Recycle It Saturday

• Aluminium coffee pods – bring them inside a tightly sealed plastic bag to stop leaks.
• Used printer cartridges from participating brands in the Cartridges 4 Planet Ark program. This includes inkjet cartridges, laser cartridges, toner bottles, fuser and drum units, fax rolls, print heads, waste hoppers/containers collectors and kits. There are 6 participating brands: Brother, Canon, Cartridge World, Epson, HP and Kyocera.
• Light bulbs including energy saving or fluorescent globes/tubes. Wrap them in newspaper and bring them in a bag or box so they don’t break.

• All types of bicycles and scooters, electric or not, in any condition. No motorbikes.
• If you can, pack separately from other items so things don’t get tangled and your bicycle or scooter is easy for our team to remove from your vehicle.

These are the pill packets made of plastic and foil. We also accept empty, fully foil pill packets. If your blister pack came in a cardboard box, recycle the box separately in your yellow lid bin at home. No business quantities.

If your item has a plug, a power cord or a battery we can recycle it. We can’t accept textile-based items with electric components such as electric blankets.

• Household appliances: vacuum cleaners, microwaves, toasters, mixers, blenders, kettles, heaters, coffee machines, irons, pedestal fans
• Entertainment and home office equipment: televisions, laptops, computers, computer accessories such as keyboards, printers, photocopiers, fax machines, scanners, servers, projectors, stereos, gaming consoles, DVD players, video recorders. We accept DVDs, CDs, VHS and cassette tapes, as well as their plastic cases – separate the item from the case before dropping both off. Recycle any booklets in your yellow lid bin at home.
• Phones: mobiles and landlines
• Cords, chargers and headphones
• Power tools: drills, circular saws, power boards, electric lawnmowers, electric trimmers, electric leaf blowers. No gas or petrol powered items
• Vapes and e-cigarettes: make sure they're empty of any liquid
• Batteries including car batteries. To reduce fire hazards, tape the battery terminals on both ends with regular, non-conductive tape, like duct tape, clear sticky tape or electrical tape. We can accept up to 3 car batteries per vehicle, pedestrian or cyclist.

Remember to delete your data before dropping your device off. The recycling process doesn't include data wiping. Some electronics may be repaired, refurbished, and resold by our local processor. These items will have their data wiped before they are resold.

We only accept items in great condition that can be safely lifted by 2 people. Up to 5 items per resident.

All items must be assembled (except for bed frames). No furniture made of or containing glass. Minor damage such as scuffing or scratches may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

• Bed frames and bases – disassembled: made from wood or metal only (no fabric bases). Accepted sizes: single, king single, double and queen. These must be disassembled, with no missing parts. Bring small parts in a container or sandwich bag. Include assembly instructions or note the product name and brand so our charity partner can search online.
• Seating: armchairs, dining chair sets (minimum 2 chairs), lounges/sofas (2 to 3-seater only), ottomans
• Tables: bedside tables, coffee tables (no furniture with glass), dining tables (up to 6-seater), side tables
• Storage: bookcases (small or medium size only), chests of drawers, coat stands, portable wardrobes, shelving units (small or medium size only), TV units (no cabinets designed for older CRT TVs).

Items must be less than 10kg in weight per item and made mostly of metal. Items like umbrellas, highchairs and prams are not accepted. They have too many non-metal components.

The following household items are accepted:

• Metal kitchen items: pots and pans, baking trays, knives, cutlery, colanders, steel bowls. No whitegoods.
• Metal handheld tools: hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches, nail clippers
• Metal fasteners and fittings: nails, screws, pins, rivets, nuts and bolts. Bring small items inside a container.
• Metal dust bins and wire coat hangers. No plastic-coated hangers.
• Reusable drinking bottles and bottle caps
• Keys and metal locks
• Metal sports medals: separate the medal from the lanyard. The lanyard can go to textiles recycling.
• Metal golf clubs
• Jewellery made from metal only, including gold and silver. No jewellery containing pearls, gems or other non-metal items.

Items must be less than 20kg in weight per item.

• Paint – water and oil-based are accepted. Bring paints in original containers with lids on tight
• Household gas cylinders and bottles including nitrogen, SodaStream and LPG bottles
• Smoke alarms
• Fire extinguishers – maximum 2 per household.

• Rigid polystyrene/styrofoam from furniture, appliance or delivery packaging. No polystyrene with plastic lining, like some ice cream containers. Keep pieces whole and remove all tape and glue. Put bendy or squishy items like foam wrap, foam sheets, packing peanuts and bean bag filling in your red lid bin at home.
• Large cardboard – bring it flattened.
• Camera film. No photos.
• X-ray, MRI and CT scans/films – take them out of envelopes. No paper scans. Put envelopes and any paper scans in your yellow lid recycling bin at home.

• They should be clean, dry and free of mould and chemicals. Stained, worn or torn clothes, uniforms, fabric hats. No bras, underwear, boxers, reusable nappies or swimwear.
• Shoes and socks
• Blankets, doonas, quilts, sheets, towels, pillows, fabric mattress protectors and sleeping bags. No blankets or bedding with animal fur or hair.
• Soft toys (remove any batteries)
• Cushions and curtains (with hooks and eyelets removed – cut off the top section)
• Reusable shopping bags made from fabric
• Rolls of fabric and offcuts – all sewing pins and needles must be removed
• Items not good enough to be donated to charity

Commercial, business or construction waste

Here’s what businesses in the local area need to know about recycling services and reducing waste. Find out where to recycle all those tricky items through Planet Ark’s business recycling directory.

Hazardous waste like chemicals and pesticides

These items can be recycled at a Household Chemical CleanOut event or Community Recycling Centre. Find one near you.

Mattresses and fabric bed bases

These items can be collected in our free weekly pick-up service.

Unacceptable clothes, textiles and toys

• Clothes in good condition, belts and handbags – please donate them to a local charity or book a doorstep recycling collection
• Bras, underwear, boxers, reusable nappies and swimwear
• Backpacks and suitcases
• Plastic mattress protectors
• Carpets, rugs, curtains with hooks and eyelets, any textile items with electric components such as electric blankets 
• Board games

Soft plastics

Take them to Woolworths Stores trialling soft plastics recycling. Otherwise, put them in your red lid bin.

Unacceptable household furniture

• Damaged, soiled or poor-quality items: broken, ripped, stained, scratched, heavily soiled items. Furniture that doesn’t meet quality standards.
• Oversized items or furniture too heavy for 2 people to safely lift.
• Items made of or containing glass.
• Items not fully assembled – except for bed bases and frames.
• Single dining chairs, older style TV cabinets (for CRT televisions), desks, desk chairs.

Whitegoods and appliances

If your items are in good working condition, check directly with local charities to see if they’ll accept your items. Try, Salvos Stores, ReLove, Bower Reuse and Repair Centre or Pyrmont Cares. Otherwise, book a free weekly pick-up for these items.