Clothes recycling

[SandStorm]

I am about to have a major clear out of all the wardrobes in our house. This will involve several trips to the recycling bank with the clothes that are too small/big/downright ugly but what do I do with the ones that are so old they have worn through and are only good for rags? I once heard that these can go in the recycling too - is this true?

You might be able to get money for them. I see on our buses posters for a company that will collect from your home and we have a shop nearby that gives you I think £5 per kilo (can't quite remember the how much it is!) Never used them myself but may do one time!

There are recycling banks and recycling centres that will sort and recycle even poor quality textiles for all sorts of purposes - creation of paper, industrial cleaning rags, etc.

Your recycling bank should do this automatically.

By the way, many stray dog kennels are always looking for old blankets and twoels, no matter how worn through.

Good luck!

They're the standard Salvation Army recycling banks in the village car park. I have to admit I've never actually read the sides of them so it may well be there's my answer!

I live in the middle of nowhere - don't even know where my nearest kennels are and they're not actual blankets/towels. Would kennels want old jeans that are ripped?

The Salvation Arny does claim that textile donations are used for:

Re-sale;
Re-use;
Re-cycling.

By this I assume they mean that they sort the textiles and take the good clothes for selling, and sell on the rest for others uses, including shredding for rags and stuffing mattresses.

So I think you ought to be able to donate the whole lot?

We are starting to recycle textiles at school as us on the pta have signed up to a website that takes it away & then gives the pta money :o

Is that Phil a Bag by any chance? My school does that too but they've just been and I don't know what their policy on torn clothes is. I think I should be okay with the Sally Army containers.

My DD's school is just about to donate through Bag2School - but they are for clothes in good clean condition as they are for reuse. Whilst sorting out stuff I've found some torn or stained clothes that I'm not sure what to do with - but I shall check out the Salvation Army container in the supermarket car park