With its recent Big Recycle campaign, which offers rewards for recycling, Portsmouth City Council are known for being pro-active in developing local recycling processes. As part of this hard work to increase the number of local households recycling their waste, which are among the lowest in the UK, 2013 saw the opening of one of the biggest recycling centres in Hampshire at nearby Waterlooville.However, since then the local council’s large leaps for improving long term recycling systems are being undermined by small steps towards short-term cost-cutting, with the Portsmouth News reporting in August 2014 that proposals to reduce the opening hours of county-wide recycling centres is likely until the next financial year, whilst the levying of charges to householders is also a possibility.With this news giving rise to local fears of an increasing problem with fly-tipping, local residents are looking for alternative, but still cost-effective and environmentally responsible ways to dispose of bulky waste in general and beds and mattresses in particular. So what are the options for conscientious home owners and businesses in Portsmouth?
Private collection
Private companies offering collection and responsible recycling are on the increase since many local councils raised their costs for bulky item collection in 2014. However, households should be aware that there is a divide between companies – some just collect and take to landfill, others collect and deliver to general recycling plants, but offer no guarantees as to the percentage of the bed products which will be recycled whilst others, such as Collect Your Old Bed will collect beds and mattresses and deliver to specialist recycling plants with a guarantee that 100% of the materials will be recycled into other products.
Easy steps to diligent disposal
Collect Your Old Bed’s easy three step process offers residents the opportunity to:
- Identify their postcode area for pick-up.
- Identify the items needing collection.
- Choose a collection date which is at their own convenience and submit contact details, ready for collection.
Reduced prices, reduced waste
With costs for their mattress recycling in Portsmouth starting from under £10, private collection and recycling from Collect Your Old Bed can be significantly cheaper than Portsmouth City Council’s bulky waste collection, which starts at £30. Whilst the council does guarantee that as much waste as possible is recycled and disposed of correctly, collection days are limited currently, making this option less flexible and more expensive for households in comparison to being able to choose a collection date which is at their own convenience and at considerably less cost, from ethical private companies such as Collect Your Old Bed.
Recycled products
Another benefit of recycling old mattresses with Collect Your Old Bed is their 100% guarantee that the materials will be fully recycled. Components of recycled beds and mattresses are transformed into:
- Carpet padding
Recycled from used mattress foam, the resulting fabric can be used as an effective underlay or carpet backing. - Fabrics and fibres
Fibres such as wool and cotton can be recycled from mattresses into other textile items and products. - Recycled steel products
As a non-biodegradable component, discarded steel just clogs up landfill and is harmful to the environment. However, once separated from beds and mattresses as part of a 100% recycling process, the steel can be re-used endlessly as components of a range of products and appliances. - Wood chips and animal bedding
All wood from bed bases is recycled into several items which serve our pets and homes, including animal bedding for small pets, wood chips and mulch for gardens and even biomass fuel.
With such a range of potential new uses, it makes sense to recycle beds ethically and, with lower costs than many councils, it makes cost-effective sense to try the easy three step process offered by Collect Your Old Bed for your bed collection and mattress disposal in Portsmouth.