# Reusing, recycling ideas that work **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 7, 2024, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536 "2024-10-07T18:07:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2024, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/21 "2024-10-12T21:18:44Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > I take our empty pill bottles to our local animal shelter/Humane Society. I asked the lady last time if they ever have enough; she said nope bring ‘em on. Considering the amount of medications I’m on, and thus the number of empty pill bottles I throw out, I have to ask: What do they use them for? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2024, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/22 "2024-10-12T21:25:18Z")
Medicine for animals I’d assume. They probably have them in bulk but may need to provide some for an adoption, or to portion them for individual animals at the shelter. I’m going to check on this because I also end up with a lot empty pill bottles and they’re too small to keep things I need in. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/23 "2024-10-13T02:30:49Z")
Thanks for bailing me out with an answer, **TriPolar** , I didn’t even visit The Dope today as I’m laid up with flu-like symptoms, which means even more pill botts for the animal shelter. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/24 "2024-10-13T03:29:08Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > When you make useful stuff out of what would be trash, you’re not buying that useful stuff new. Sure, reusing is good; reducing is better. There are things, like plastic shopping bags, that I reuse inefficiently because they are plentiful. It would be better if I didn’t create them in the first place. Regarding the OP: my wife had the great idea of reusing glass peanut butter jars as drinking glasses. They aren’t for when the Queen visits, but they also don’t break when you stir them with a spoon. Something I can’t say for our store bought glasses. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/25 "2024-10-13T03:49:34Z")
I reduce by reusing. I get bags from the supermarket. Then i bring back the same bags and use them until they fall apart. I don’t get new bags when I’m retiring the old ones. Lotta “disposable” stuff can be reused. And some can’t. I toss toilet paper rolls. I no longer have a pet rodent who needs lots of chew toys. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/26 "2024-10-13T14:22:32Z")
If you have an old bicycle helmet that will never be on someone’s head ever again, before tossing it, remove the clips and pull the nylon strap out, then reintall the clips. Nice little strap with clips for various uses, like holding stuff in place in the trunk or onto shelves in the garage. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/27 "2024-10-13T15:13:31Z")
I have a whole drawer of things like this in my tackroom. Whenever I absolutely have to throw something away instead of repair it, give it away, or turn it into something else, I strip it of potentially useful parts before it goes to landfill, I use that stuff quite often. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/28 "2024-10-13T20:46:23Z")
> [@CaveMike](#): > > they also don’t break when you stir them with a spoon. Something I can’t say for our store bought glasses. The hell do you stir your beverages with, an oak branch? ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/29 "2024-10-13T20:55:03Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > The hell do you stir your beverages with, an oak branch? You would think so. Last week I was mixing my morning drink with a spoon and somehow punched a porthole in the side of the glass. I didn’t even realize it until I felt the drink pumping out of the side. Not a crack in the glass, but I spoon-sized hole. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/30 "2024-10-14T11:24:20Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > a whole drawer One drawer ?! Amateur ! ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/31 "2024-10-14T11:26:12Z")
I have to say, I’ve never had a glass break while i stirred it. Only when i dropped it on the tile floor. Maybe you have unusually fragile glasses. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/32 "2024-10-14T13:06:42Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I have to say, I’ve never had a glass break while i stirred it. Yeah, me neither. These were cheap quality. The peanut butter jars are invincible though. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/33 "2024-10-14T13:37:15Z")
> [@pjd](#): > > One drawer ?! Amateur ! I only have one drawer because I don’t hoard, I keep winnowing. One drawer is all I need. The line between frugal practicality and hoarding useless junk can get blurry. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/34 "2024-10-14T14:14:12Z")
So, i’m a professional… hoarder ! ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/35 "2024-10-14T14:25:55Z")
What’s the pay like? ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/36 "2024-10-14T15:10:50Z")
It’s hard to quantify exactly … but i’ve probably saved several pounds (equivalent to a few US dollars) over the years ! ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2024, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536/37 "2024-10-15T13:46:05Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > The line between frugal practicality and hoarding useless junk can get blurry. Yeah, and once you’ve crossed it, it’s Katy bar the door. My MIL would see potential uses in all sorts of things, and when she died, she had two rooms plus a shed entirely full of junk, plus her stuff occupied a great deal of space in the living room, the family room, and her and her husband’s bedroom. She might’ve been able to use it all if given a whole 'nother lifetime, but of course she’d have kept on adding more junk to the collection. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reusing-recycling-ideas-that-work/1008536.md?page=1)