Don’t Throw Out Your Waste Just Yet!
The easiest way to get rid of waste in your home is to throw it out without giving it a second thought. That is the easiest way, but not the only way. As a matter of fact, waste products in the home are still not waste as they can be used for different purposes.
The main things you’d need to have to be able to make use of your waste products are creativity and the right information. With these, you will be able to produce fine things from materials you would have once just thrown out.
Using waste products and not counting them as just waste is not only environment-friendly but can also save you money. Recycling is a useful skill that would be fun and beneficial to learn. Read on to find out some art and craft ideas with which you can successfully use your waste.
Using waste products in a creative and useful manner
Using Waste for Building Materials
Waste products don’t need to be seen as waste when you know how to recycle them and the most efficient way to do so is to use it for building materials. You may not know it, but there are now innovative methods being used to create materials for building using garbage instead of just adding it to the growing landfills in the world:
- Wood from Newspaper
Norway produces and recycles a lot of cardboard and paper each year and they’ve cleverly come up with the design of Newspaper Wood. This is made using paper which is rolled up and solvent-free glue, making it look something like logs. It is then cut into planks and sealed, making it waterproof and flame-retardant, a perfect substitute for wood.
- RecyBlocks
Plastic bags can now be recycled in a good way! RecyBlocks are colourful bricks made by placing plastic bags and packaging in a heat mould which forces them together, forming blocks. Though not sturdy enough to be used for load-bearing structures, they would be ideal to use for outdoor sections or as dividers between rooms in a home.
- Bricks from Bottles
Bottles which come in cube or brick shapes can be used as bricks when arranged properly. However, this only applies to certain types of bottles which can be interlocked together to form walls or structures.
- Panels from Wine Corks
Since wine has become more and more popular, the wine corks that go with them are being produced more too. Now panels can be made by merging whole corks with recycled cork grains and these can be used as floor or wall tiles.
- Roofing from Diapers and Sanitary Products
There are special recycling plants which specialize in separating polymers found in sanitary products and diapers from the raw waste which they contain. These polymers are then used to make sturdy fibre-based building materials such as roofing tiles.
- Bricks from Blood
When it comes to food production, animal blood is usually just regarded as waste materials and is thrown out. As it turns out, though, since it contains a lot of protein, animal blood happens to be one of the most durable bio-adhesives available. Freeze-dried animal blood which comes in powder form can be mixed with sand to make a paste to be made into sturdy bricks.
- Plastic Asphalt
Plastic Asphalt can be made by using the grains formed from unsorted plastic wastes instead of gravel or sand, which is typically used for making asphalt. Roads made with plastic asphalt were found out to be more impervious to wear and tear as the plastic grains had bonded better with the asphalt emulsion.
Using Waste Products Creatively
Waste products don’t have to just be wasted as you can use them to make household items, with enough patience and creativity. This would save you money and help out the environment as well. Here are a few examples of waste products being made into clever household items:
- Make lampshades from different materials
Having a lampshade at home is useful, especially if you prefer a little light at certain times of the day. Lampshades are versatile and useful for the different rooms in your house. You can make lampshades using plastic bottles, leftover yarn, pegs, glass bottles or any other used items in your household.
- Make flowerpots from recycled materials
Add beauty and a touch of nature to your home by making a flowerpot and planting your choice of flower in it. Flower pots can be made using paper or cardboard, old logs or even plastic or glass bottles.
- Make a variety of Christmas ornaments from your waste products
It would be a fun activity for the whole family to think of different Christmas decorations you can make using materials found in your home. Collect the materials on a table and get creative with your family!
- Make some coasters for your table
Coasters can be made from glue and materials such as CDs, magazines, buttons and other waste materials. Making coasters from recycled materials can be both fun and beneficial!
- Find the treasure in your trash and use it to make furniture
With enough creativity and basic carpentry skills, you can be able to make shelves, tables and similar other things by using different materials. Just make sure that the materials you used to build your furniture are durable enough.
Conclusion – Join the War on Waste!
All households produce lots of waste each and every day but this doesn’t mean that these waste products have to be wasted. There are various uses for these materials which not only help reduce the amounts of rubbish which end up in landfills but can also be beneficial for us.
Bring out your creativity and start making projects at home or go a step further by passing on your recycled wastes to the proper centres which can make them into the building materials listed above.
Always keep in mind that waste products are still not waste if Newcastle Skips all choose to find ways to use them again. Doing this will definitely reduce the amount of waste that ends up in our streets, our communities, and in our country’s landfills. It helps out the environment, which is a plus for all of us. Happy recycling!
