How We Started Recycling At Home In A Few Easy Steps

It’s been a few months since we started recycling at home. Yes, we are a bit delayed but better late than never, right?

It all started after Aidan watched an episode of Peppa Pig. Peppa and George were learning about recycling and Aidan did too. He told me that Peppa says that recycling is VERY important, so we need to recycle at home.

He was very interested in the topic, so we did more research on it online and found some more education on why its so important and the kids were even more inspired to get recycling. We also searched what kind of recycling services exists in our area.

How We Started Recycling At Home In A Few Easy Steps

We were pleasantly surprised to find out we have a waste drop off site for our recyclables in the area we live. This means we can drop off our recyclables whenever we need to, but then I also came across services in the area who will actually collect recyclables from your home on certain days of the week (for a fee of course). However, the trip to the drop off is so much fun and more rewarding for the kids anyway!

Well, that was easy enough!

We then looked around for recycling bins and found that Mr Price Home had a nice variety. We got a set of 4 black bins with colour coded lids for just R279.

This makes things really easy for everyone at home.

We are so surprised at how many items are recyclable. Those bins fill up so quickly. We also now have so little garbage that goes into our municipal bin. Prior to our recycling days, we often didn’t have enough space!

At the same time, I’m actually quite surprised at the amount of food packaging is NOT recyclable! Like the plastic packaging of vegetables at a particular food store – none of it is recyclable!

Sharing Their Recycling Journey

The kids were so excited about this new journey we embarking on that they really wanted to share the importance of recycling with their friends at school.

That’s exactly what they did. They did a little show and tell at school, sharing how we’ve implemented recycling at home. They also donated some recycling bins and have successfully helped their teachers roll out recycling in their school. These kids. Wow!

And to think it all started with Aidan watching an episode of Peppa Pig …

Other tips we’ve learned along the way

The first thing we really learned about this whole exercise, is that it’s basically a change of mindset. At first, the thought of recycling seemed like a mission and time consuming but after a bit of a shift in focus and some awareness (Thanks Peppa) we easily implemented.

We could have opted for the all in one bin for recyclables as the drop off does sort it, however by having the sorted bins its more of an education for the kids.. and well us too.

Also, we make things easier for the people who have to do the real work by rinsing all the items that need it, before placing them in the correct bin.