How to dustbin

I know. For a place that only sees something you don’t want, it’s frivolous and first world to have a set of guideline for operating the contraption for the unwanted, unnecessary. I mean who sees a dustbin anyway? Not guests for sure. And not that anyone is even remotely interested in trash. So why bother right? Well, do it for your home. Because truth is, nothing reflect the health of your home than the condition of your trash can.

I was recently in a home stay and while I always had a bit of a problem with the level of cleanliness there, after seeing the kitchen dustbin I refused to stay another day. It was unsanitary to say the least and this reflect the properties overall outlook to hygiene. So yeah, if you want a home that gives you peace, don’t ignore the essential bits. And good home hygiene is essential!

What to consider before buying a dustbin or trashcan?

Opening mechanism: I personally prefer the step cans. Super hygienic, no touching at all! Then there are the swing cans where you throw trash through a swinging lid. Absolutely hate them because most often than not, the lid gets dirty and its a b**** cleaning them. Too much touching. Haha.
There are also automatic ones which work by the help of a sensor and open when you are near the dustbin. Haven’t tried but surely will, however, I have problems with high tech things! I love analog and simple mechanics because they work flawlessly.
The one I have is a top open. It’s not very convenient if you have your hands full but the point is to not have your hands full!

Shape. Rectangular or circular: Honestly, I love rectangular ones with flat top from IKEA. I can stack them with smaller dustbins or pair them with larger ones. I absolutely love the binning solutions from IKEA. Plus rectangular bins are easier when you are trashing- specially if you are scrapping.

Cleaning: A fancy dustbin that is not easy to clean will not work. Your dustbin needs cleaning every week so it better be easy to clean.

Lewk: Ofcourse! Super duper important specially if you live in a small apartment. Most of us store our trashcans in plain sight and you would want it to look pretty and in line with the over all aesthetic of your house.

What kind of liners to use?

Look for a company called beco. It’s made of 100% compostable corstarch & 0% plastic. It also feels different when you touch it. Smoother. But most importantly, its 100% leakproof. I discovered this by chance in Swiggy Instamart and I have been henceforth using them. Not a drop leaks out. Even when I put some left over curry.

3 things you must do once you have a good dustbin

Dustbin best practices

Clear your dustbin every day: I think this is done by default. And yet, gentle reminder!

Wipe it with a clean cloth with 2-3 drops of essential oil: Cleared your trash? Before you line them again, do this. Add a few drops of lemon or eucalyptus oil in a dry cloth and give your dustbins a good wipe. This will keep it smelling fresh and keep flies away.

Add a wad of tissue paper below the liner: This is totally optional but if you throw away a lot of liquid, the liner may leave stains. A wad of tissue paper or even newspaper helps to prevent that.

Wash your cans once in 20 days: Give your trash cans and dustbins a good wash, once in 20 days. You can also spray soap water and wipe it down.

Separate wet, dry, glass/aluminium and compost: Why? Because you can recycle glass and aluminium for your DIY projects. Your kitchen scraps can go to compost. Bones and likes can go to your regular trash out. It’s also easier to clear out.

The IKEA hallbar range lets you stack smaller dustbins that sit snug on top of the larger ones. The larger ones also stack and even if you stack them you don’t have to struggle to throw trash in. The lids open both fully and via a small opening.

Label your dustbin: I learnt it the hard way because pramila would never throw the right trash in the right can. EVER. So in our last house we wrote in BIG LETTERS in marathi, Ola and sukha. Which means wet and dry. Label it up. So there is no confusion. AT ALL.

Never change its place: We humans are a creature of habit. If you keep your dustbins in a certain way, continue doing the same. Or you will throw wet waste in dry ones! Haha this is specially for people like me who loves moving things around.

There. You have successfully completed your crash course on how to dustbin. Welcome to my Trash talk!

Have more ideas? Tell us. In this blog, our main aim is to create a community of home lovers and I would love to have you in our circle!

Love

Rukmini

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