycling. We accept all other types of gift wrap paper (minus the bows and ribbons!).
In a related question, B. asked:

Can you tell me what can be done with tissue paper?

Sure! That can go into your wheeled cart or paper recycling bundle, right along with the rest of your recyclable paper.

A note about the photo: that roll of gift wrap is labeled "polywrap". It looks like foil paper but... it's actually a thin plastic film. If you have or receive any of this type of wrap, please dispose of it as trash once you are finished using (and reusing) it; we cannot accept plastic films in our recycling program.

Compact fluorescent bulb recycling is now easier

Yesterday, I received this blog comment:

You should never throw your cfl bulbs in the regular trash because it contains mercury. It takes just one teaspoon of mercury to contaminate a 20 acre lake forever. It is also illegal to throw them into the trash in many states.

Were you writing in response to this blog entry about compact fluorescent light disposal? In the year that has passed since that entry was posted, our CFL recycling opportunities have expanded.

We have identified eight local retail stores which accept residents' CFLs for recycling. That's in addition to the Hazardous Waste drop-off at our Solid Waste Transfer Station and our community Household Hazardous Waste collection events. (Our community events have ended for 2008; we'll post our 2009 schedule as soon as it's announced in the Spring.)

We'll continue to update our map of local CFL recycling locations, and other CFL disposal tips as this information evolves.

Pillow disposal/recycling/reuse: a follow-up on the follow-up

After finding our blog in a webseach, and reading these posts about pillow disposal, a blog reader sent me this note:

When I contacted my local animal shelters about old pillows, they told me they cannot take them, as the animals shred them and can accidentally ingest the filling.

Thank you for the opportunity to do a little more research. I contacted two shelters local to our office.

One shelter responded with:

We do accept pillows. We also accept blankets (no wool), comforters, bathroom rugs, towels, beach towels, carpet squares, and mattress pads (no electric blankets).

The other wrote back, noting:

I am not a fan of pillows because the stuffing is usually not good for animals and is hard to clean because of its thickness. We desperately need blankets, towels, and sheets.

So, as is the case with many donation opportunities, check with your prospective recipients to confirm that they are able to use what you wish to give them. Our Use It Again Guide is one resource to help you direct your donations, and we're happy to receive your donations of tips to help us expand the Guide even further.

More on recycling berry and other "clamshell" containers

Last Thursday, I wrote about recycling (or not) "clamshell" containers used for packaging berries.

Over the weekend, we received this note:

You stated in your answer that berry containers can't be recycled because they are polystyrene (#6). However, some, including one I planned to recycle, are PETE (#1). Can these #1 clamshell containers be recycled?

Thanks, S., for the opportunity to clarify this topic further. Sorry, we cannot accept the #1 clamshell containers either. So, in summary: no clamshell containers in your blue bins, please.

On Saturday morning, my family and I went blueberry picking. I noticed that one of the fellow berry-pickers near us was carefully depositing his harvest into... a large, clear clamshell container. There were still lots of blueberries ripening on the bushes, with blackberries available, too, and the promise of raspberries to come! So, there is time yet to refill your own berry containers with some tasty summer goodness before retiring them to the trash.

Why not have a bin for recycling plastic bags at the Transfer Station?

From our mailbag:

Too bad the recycling center can't accept them. Why not have an additional bin for them? Although stores like Whole Food are terminating them from their stores, unfortunately, those plastic bags are still a significant part of our surrounding.

We are constantly evaluating the range of materials we are able to accept in the recycling drop-off area at our Solid Waste Transfer Station. Just last month, we expanded our electronics recycling program to accept small electronics, in addition to the computers and televisions we were already taking.

At this time, we are unable to dedicate a collection container to plastic bags at the Transfer Station. Instead, we recommend that you take your plastic bags to recycling bins at your local grocery stores. Hopefully, having drop-off options close to home will make it even more convenient than bringing bags to us.

And, we encourage using reusable cloth bags whenever possible, which helps you avoid having plastic bags to recycle.

How do I dispose of an artificial Christmas tree?

A Happy New Year to all of you!

From a Live Help chat to us:

What is the prescribed way to dispose of an old artificle / fake metal Christmas tree? Thanks.

Actually, thank you for the opportunity to add to the information on our Christmas tree recycling web page.

Here is the information I have added to the Christmas tree page...

If you have Montgomery County-provided trash collection service

If you have Montgomery County-provided trash service, please request a bulk trash pickup for your artificial Christmas tree at www.montgomerycountymd.gov/bulktrash or 240-777-6410.

If you have privately-provided trash service

If you have privately-provided trash service because you or your homeowners' association have direct contract with a company, please check with your collection company for instructions.

If your artificial tree is still in usable condition

If your artificial Christmas tree is still in usable condition, consider offering it to a fellow community member on your local Freecycle Network group.

Our Veggie Oil Exchange makes it to Grist's "Ask Umbra" column

From our mailbag:

I don't know if you are familiar with this on-line advice column, but it is a feature of Grist. Recently your MoCo website got a mention!

I appreciate your note, M. Sure enough! In her December 3, 2007, Ask Umbra column about uses for old cooking oil, Grist's Umbra Fisk wrote:

"I also had a little luck on Craigslist and a surprising result when I put "donate used vegetable oil" into my search engine: the solid waste department for Montgomery County, Md., has an entire veggie oil exchange listing on their website. Zounds."

Thanks for finding us, Umbra, and for sharing the word about our Vegetable Oil Exchange with your readers!

When will my leaves be picked up?

From our mailbag:

I live at [address removed] and still have not seen a [leaf] collection.

We in the Division of Solid Waste Services provide the weekly curbside yard trim collection; the leaf vacuuming is done by our sister agency, the Highway Operations Section.

Our colleagues in Highway Operations are posting leaf collection updates to their website to keep residents up-to-date about crews' progress.

In neighborhoods receiving leaf vacuuming, crews post signs a few days in advance of each leaf collection. Crews do their best to meet their planned schedules. However, Mother Nature can and does pose challenges to them. For example, yesterday's snow meant that some of the leafing equipment was put on "snow duty." And, when that snow melts, the wet leaves will be more difficult to vacuum than dry leaves.

How do I dispose of an old console television?

From our mailbag:

How do I dispose of an old console television?

We checked with our Transfer Station colleagues to see whether it would be accepted there for recycling. And, the answer is... yes, console televisions are accepted for recycling in our new television recycling program.

If you cannot transport the console television to the Transfer Station, and if you receive Montgomery County-provided trash service, then you may request a curbside bulk trash collection for this item. The tradeoff is that while the television would be collected at your curb, it would not be recycled.

Thanks for asking! Confirming the answer gave our Call Center staff and me the opportunity to expand our own knowledge. And, as a result of your question, I have updated our television page to include console televisions. So, dear readers, keep your questions coming!

More information on pillow recycling

Earlier this month, I wrote about pillow disposal. Today, I received this note from C., one of our readers:

I suspect that the person's local veterinarian or animal shelter might be glad
to get the pillows to use as bedding for needy or sick animals. Go ahead and
ask--they might be delighted.

Thanks, C., for this tip! In the solid waste management hierarchy, reuse ranks higher than recycling. And, of course, the possibility of giving old pillows a new lease on life is preferable to throwing them into the trash.

Can I recycle pillows?

From our mailbag:

I have a bunch of bed pillows that have seen better days. I don't want to Freecycle, but was wondering where to recycle them. They are not terrible but, not hygienic enough to pass along

Thanks for your question, P.!

I put the question to the manager of our clothing and textile recycling program. We are able to accept only pillows which are new, and in a bag. So, please dispose of your used pillows in your household trash.

Do you know of other options for used pillows? Please let me know about them!