How to Recycle Cardboard

Two types of cardboard can be recycled: flat cardboard, which is typically used in cereal and shoe boxes, and corrugated cardboard, which has a ruffled layer between the two flat pieces of cardboard and is often used in packing boxes. Both can usually be recycled through your local curbside recycling program.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Contact your local curbside recycling program to see if it will accept corrugated and flat cardboard.

2. Break down all cardboard boxes so that they are flat and in a stack. Depending on your community's recycling program, you may have to break cardboard down so that it fits into a brown paper bag, or you might have to recycle it with your mixed paper.

3. Take cardboard boxes to your local supermarket if your community curbside recycling program does not accept one or both types of cardboard. Most supermarkets will take boxes.

4. See if your local recycling program will recycle waxed cardboard (milk and juice cartons) at the curbside. If not, your community may have a drop-off center for waxed cardboard. Call (800) CLEANUP for state recycling information.

5. Call the Corrugated Packaging Council for more information about recycling corrugated cardboard in your area at [phone].

6. Check with your county's department of public works to find out about local curbside recycling programs and community drop-off centers, or look under "Recycling" in the Yellow Pages.

Tips & Warnings

• Staples can be recycled with cardboard.
• Check with your local recycling program to see if you need to remove tape from cardboard before recycling it.
• Avoid recycling cardboard that is stained with food or any type of oil.

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[thkilliam]

on 4/29/2009 It would be of interest to know whether, if one dumps used corrugated cardboard in the bins behind stores, the added cardboard means the store will get paid more, or will have to pay more, for the material to be recycled.On a related point, have there been recent studies comparing resource utilization of paper and cardboard recycling vs. new manufacturing of same?

[mackjr777]

on 8/19/2008 where is a cardboard recycle location in 30144 or 30318 area

on 3/26/2006 Please don't wet your cardboard down to make it fit in the container - most recycling places won't accept wet cardboard or newspaper because it gets moldy too easily and once it's moldy it's trash and can't be used. For places that pay by weight, the added weight of the water also makes wet paper products unacceptable. since they measure (and pay) by weight, they want to pay for paper - not water. Wet product also has a bad habit of making other boxes and papers wet, spoiling a lot more than just the few that you wet to try to make them fit into the recycle bin.

on 11/22/2005 Quite by accident, I discovered a great way to stuff the recycling barrel nearly full of cardboard with almost zero effort.

I get lots of cardboard boxes, that won't fit into our recycle bin, even small boxes take up a ton of room. In the past, I have stomped on them, cut them into flat pieces, folded them, and even climbed on top of the barrel to fit more in. But I had many boxes that had to wait outside for the next bimonthly recycling day. One night it rained, the next morning I had to put the trash out. The 5 large cardboard boxes lying next to the barrel were wet. Guess what? The cardboard was pliable from the water. They just crumpled at the slightest push. All 5 wet boxes went into the barrel with room left over in just seconds! Now, I hose down my boxes the night before recycling, or I let nature do it with rain.