Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

Throwing rubbish away in public bins?

36 replies

GreenSkittles · 07/08/2013 23:39

I am a borderline hoarder and I'm trying to declutter and doing quite well at it.

My problem is that I have no car, the tip isn't accessible, the council charges £18 to take away 5 items of any size, and my green bin was recently replaced with a smaller one to 'encourage recycling'. Both bins are full - and one won't be collected for ten days!

Is it acceptable to take a carrier bag of rubbish out with me every day to dispose of in a public litter bin? It would be general rubbish plus proabbly a few VHS tapes, etc. Just to thin things out while I wait for a bin to be freed up again!

OP posts:
GreenSkittles · 07/08/2013 23:40

*probably

OP posts:
tywysogesgymraeg · 07/08/2013 23:47

Yes. Perfectly acceptable. Keep up the good work!
x

LadyMaryQuiteContrary · 07/08/2013 23:52

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1512599/50-fine-for-putting-rubbish-in-litter-bin.html

Take some stuff to the charity shop, sell some stuff on ebay and recycle or bin the rest in your own bin. It's illegal to put household waste in a public bin, sorry.

GreenSkittles · 07/08/2013 23:58

Argh Sad

OP posts:
LadyMaryQuiteContrary · 07/08/2013 23:59

Sorry Sad Wouldn't want you to get into trouble.

LazyMonkeyButler · 08/08/2013 00:00

The moral of the story being put nothing traceable in a public bin.....

GreenSkittles · 08/08/2013 00:02

I didn't think it would be illegal! Oh well. It's best I know, thanks.

I wonder if anyone takes used VHS tapes, I've got about 100 of them!

OP posts:
GreenSkittles · 08/08/2013 00:04

Mmm, thanks MonkeyButler I'll see how it goes...

OP posts:
GreenSkittles · 08/08/2013 00:06

And thank you tywy Smile

OP posts:
IrisWildthyme · 08/08/2013 00:14

There are places that recycle VHS tapes - www.ems-europe.co.uk/ is one, but there are others.

Do you have a job? Could you dispose of anything at work?

The fine in the telegraph article appears to only refer to council-owned street bins - what about bins in shopping centres or other accessible but non-council properties?

AnnabelleLee · 08/08/2013 00:14

yeah I don;t think the moral of the story is "don't get caught doing something illegal" Hmm

Jan49 · 08/08/2013 13:30

Have you got a friend or neighbour who could help by letting you use their bin or their car for transporting stuff? If some of the tapes are pre-recorded, some charity shops still take them to sell.

I had a cluttered house which I spent a year clearing. I don't drive and the council charges are high. Most of the stuff was suitable for charity shops or recycling. But a friend helped me by taking some large stuff by car to the waste site. Otherwise I'd have needed to pay a lot to a waste disposal company or the council.

Well done, anyway, keep up the good work. My stuff felt like a huge heavy burden on me and I'm so glad it's gone.Smile

GreenSkittles · 08/08/2013 13:37

I didn't throw any away outside! I just crushed the rubbish down in our bins more. I have to be careful though because the binmen complain if the bin is heavy.

OP posts:
expatinscotland · 08/08/2013 13:38

I've done this. Why not? It's public.

AnnabelleLee · 08/08/2013 13:44

Yes, its for public rubbish. not domestic rubbish, which is not public. Imagine if everyone had that attitude?

LadyMaryQuiteContrary · 08/08/2013 13:47

You need one of these www.hippobag.co.uk

expatinscotland · 08/08/2013 13:47

Well, everyone doesn't. The OP has a one-off of decluttering and trying to stop hoarding.

These smaller bins/fortnightly collections, do they give you a reduction in council tax due to reduction in services? Do they fuck.

PurplePaint · 08/08/2013 13:52

You can get people to come in and collect, if you have a lot it will probably work out cheaper than via council and probably worth it to get rid of the crap. Just make sure you get a licenced waste collector. here is an example
wasteawaylondon.co.uk/wait-and-load

AnnabelleLee · 08/08/2013 14:27

You asked why not, I answered why.
Do it if you want. But its illegal, its flytipping, and its more than a little knacker-esque.

pumpkinsweetie · 08/08/2013 14:29

Yes it is, but make sure you tie it up first

pumpkinsweetie · 08/08/2013 14:31

And these new bin sizes are ridiculous, no wonder people have to go to these lengths. Infact i'm going to do this as never thought of it before Grin. Thing is there isn't a council bin for about a mile here

orangepudding · 08/08/2013 14:32

I agree with the hippobag if you have somewhere it can be collected.

expatinscotland · 08/08/2013 14:32

You might also be able to find wheelie bins in back of pubs or in blocks of flats. Sling it in there. This whole 'encouraging to recycle' is a crock of shite designed to cut services without cutting council tax. Most of it ends up in landfill, anyhow. It's a con.

pumpkinsweetie · 08/08/2013 14:36

Con it is indeed, it all goes out to india or landfill unfortunetly. I don't even bother washing my recycling, as is counterproductive as then i'm wasting water!

We are getting 6 different bins in November including a foodwaste one which is the size of a very small toybox, well with a family of 7 in january it definetly won't work for me!

GreenSkittles · 08/08/2013 14:37

Thanks for that link LadyMary If I have that much rubbish left at the end of charity shopping it might be worth ordering one, just to get rid of all the fiddly things that I can't get rid of anywhere.

OP posts:
Swipe left for the next trending thread