How do we feel about clothing donation bins?

[reddaisyandcake]

I've always bagged up clothes and put them in the donation bins, like salvation army ones in the supermarket car park. But today I was told they dont go to charity shops anymore, they're weighed in and recycled.

This is good, but I've been putting in clothing still with labels that just doesn't fit assuming they'd be in a charity shop for someone else to enjoy.

I dont know why, as its all to a good cause, but I feel a kind of way about it. I genuinely didn't know and thought it was the way to donate clothing.

How do you pass on good quality unworn clothing? (I havent the energy for Vinted!)

See if any local churches or similar collect for the homeless, shelters etc.

I was in a charity shop when someone dropped off a hatchback-ful (VW Golf) of clothes, many still with the labels on. I helped carry the binbags into the shop. (Went back the next day and bought a whole big pile of them - a relative's favourite brand of t-shirts with price tags still on.)

The large drop off is overwhelming for a small shop.
Stock like books doesn't fly off the shelves, so they sell them cheaply and they'll take months to shift.

I take good clothes and books to the nice shop in the nice town where they'll charge more for them and the cheap stuff to the grotty shop on the not so nice part of town.

I give things away on Gumtree and Freecycle regularly but also drop off to the local charity shops. Both are easy enough to use but you do get occasional no shows or lots of, "Is this available?" messages.

I recently cleared out my workwear and put 26 dresses on gumtree freebies. I sorted the first lot of 15 and a few days later a further 11. Both were reserved the same day I listed and collected within 24 hours. Quick and easy. I've listed furniture, scrap, household items etc and all get snapped up.

I thought they got donated to people in need, mostly abroad. I'm sure mine said it only wanted clothes that could be reused, so nothing torn. Anything unsuitable was to just be chucked in general waste. Maybe I dreamt it, I'll have to check. I'd only take really good labels in a really good condition to charity shops.

If you have clothes that aren't good enough for selling, bag them separately and mark the bag 'Rags'.

I would never use them. Almost every time I go past the big bin in Sainsbury’s, people have dragged the contents out onto the pavement and have been going through everything and taking what they want and can resell easily. I always take my stuff to a local charity shop - although it’s not my first choice of charity thst I would choose to support, I can park easily outside.

I think it depends on the charity. Some charities' textile banks do get emptied by charity drivers and taken in to shops. Shops are then sorting by hand through unusable clothing and linens (ripped, stained and some of the stains...) that are also often damp verging on wet. Rag merchants pay next to nothing these days and there will soon come a point where the payment is going the other way: from the charity to the rag merchant. Charities also pay for refuse collection, just like other businesses do. If something isn't saleable, it's best to take it to the tip.

Yeah I don't trust those bins although I read somewhere that Salvation Army are the most trustworthy bins (no idea if that's true!). Anything that I think will sell quickly for over £5 I list on Vinted (mostly nice brands). Anything in very good condition but unlikely to sell for over £5 I take to charity shop. Anything that is very used or with stains/holes just goes in those bins. It's mostly kids stuff for me as I don't buy many clothes for myself. Feels like a lot of effort but I feel like it's such a waste to put everything in the bins.

You can donate by post to Oxfam for free:
https://www.oxfam.org.uk/donate/donate-by-post-for-free/

They definitely resell them, because a week after my first postal donation I checked their online shop and many of my items were there – and disappeared gratifyingly fast!

I didn't know this OP and like you have some great stuff in there that I assumed would be sold for charity. Pretty annoyed really as it isn't made clear on the skip things.

I like this, I will try this

Same! I'll be making changes from today. And buying less clothes as when I think about it, my donations over the years have not been used as I thought. The link in a post above about landfill sites has made me so sad I've contributed unknowingly.

Ive just ordered some bags, max 3 in the options. But if you need more you can make a special request.

There is a community wardrobe near me that accepts clothes. Although is a bit sporadic in availability.
Perhaps there's something near you like that.

Yes there’s one near me too in the Community Larder for children’s clothes, as well as a local
council reuse, repurpose, recycle shop that takes clothing along with household and gardening items.
If you buy from H&M their recycle scheme is good, I always have a bag on the go for items unsuitable
for the charity shop or Vinted.
we just need to buy a lot less stuff, with limited resources there will be nothing left for our children/grandchildren!

Olio is an amazing app that you can arrange giving away stuff on, or selling it too. A bit like how freecycle used to be. Also look up your local baby bank, I think they are amazing at giving clothes for free to people who need it- a cut above charity shops who sell at such high prices these days.

Clearly I’ve been doing this all wrong!!

I do the best stuff to the charity shop
Not so great but still perfectly wearable in clothes bank
Tatty stuff in bin (eg stained or particularly bobbled)

Oh I assumed the Sally Army bins were for the homeless to be honest. I've always bagged up decent coats and thick sweaters etc to go in there. I'd be sorry if they were sold as rags.

I sell most things on Vinted, but usually put anything that won’t shift into the Salvation Army bin.

I just ordered some of those Oxfam bags. Thanks for the link.

Since finding out that those bins just collect textiles for recycling, I use them for damaged/stained/worn out clothes that are only fit for the shredder.
Unworn stuff with labels and good quality, good condition used clothes go on Vinted. Even if it’s just for £1 at least someone is getting use out of it and it doesn’t feel like such a waste.
(And any proceeds go in DD’s college fund)

I’m gutted I’ve also put nice stuff in those bins

The Salvation Army website states that they do sort them and some are sold in their charity shops.Salvation Army Textile Bins

"Clothing donations we receive through clothing banks and door-to-door collections also end up on the shelves of our charity shops. Items sold here in the UK make the best profit for us, enabling us to help more people.

Any clothing we are not able to sell in our shops is sold for reuse overseas. We act responsibly with all donations, using them to raise essential funds for The Salvation Army and avoiding unnecessary waste going to landfill."

It sounds positive that the donations are checked. The concern with the rag trade as a whole is what happens to the rags after they are sold and the impact and implications for the countries they are sold and shipped to.

I have donated to the textile bins in the past but now if the clothes are in good, used condition, I give them to individuals via free listings. It gives them a new lease of life and if I bought them used, 3 people have worn them.

Never used the bins

Local Charity shop when I cleared out our parents houses

I cut up all our clothes
Most of my kids clothes have been cut into squares over the years for quilts for them
The same with our clothes
I also use them to make rag rugs

But we don’t buy many clothes so rarely throw anything away now our kids have stopped growing

The charity shops by us will sometimes only take one bag of donations at a time.
I give coats and men’s clothes to an Outreach charity for homeless people.
Children’s clothing goes to a local church charity that supports families in need.
Books go to the Oxfam book shop.
Other items that are still usable go to a re-use shop at the local tip.
Clothes not good enough to be sold by charity shops go in the clothing bank.
Sheets, blankets and other textiles go in the Dunelm textile recycling.
Teddy bears go to Teddy Trust but cost money to post.
There is a very proactive person our local Facebook group who will act as a drop off point for some of these so that helps!

I thought the salvation army bin was for rags but the sign on the bin said something like 'clean wearable items only'
What does everyone do with old stained clothes like underwear with holes and stains on them? I don't like the thought of them ending up in a developing country to be picked over.