July 4, 2006 - modified collection schedule

Tuesday, July 4, 2006, Independence Day, is a recycling and trash holiday. All County-provided recycling and trash collections will be one day later than normal.

If you have any questions or concerns about your County-provided collection, please contact our Customer Service staff online or call 240-777-6410.

Note: if you (or your community) have a private contract for your trash collection, these schedule announcements may not apply to your trash service -- check with your hauler or community manager.

• Monday, 7/3/06, normal collection schedule
• Tuesday, 7/4/06, Independence Day: best wishes for the holiday!
• Wednesday, 7/5/06, Tuesday's collections
• Thursday, 7/6/06, Wednesday's collections
• Friday, 7/7/06, Thursday's collections
• Saturday, 7/8/06, Friday's collections

Shady Grove Transfer Station:

• closed: Tuesday, 7/4/2006.
• reopens with normal hours: Wednesday, 7/5/2006.

Categories: News_

Dispose of water- and flood-damaged items

Have these heavy rains left your household with rain- or flood-damaged items?

We have disposal instructions on our website.

Metal cans: to cut or not to cut off the lid

Yesterday, a resident wrote:

I use a hand-operated can opener, and usually open the can about 90 percent and pour out the contents so that the lid doesn't splash down.

Should I continue cranking until the lid separates, and throw the lid away?

Or should I leave the lid attached and carefully bend it back so that no sharp edges protrude?

Both lid-opening options are fine for recycling metal cans. But, please give us the lid in either case. If you cut the lid off completely, the safest thing is to tuck it inside the can, and to gently pinch the can's opening to trap the lid inside. Then, put the can into your blue bin for collection.

Categories: Cans_, Recycling_

Glass: no Corningware, please

This offer was posted to a local Freecycle list:

I broke my favorite large Corningware casserole dish, but the glass lid survived. If you need one, it's here until next glass recycling day.

Thanks to this person for thinking that glass = recycling! The only thing is that if this lid doesn't find a Taker, it should be disposed of as trash rather than a "blue bin recyclable."

In Montgomery County, our curbside recycling program accepts only glass bottles and jars.

What's wrong with that lid? The heat-resistant properties which make it so convenient for baking cause problems when the lid is mixed in with the "regular" bottle and jar glass.

Categories: Glass_, Recycling_

It's just a trash can - Part II

The trash can from yesterday's entry was filled with leftovers from a construction project. The bag on top of the can's contents was a sack of cement.

Our weight limit for trash cans is 45 pounds. This one tipped the scales at 150 pounds. As a result, it was tagged with an orange sticker, and the crew left it behind.

What were the can owner's options at this point? The can's contents could have been self-hauled to the Shady Grove Transfer Station for disposal. Or, the material could have been set out for collection the following week, repackaged in smaller containers weighing up to 45 pounds each.

Categories: Seen at the curb_, Trash_

It's just a trash can, right?

Returning to our "What's wrong with this picture?" series... what's the matter with this trash can? Why could its contents not be collected on the day the can was set out at the curb?

Stay tuned... answer to come!

Categories: Seen at the curb_, Trash_