The idea of recycling toilet paper rolls leads to a lot of interesting discussions. Nevertheless, the answer is yes; you can recycle your toilet paper rolls in conjunction with your other recycled materials. In addition to that, you can reuse them to do plenty of things, and you can also compost them.
Let’s look at these points in detail and why they make exceptional recyclable items not being used enough around the planet. You can apply any of the below with relative ease.
What Can I Do With Old Toilet Paper Rolls?
At the heart of the matter, remember these empty toilet paper rolls are mostly cardboard. Here are some ways to make use of them.
1. Seed Starters
It is essential to remember that cardboard degrades and decomposes over time, which makes it excellent for seed starting. We talked about the same here, in regards to egg cartons.
2. Bird Feeding
If you like birds or have them in your backyard or outside of your apartment, then this is an excellent way to craft toilet paper rolls. Use jam or some sort of spread to cover the roll in, and then roll the tubes in birdseed. Finally, find where to put your roll for birds to access.
3. Organizing Your Cords
Another excellent option for an empty toilet paper roll: Simply wrap your cords(whether extensions, HDMI cables, etc.) and place them inside the empty rolls. Mainly, the roll will not get in your way, and, will make sure you don’t have to untangle any of the cords. You can then easily store them in any bin.
4. Wrapping Paper Storage
The main benefit here is to make sure the wrapping paper does not unravel when not being used. You’ll have an endless supply of recyclable storage.
5. Office Supplies Organizer
If you have a lot of office supplies(pens, pencils, etc.), then why not decorate some of your paper rolls to use as holders. You can use some sort of paint(like spray paint, for example) to design the roll artistically. Please close the bottom by attaching another piece of cardboard.
6. Store Leftover Yarn
If you are a user of yarn, then this is an excellent way to wrap your used yarn neatly.
7. Kids Craft
If you have kids, then this one is a no brainer. These tubes are excellent for recycling them into craft for kids; with some modification, you have an endless supply of entertaining your children.
8. Make Paper
These tubes are excellent for making paper through recycling. The trick is to use the fibers inside the container by breaking them down into tiny pieces.
9. Gift Containers
You can get very creative in using these as containers. Since it is easy to bend and maneuver the cardboard into many shapes. With a little bit of craft, you can have beautiful boxes.
10. Organize Hair Bands
Very straightforward and easy(see below), you can organize as many hairbands as needed and never have to worry about running out of where to put them.
Are Toilet Paper Rolls Compostable?
Yes, toilet paper rolls are compostable. In essence, they are great ingredients for compost. These rolls are brown compost ingredients. Namely, they have a much higher amount of carbon content(examples would be straws, and recycling tissue paper).
Additionally, when composting toilet paper rolls, you can cut them into smaller pieces. Composting is an excellent way to add to your Zero Waste efforts. Here is an interesting fact for you: cardboard waste makes up over 30% of landfill waste in the United States.
And, while it is becoming more accessible to compost cardboard, it is still not enough. By composting, not only are you cleaning up a lot of space at home, but also helping the environment significantly. There are plenty of composting guides available.
Hence, if you are just beginning your composting journey, this should not be a detractor.
Final Thoughts
You can recycle toilet paper rolls. However, it does take a bit of creativity. Nevertheless, you can do a lot with recycled items.
In addition to the many reasons why this is important, also think about the small benefits you might not initially see, such as the money you’ll be saving by doing this, and not contributing to the growing space of landfills. It is a small effort to make with significant long term impacts.
When recycling, you are implementing one of the 5R’s, so use that as motivation and get to work and recycle.
Nevertheless, if this is not something you feel like you have the time to do, then simply store them in a recycling bin, and pass them along for recycling.
If you have any questions or have other ingenious ways we missed, then please reach out to us, or let us know through Social Media.
