It doesn’t matter if you’re undergoing a complete home renovation or a single-room makeover, chances are you’re going to have plenty of waste materials to dispose of. Walls will be gutted, carpets will be removed, and old furniture and electronics can be thrown away.
While most of us get excited at the prospect of renovating our house, we neglect to think about what to do with all the garbage we accumulate. Here are a few ideas on what you can do not to get overwhelmed with all that trash.
Plan Well
You’re not going into renovating your home without any plan, so why not incorporate waste disposal when you do? This is especially important if you’re planning on doing the renovations and remodeling yourself. You certainly don’t want to suddenly find yourself with waste materials that you don’t know what to do with.
Hire a Professional Garbage Collection Service
One of the simplest ways you can deal with all your waste materials is to employ the services of private garbage collectors. Not to be confused with the garbage collection service from your municipality, a private company can haul your disposables after your renovation or provide garbage bin rentals that they leave for you to fill as you renovate. These bins come in many sizes and can be used for all types of wastage, from industrial materials to old electronic devices.
Take It to the Landfill or Recycling Center Yourself
Do you have easy access to your local landfill? How about your local recycling center? Do you have minimal trash to dispose of? If so, you might be better off disposing of your renovation waste yourself. This would be more convenient if you owned your own truck. But if you don’t, see if any of your friends have one that is big enough to accommodate your needs and appeal to their goodness for help.
Learn to Upcycle
Don’t confuse this with recycling. Upcycling means you take something you no longer use, and with a bit of imagination and a fresh coat of paint, give it a new life as something else. For example, let’s say you have a vintage TV set that you no longer use. Instead of throwing the whole thing in the trash, why not dismantle it and reuse it as a planter or a pet bed? Not only will you lessen your impact on the environment, but you will also have a beautiful, retro piece of furniture that is also the perfect conversation starter.
Donate to Friends, Family, or Charities
If upcycling feels like too much work for you, don’t throw away your unwanted items just yet. To start, you can send out a Facebook or Instagram post to see if anyone of your friends or family would be interested in taking your stuff. Take flattering photos of your items to show that they can still be used. Give it a couple of days and if there aren’t any takers, bring it to your local charitable organization. They would know which communities and areas would benefit from donated items.
Renovating a home is always going to be an exciting opportunity. But don’t neglect the not-so-exciting details. Waste disposal is one of those. Give the ideas mentioned here a try to make this daunting task more manageable.