Recycling Made Simple—How to Reduce Waste

Understanding Everyday Recycling

For most people, recycling simply means tossing something into the right bin. In reality, recycling is a complex system of sorting, processing, and repurposing materials that might otherwise sit in a landfill for decades.

You don’t need to be an expert to make an impact: consistency and a basic understanding of your local recycling program go a long way. It starts with recognizing the obvious items, such as cans, bottles, and clean cardboard, and which everyday items are less straightforward. Not everything that looks recyclable actually is, and accepted materials can vary from one community to the next.

Certain items, such as electronics, require special handling due to the materials they contain. Devices like TVs and computers often need to be brought to designated recycling facilities, where they can be processed safely and responsibly.

Ultimately, paying attention to what goes where helps ensure that recycling systems work effectively, reducing contamination and keeping more materials in circulation.

Recycling Options for Businesses

When it comes to everyday trash, households produce a little more than half of the nation’s municipal solid waste, or approximately 160 million tons per year. The rest, roughly 45%, comes from businesses, offices, schools, and other nonresidential sources.

The collective impact of businesses is substantial. Offices, restaurants, retail chains, and other day-to-day operations add to the total with packaging waste, food scraps, and bulky furniture. For example, the commercial sector generates approximately 40% of all food waste in the United States, which amounts to more than 80 million tons per year. Packaging materials from retail and food services account for a large portion of this waste, much of which is recyclable if properly sorted.

Sourgum offers roll-off dumpster rentals in multiple sizes to handle the diverse waste streams generated by businesses. We don’t just drop them off and drive away: thanks to our haulsourcing platform, we coordinate directly with a network of trusted recycling centers. That means we can route each container’s contents to the right facility, whether it’s for metals, wood, cardboard, or electronics, so that more material is actually recycled instead of buried.

How to Recycle Household Waste

Communities typically offer two primary recycling options: designated drop-off locations and curbside collection programs. The first option involves transporting your recyclable waste to a recycling drop-off site. There are three main types of permanent recycling facilities for this purpose: bring banks, household waste recycling facilities, and recycling centers.

Household Waste Recycling Facilities

Household waste recycling facilities are staffed drop-off sites that typically accept standard materials including cardboard, plastics, paper, cans, and glass. They may also take hazardous materials, such as fluorescent tubes, old thermometers, or other chemicals. Check with your local hazardous waste program or state environmental agency for details on hours and accepted materials.

Recycling Centers

Recycling centers handle common recyclables, such as paper, plastics, cardboard, and metals, but may not accept the wider range of materials that household waste recycling facilities do. Some centers are designed to process only specific items, such as electronics or scrap metal, while others serve as transfer points for recyclables collected curbside. Hours and accepted materials vary by location, and many centers don’t take bulky waste or hazardous items.

Recycling with Sourgum

At Sourgum, we believe sustainability starts with clear guidance. By following clear recycling practices and making informed choices, we can all play a role in reducing waste and conserving resources. Our mission is to make waste removal not only easier and more efficient, but also smarter and more sustainable. Together, through small, consistent actions, we can create a cleaner environment and a zero-waste future.

Simple Recycling Disposal FAQs

Recycling is important, but that doesn’t mean it's always easy. Recycling gets complicated because rules and regulations can vary by state, county, or even municipality. Take a look at expert answers for some commonly asked questions on recycling topics. If your question is not answered, please contact our team and we will make sure we find you an answer.

Styrofoam Recycling

Styrofoam, or expanded polystyrene (EPS), is typically not recyclable in curbside recycling bins. However, there are specialized recycling drop-off sites that will take styrofoam waste. You can find your local styrofoam recycling location using the EPS Industry Alliance recycling location tool or by contacting your local waste authority.

Cardboard Recycling

Most curbside recycling collections will accept flattened cardboard. Be sure to remove all packaging plastics, tape, or food waste on the cardboard. Can you recycle pizza boxes or other food containers? Yes! Just be sure to cut out oil or food-stained pieces of the material. If your county or municipality does not accept cardboard in regular recycling bins or if you are wanting to recycle wax-lined cardboard, you can visit the Earth911 corrugated cardboard recycling location tool.

Plastic Recycling Numbers

Plastic Recycling numbers range from 1 to 7. These symbols on plastic waste materials can help you determine if the material is likely to be recyclable in curbside collection recycling bins or not. Here is a quick summary of plastic recycling numbers:

Plastic number 1 is PETE, PET, or polyethylene Terephthalate. It is usually accepted in curbside recycling. Typical #1 plastics are soda and water bottles.
Plastic number 2 is HDPE or High-Density Polyethylene. #2 plastic is typically opaque and is usually accepted in curbside recycling bins. Plastic 2 is commonly used for milk jugs, shampoo bottles, household cleaner containers, yogurt tubs, and more.
Plastic number 3 is called V or PVC Vinyl. Plastic #3 can be found in food wraps, detergent bottles, medical equipment, and plumbing pipes. It is rarely accepted in curbside recycling bins.
Plastic number 4 is LDPE or Low-Density Polypropylene. This material is commonly used for plastic shopping bags, squeezable bottles, frozen food containers, and some food wraps. This plastic is not traditionally accepted in curbside recycling.
Plastic number 5 is PP or Polypropylene. Plastic #5 is becoming increasingly more common in acceptable curbside collections. Medicine bottles, ketchup bottles, and syrup bottles are all considered plastic 5.
Plastic number 6 is PS or Polystyrene, commonly known as styrofoam. This type of plastic is not accepted by most recycling programs and is used in disposable cups and plates, meat trays, and egg cartons.
Plastic number 7 is categorized as other or miscellaneous plastics. Number 7 plastic is used for phone cases, sunglasses, nylon, bulletproof material, and plastic gallon water bottles.

Disposing of Old Furniture

Furniture removal can be a time-consuming and difficult process. Unfortunately, most furniture items are not easily recyclable. We recommend that you try to reuse or re-purpose bulky household furniture and appliances through sites like Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist. You can also donate mirrors, sinks, cabinets, and other fixtures to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. If your furniture is not able to be salvaged, Sourgum offers on-demand pickup services and dumpster rentals.

Cell Phone Recycling

Cell phones can be recycled along with other old electronics at e-waste or electronic recycling centers. You can also trade in your cell phone when getting an upgrade, or locate a cell phone or battery recycling drop-off location near you via Call2Recycle.

All Metal Recycling

You can earn money by recycling metal. The general rule is that the product needs to be at least 50% metal. That means if the metal is surrounded by a plastic coating, it is probably still good to recycle. Common nonferrous (not containing iron) metals such as copper, brass, aluminum, nickel, tin, lead, stainless steel, and zinc are all recyclable. Use the Earth911 scrap metal recycling locator tool to find a metal recycling center near you.

Yard Debris and Wood Recycling

Many cities have special yard waste curbside collections or composting programs. Check with your local county or municipality to see what services are available. Sourgum can also provide you with a yard waste container if you are undertaking a large or small landscaping project.

Construction Recycling

Construction and demolition materials can be recycled. If you are looking for concrete recycling or asphalt recycling or would like to recycle any other construction debris, use the Earth911 locator for a construction recycling center in your area. You can also use a Sourgum construction dumpster rental and we will ensure it is brought to the nearest recycling facility, as well as save you a lot of time when cleaning up C&D waste.

Recycling Perks

Keep your community clean and support a healthy environment by joining Sourgum in our simple recycling efforts. Reducing, reusing, and recycling have been shown to not only be good for the environment, but also good for saving money, energy, and resources. If you would like to learn more about how recycling can benefit you and your community, visit the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s guide on how to reuse, reduce, and recycle.

Simplify Recycling with Sourgum

Our mission is to achieve carbon neutrality in the waste industry through innovation, improved efficiency, and planting trees. We prioritize sustainability and modern solutions so that living a greener life is easier than ever for our customers. Learn more about how Sourgum is disrupting the waste management industry and making a difference for a healthier planet.

We ensure that environmental sustainability is at the heart of what we do. That’s why we make it a priority to make recycling as easy as possible for our customers. Our simple, mobile-friendly apps allow homeowners, companies, and organizations to conveniently manage all of their recycling needs. If you would like to set up a residential waste and recycling service or get a quote for a commercial dumpster and recycling containers, we would be happy to help meet your needs in an environmentally conscious manner.