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Cleaning a plastic peanut butter container is really time consuming, and also uses a lot of detergent and hot water. So im not sure it’s a good balance overall, in recycling/conserving etc etc.
Does anyone have a secret to making it easier to end up with a clean jar to put in the recycle? Currently, im not sure that it’s worth while recycling, with all the cleaning required.
How clean does it need to be? I scrape them out with a silicone spatula and there's practically nothing left.
So, that’s a good point, which leads to another connected, but separate question. How clean do things need to be to be out into the recycling? I was under the impression they needed to really be quite clean. But I honestly don’t know whether cleanliness is crucial in the recycling process?
But I honestly don’t know whether cleanliness is crucial in the recycling process?
Not sure myself but clean does make it a far nicer environment to work in I'm sure.
OP - leave peanut butter jars to soak, much easier to clean then.
We don't bother with recycling them, even the glass ones, have taken the view that there's more energy (ie gas to heat water) required to clean them out than it'll take to melt and recycle the glass. That's based on absolutely zero science whatsoever, it just feels likely. Most other glass stuff washes out much more easily. All that said, I don't lose any sleep over it, as we only get through 2 or 3 a year at most
What is a "dirty peanut butter jar" ?
If there are bits she can reach though.
Get a chainmail cast iron scourer. Dose of hot soapy water, lob in the chainmail and shoogle and spin it.
Job jobbed.
we only get through 2 or 3 a year at most
I reckon we are on 2 a month.
Off to look at silicone spatulas. . .
Actually we have a couple of "tight arse spoon/spatulas"
Think a chopstick with a silicone 1/4 teaspoon on one end and a tiny spatula to other end. They reach everywhere including the shoulders of most jars.
For me, it's scrape out as much as possible, then into the dishwasher, glass/plastic no extra energy used
These days, I struggle to get through a 1Kg tub a year, but I used to polish off several and stay around 80Kg due to the volume of riding I used to do.
We must easily have 5+ old tubs that got cleaned and get used for storing stuff in, like sugar. Sometimes I'll even use them as an alternative bowl, if we're running short on proper bowls!
Possibly helps that my peanut butter tubs were palm oil free, only nuts, so often towards the end the remaining butter was quite dry and easy to get with a knife or a spoon. Not much left in tub to clean it.
That's good stuff^
That mutt up there tanned half a tub once, found her in her bed with an empty tub and a fat belly.
Our 3 come running when it gets opened, as if the cheese tax isn't enough. Think they must be related to Rachel Reeves
We don't bother with recycling them, even the glass ones, have taken the view that there's more energy (ie gas to heat water) required to clean them out than it'll take to melt and recycle the glass.
Seriously? Glass used to be collected to be recycled or cleaned and reused when I was a kid, that’s over 60 years ago! We used to scour the neighbourhood looking for empty bottles because we got money back on them, something that should be re-introduced and enforced. Everything plastic and glass I recycle, if there’s any food traces, which is usually very little, that gets washed off when I do the washing up, then it all goes into the appropriate bins. Plastic foils, like crisp packaging, goes into a large plastic bag, then taken to the local supermarkets who collect it.
We don't bother with recycling them, even the glass ones, have taken the view that there's more energy (ie gas to heat water) required to clean them out than it'll take to melt and recycle the glass. That's based on absolutely zero science whatsoever, it just feels likely. Most other glass stuff washes out much more easily. All that said, I don't lose any sleep over it, as we only get through 2 or 3 a year at most
Think about it...
So you chuck the glass away because of the energy washing it must be less than melting it.
So you think a replacement from raw materials just pops into existance? That involves extracting raw materials, cleaning them, sorting them, processing them, transporting them before you melt them into glass and make a jar.
Reduce
Reuse
Recycle
Always.
Re "how clean" the guidance we used to discuss with clients for waste management stategies.
"Not visible dirty"
"Not greasy"
Rinse is fine for most stuff.
greasy stuff should be fine using the last of the dishwater or chucked in the dishwasher which is already going to be used anyway.
So, that’s a good point, which leads to another connected, but separate question. How clean do things need to be to be out into the recycling? I was under the impression they needed to really be quite clean. But I honestly don’t know whether cleanliness is crucial in the recycling process?
where I live they don’t even need to be cleaned. Just empty.
@CountZero: Hmmm. Unless I saw the numbers, my feeling is that @thelawman might have hit it on the head. I suspect that it’s false thinking that recycling these plastic tubs is worthwhile -IF they require extensive cleaning (needing lots of heated water and detergents).
But I have no facts behind this, which is why I posted the question.
Just the clear things up.
A kg of polypropylene produced from virgin material is abou 3kg co2 (rounded that down for conservative comparison)
Assuming good recycling conditions* in the uk polypropylene is about 1.1kg co2 (lets round that up for conservative estimate to 1.5)
A modern dishwasher cycle is about 4 to 600 grams co2 per cycle. Thats for the whole lot remember) hand washing a bit less (for a single bowl though so quite alot worse than a full dishwasher) so lets be really uncharitable and say you only washed the tub in an empty dishwasher on the hottest setting or you used an entire bowl of hot water.
the logic that recycling isn't worth it os very very flawed. Or ots being used as an excuse ro not bother.
Just fit it in when you are doing the washing you need to do or use it for something else. It sounds like CountZero has the right idea.
* Ie the material is largely clean AND compressed because volume means more trips.
Interesting figures there chaps, thanks. It sounds like there isn't a concensus (on STW? Fancy that) but probably worth cleaning them up a bit and recycling on the whole. As i say, this household only gets through a small amount of peanut butter, and practically all other packaging goes into the recycling. Don't bother with the lightweight cellophane, plastic or foil coated bags, granted. It'd need yet another container in the garage.
Anyway, just for giggles, shall we now add the concept and effect of fats, oils and grease in the waste water system into the mix, ie 'fatbergs' 🤣
Yeah stuff like that I just scrape as much out with a silicone spatula or whatever, if it's particularly greasy then wipe out any remnants with a piece of kitchen roll, then recycling bottom of the list getting washed up in the sink.
Anyway, just for giggles, shall we now add the concept and effect of fats, oils and grease in the waste water system into the mix, ie 'fatbergs' 🤣
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wtf you guys have to clean things before putting them in the recycling bin? What happens if your neighbour forgets?
wtf you guys have to clean things before putting them in the recycling bin? What happens if your neighbour forgets?
If most people do it (and really most stuff is no more than a rinse) then in theory the contamination shouldn't be a massive deal.
If no one does it then it becomes increasingly problematic, its become more carbon costly, it can cause maintenance issues* in the MRFs and it could cause mayerial to be rejected and diverted to landfill.
* Thats why glass is kept seperate because broken glass and particularly particles can trash the plant it gets everywhere and abrades everything.
Dog is the best answer but check it doesn't contain Xylitol as a sweetener. Very toxic to dogs
Failing that, fill with warm water tiny squirt if fairy and let it soak. 24 hrs later it will pretty much rinse out.
We clean our recycling more than is necessary but that's because I don't want my bin to stink in the summer.
So my dilemma, I'm not a peanut butter fan, the missus and two boys are.
The whole earth glass jars are on offer at 66p per 100g but a pain to clean out and there's always some left. The big plastic tub is at 71p per 100g.
Now I feel glass is better than plastic but the slight monetary saving is attractive.
The frustration is the old folks over the road frequently have their recycling bin left as they contaminate it with all sorts
If I have glass jars to wash, I wait until I'm washing non waste items and use the "leftover" water to wash/rinse recycling items.
But glad is going to be melted down anyways so a bit of peanut butter isn't going to make any difference.
So my dilemma, I'm not a peanut butter fan, the missus and two boys are.
...
the slight monetary saving is attractive.
If you're paying for it and someone else is eating it, there's a cheaper solution to be had.
Surely if the glass is going in the bottle bank then it doesn't need to be hygienically clean, just clean enough as it's all going through a furnace to be re-used.
Actually we have a couple of "tight arse spoon/spatulas"
Think a chopstick with a silicone 1/4 teaspoon on one end and a tiny spatula to other end. They reach everywhere including the shoulders of most jars.
But not as well as fingers do! It’s what they were designed for, dammit! That’s half the fun, scraping out the last little bits with a finger, although, to be fair, the bottom corners are difficult to reach, that’s where a small spatula comes in.
So my dilemma, I'm not a peanut butter fan, the missus and two boys are.
...
the slight monetary saving is attractive.
If you're paying for it and someone else is eating it, there's a cheaper solution to be had.
Now I may be daft, but I'm not stupid. to deviate away from what is accepted and eaten would result in more agro and tears at snack time.
Leave to soak for a bit. Empty half out. Lid on. Shame vigorously.
Fill with warm water (ideally washing up water when you're done with it, drained off pasta, or the bit left in the kettle). Repeat shaking bit as necessary.
So, what about the label ?
Its probably a good odea at this point whether we are talking about glass or mixed recyclables.
The reason they are seperate pretty stricttly is broken glass and glass particles get every where and place massive maintenance load on bearing and conveyors in MRF. Its also inert and the processing is extremely high heat like to the point everything thats not glass is going to get burned off. Metal lids etc should not be present though.
Other recycling should be stripped as best as possible but the sorting proceses are pretty good, i think the shred it then everything is largely sperate pieces by then.
Again its about "mostly" processes that can deal with worse condition waste generally are more expensive and the output will be lower quality.
And that maybe another point to note, you don't just get "polypropylene" out. You get bales of material for recycling. Then its processed and you get pellets or possibly other stock products like bars or slabs etc (no odea). And that has a grade. The grade defines the value the better the grade the less virgin material os needed to make new products.
So all the way along the chain you want the highest value (or have more of your council tax be spent on this stuff).
In summary, of you want the best buck for the council (which you should)
Don't increase the cost of maintenance and operation
Keep the value as high as possible so they make more back.
Imagine inventing a timemachine and travelling back in time to meet your childhood self to tell them about the future. Non of the science fiction of our past prepared us for a future where we'd be washing our rubbish before we throw it away :-).
I know. But honestly i have designed landfill, over seen construction of landfill and sample the leachate. Standing at the base of a 20meter high mountain of stinking rubbish nothing all the recycling stuff that shouldn't be there... You realise its not that much effort.
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I wonder what those guys breaking up fat bergs in the sewers get paid....?
I'm guessing not enough!
Even jars in Germany have a deposit on them like both glass and plastic bottles. Jars, 25¢, plastic and larger bottles 25¢ and standard beer bottle 8¢.
the logic that recycling isn't worth it os very very flawed. Or ots being used as an excuse ro not bother.
Thanks for the info - that's interesting to know. But .. the hot water is paid for by me, whereas the plastic tub making is paid for by someone else:-)
whereas the plastic tub making is paid for by someone else:-)
I'm hoping that was tongue in cheek as the packaging is part of the cost of the product. (Unless you're going in to refill from a bulk container).
Whenever I ponder the question of whether my recycling will be clean enough, in my mind I always see an image of Arnie in Terminator T2 as he gets lowered into the melting pot of molten metal.
And that always makes me think, yes it probably won't matter too much if it isn't.
And I like to think my empty tins give a little thumbs up as they disappear into oblivion.
I'm hoping that was tongue in cheek as the packaging is part of the cost of the product.
Sort of tongue in cheek and sort of not, as there's a bit of "tragedy of the commons" effect, whereby everyone thinks they can leave their tub full of peanut butter and screw up the recycling for those who religiously rinse them out. So am I getting value for money for my hot water?
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Even jars in Germany have a deposit on them like both glass and plastic bottles. Jars, 25¢, plastic and larger bottles 25¢ and standard beer bottle 8¢.
We have refundable deposits on drinks containers in Queensland - and a variety of ways to collect the refund. I've a local centre where you put them individually on a conveyor belt and the system counts them then you go to an ATM-type thing which spits out cash. It's quite fun... and seeing the people that arrive with epic amounts of whisky bottles and beer cans make me feel good about my own consumption.
So am I getting value for money for my hot water?
Yes, the fact we get clean fresh drinking water that is consistently safe, pretty much limitless delivered to our tap is exceptional. Its a massive guarantee against dying young fro horrendous diseases. You'd sure as shit notice if it stopped.
Speaking of shit whats absolutely nuts is we shit in 30 percent of that water and flush it away. And 20percent never makes ot anywhere other than the ground as "acceptable leakage"
As for heating it. Again a consistent power or gas supply os pretty hard to argue is anything other than good value. Not cheap though.
The main issue is people are lazy - remember Napster? That doesn't really exist anymore because the record companies got their act together & now we have Spotify. Apply the same argument to recycling & kerbside collections - tetrapaks - can be recycled, but mostly aren't because they aren't collected. I don't want to make a special trip to the dump to recycle them.
The same with batteries & small electrical items so it's easy to chuck em in the bin. If everything was collected kerbside in one bin & sorted post collection I can guarantee recycling rates would go up. Yes sorting & cleaning would be painful & expensive, so we rely on people not being lazy which doesn't really work.