What do you re-use?

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What do you re-use?
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Downsizer Forum Index -> Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

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gardening-girl

Joined: 25 Feb 2009
Posts: 6024
Location: Somerset.

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 5:19 pm Post subject:
Usually they get put over the top of wooden spoons etc that stand in a pot by the cooker.

Midland Spinner

Joined: 13 Jan 2009
Posts: 2931
Location: Under a green roof

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 5:25 pm Post subject:

I try desperately NOT to hoard stuff, 'just in case it's useful' - when my Great Grandfather died we found an envelope labelled "Small pieces of card which might be useful", and another of short bits of string.
He was lovely, but .... when he sent you a card, he wrote in it in pencil so you could rub it out & re-use it.
He had a stack of baccy tins, each with a washer, screw, nut or bolt in because his wife had objected to him keeping "empty tins" so he put something in each one in order to claim that they were useful!

Someone please stop me if I get to that stage
The things I re-use are:

Freezer bread bags, I just shake the crumbs out.
I collect newspaper from a friend at work who gets a paper - we use it for lighting the fire,
Jam jars (obviously!)
Olive oil bottles - refill from a big tub from the Cash & Carry
We had a Chinese take away about 18 months ago and the plastic trays are excellent for holding the laundry soap & washing balls next to the sink in the futility room.
Cat food or bean tins occasionally get used for washing paint brushes etc (but only if we are painting something).
Milk bottles for storing "Worm Do" from the wormery.
Loo roll inners for seed planting - also have a paper potter - have to save newspaper for that - memo to self, ask at work for more.
I keep padded envelopes for later re-use, although I usually find that the sender has put our address in huge letters all over it and when I try to re-use it there's not enough space to put an address, so I end up using so much sticky tape & paper that I might as well have used a new envelope!

Green Rosie

Joined: 13 May 2007
Posts: 10498
Location: Calvados, France

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 5:35 pm Post subject:

lottie wrote:

I've got a big cupboard in the kitchen with the hot tank in---I just bung them in there after swilling them out.

No hot water tank

gardening-girl wrote:

Usually they get put over the top of wooden spoons etc that stand in a pot by the cooker.

Not much room there

But a friend has said she has a small washing line in the corner of the kitchen with clothes pegs on it - off to see if that will work.

katie

Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 713
Location: midlands

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 6:18 pm Post subject:
I dry my plastic bags on the legs of the ironing board when it's folded up....if you can envisage what I mean....

Green Rosie

Joined: 13 May 2007
Posts: 10498
Location: Calvados, France

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 6:37 pm Post subject:
What is this thing you call an ironing board

Barefoot Andrew
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 21 Mar 2007
Posts: 22780
Location: In the 17th century

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 6:50 pm Post subject:
A. PS I can't believe people exist who don't wash and reuse freezer bags

gorbut

Joined: 03 Sep 2006
Posts: 137
Location: Border of London and Essex

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 6:57 pm Post subject:
I have a contraption that hangs up with lots of little pegs on it that are designed for drying things like socks. I do use it for that but also platic bags. I save up the bags and wash them all togehter and then hang the peg thing over the shower rail so it doesn't matter if the bags drip. Later when they are not dripping I hang them up in the utility room. In summer I hang them outside.

gardening-girl

Joined: 25 Feb 2009
Posts: 6024
Location: Somerset.

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 6:59 pm Post subject:
Godd idea Gorbut! We,ve got one of those in the camping box, better go and find it. OH calls it a Wishy Washy.

Green Rosie

Joined: 13 May 2007
Posts: 10498
Location: Calvados, France

Posted: Sat Jan 16, 10 7:34 pm Post subject:
Excellent idea - I could hang that off the overhead drying rack

T.G

Joined: 13 Sep 2009
Posts: 7280
Location: Somewhere you're not

Posted: Sun Jan 17, 10 3:48 pm Post subject:

[quote="Midland Spinner"]
I collect newspaper from a friend at work who gets a paper - we use it for lighting the fire, check
Jam jars (obviously!) check
We had a Chinese take away about 18 months ago and the plastic trays are excellent for holding the laundry soap & washing balls next to the sink in the futility room. check - but more frequent
Cat food or bean tins occasionally get used for washing paint - bean tins for holes in lawn for putting green
Loo roll inners for seed planting - check
I keep padded envelopes for later re-use, Check - using a small bit of sticky tape you can stick it on and remove it it removes the writing (sometimes with a small amount of paper)without damaging the envelope too much. and reuse bubblewrap

Also turn envelopes that come pre-addressed but for something you won't be sending for inside out and re-use

I also buy one particular brand of peanut butter purely as they come in plastic pots with screw lids so are safer than jam jars to use for storing nails screws clips etc in

Ginkotree

Joined: 26 Jun 2008
Posts: 2956
Location: south west wales

Posted: Tue Feb 09, 10 6:30 pm Post subject:

fabric conditioner bottles from yonks ago have lasted for feed scoops if you cut them at the right angle
orange peel for fire lighter
a huge amount of the farm is made from recycled stuff that folk bring here...THANKYOU

doors..work surfaces...
the compost loos are made from an old side board...mahogany, very posh..and an old bed ...oak I think..
I am lucky to have the room to take stuff from folk, use them or store,,,then when people need bits of furniture I let them have it...

I took all the wood from a man who collected it, so much there was no room for his children in the house..very sad...and he was going to be evicted...he was happy that it is all recycled down to the last bit with all sorts of uses...and the very last..to keep warm.the girls were happy to have thier rooms back..

Material to make quilts.

OOh its endless....and I am definately Recycled after all my treatments

Nell Merionwen

Joined: 02 Jun 2008
Posts: 16300
Location: Beautiful Derbyshire

Posted: Tue Feb 09, 10 6:56 pm Post subject:
I get quite excited if I aquire a large cardbord box....the chickens will get a new nest box plastic bags, card, string, what ever I can. I also wash out freezer bags...why would someone not?

marigold

Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 12458
Location: West Sussex

Posted: Tue Feb 09, 10 7:07 pm Post subject:

Helen M wrote:

I also wash out freezer bags...why would someone not?

Because they are dead cheap and life is too bl**dy short

Midland Spinner

Joined: 13 Jan 2009
Posts: 2931
Location: Under a green roof

Posted: Thu Feb 11, 10 8:29 am Post subject:

The.Grange wrote:

I keep padded envelopes for later re-use, Check - using a small bit of sticky tape you can stick it on and remove it it removes the writing (sometimes with a small amount of paper)without damaging the envelope too much.

Oh good tip!

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15425
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Thu Feb 11, 10 9:48 am Post subject:

Midland Spinner wrote:

Someone please stop me if I get to that stage

There is apparently a recognised mental illness of excessive hoarding.
Really bad cases won't even throw away their own bodily fluids.

I seem to be having a phase of being given old cookers. I'm on the third in the space of a month.
They're held together with loads of self tapping screws which anyone knows are endlessly useful, and I'm sure there is a use for all those switches and metal plates.

The actual ovens are now going to be recycling bins or something like.

Not yet stripped the third one if anyone needs a cooker...

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