Glass waste collection

What is glass waste?

Waste glass is simply any bits of broken or used glass that you can no longer use. It comes in many forms. Common examples of glass waste include:

• Bottles
• Jars
• Containers
• Shards
• Windows

Glass is a material comprised from a liquid mixture made up of sand and soda ash. To produce glass, this liquid is supercooled to a rigid condition. Rather than crystallising, it maintains the internal structure of the original liquid.

How do you get rid of waste glass?

Glass is 100% recyclable and not biodegradable, so it should never end up in landfill. Instead, you should get a specific glass bin for your business premises to fill with all your waste glass. Arrange a date for collection – whether a one-off or regular collection – for green and easy glass recycling in the UK.

It then goes to a material recovery facility, where the general process for recycling glass is:

• Glass is separated from other recyclable materials and sorted by colour.
• This is then treated to remove any impurities, such as paper, plastic, and metal.
• It’s then crushed and broken down into small pieces and rebranded as cullet.
• The cullet is then melted at around 1,000°C, fused back together and moulded into new products, like windows, bottles, and jars.
• These are then sent out to their intended destination and could be back on shop shelves in as little as 30 days.

According to British Glass, a green wine bottle manufactured in the UK contains around 68% recycled glass. Glass can be reused indefinitely by melting it down and continuing to make new products.

However, sometimes glass waste contains too many bits of non-glass materials for it to be remelted. Thankfully, there are many secondary applications, even for poorer quality glass. Instead of being made into products, this type of waste glass can be used as an additive in concrete, water filtration, and as aggregate – referred to as loop recycling.

Glass bin weight limits

With Bins.co.uk, you can easily arrange one or more glass recycling bins for collection at your business premises. These are available in sizes of 240 litres for glass only, with a maximum weight limit of 50kg. If you have a lot of glass waste you can organise collection of two, three or more glass bins to meet your needs.

Glass recycling and waste facts

The exact amount of glass produced and used in the UK is hard to quantify, as it covers a wide range of products across many industries. Despite it being highly recyclable, almost 200,000 tonnes of glass in the UK still ends up in landfill. That’s a similar weight to 18 Eiffel Towers, and a lot of this comes from end-of-life building glass.

Government figures show that waste glass had the second highest recycling rate of 75.8% in the UK, just behind metal. While that sounds impressive there’s still work to do as the UK tries to reach 90% glass recycling rate by 2030.

Recycling glass is essential to reduce the strain on landfill sites and the environment in general. According to the WWF, glass produced through recycling glass reduces related air pollution by 20% and water pollution by up to 50%>.

Why should we recycle glass?

Every tonne of glass that’s remelted salvages 246kg of CO2 emissions and reduces how much energy is needed to make new glass products. Therefore, continuing to make cullets is a crucial aspect of the glass industry decarbonisation action plan, which aims to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 80% by 2050.

Recycling glass bottles, jars, and other products is vital for businesses to uphold your environmental responsibilities. If a glass bottle is thrown in landfill and not recycled, it could take thousands of years to degrade – if at all. Recycling avoids this and offers a more affordable option than sending it to landfill.

According to a survey across 13 European countries, people are also buying more glass now than they ever have before. Half of the 10,000 consumers surveyed also claim to buy more glass packaged products now than they would have in 20177.

This could be because the general public is constantly being educated about recycling and are becoming more aware that glass is one of the most recyclable materials. However, as more glass is produced and purchased, our efforts to reduce glass waste must also increase.

Tips to reduce glass waste

The main way to reduce glass waste is to ensure that every glass container ends up in your glass recycling bin, and not in landfill with unrecyclable materials. It’s easy to throw everything into one bin, but this is extremely damaging for the environment.

If you’re operating a business, it might be a good idea to separate your glass entirely if you tend to generate a lot of waste. Have glass bins on your premises for different colours to make separating your waste simple.

Using glass is often unavoidable and normally the best option anyway, as it’s such a recyclable material. Think about other ways you can reuse glass products – such as:

• Clean out jars to use as vases in your office
• Putt in light bulbs for a decorative effect
• Repurpose as planters if you have some outside space
• Store oils, herbs, spices and fruits as a natural air freshener
• Fill with soap and turn into a liquid soap dispenser

Arrange glass waste disposal

Contact us today and get a quick quote for glass collection based on your business needs. At Bins.co.uk we’re passionate about recycling and saving our environment. We offer free wheelie bins, so you only pay for glass bin collection – which we offer anywhere in the UK. We also promote ultimate sustainability, incorporating a zero to landfill policy and a carbon-neutral collection process.

Get a quote for glass waste collection

Glass recycling: FAQs

How do you dispose of large glass shards?

You can recycle large glass shards in a glass bin. Wear puncture-proof gloves and close-toed shoes to be safe when handling large glass shards. If they fit in your glass recycling bin place them here and await collection. When they’re too big, contact our team and they can find a safe and simple solution.

Can glass bottle tops be recycled?

Yes, glass bottle tops are normally made from steel or aluminium, and you can easily recycle them. However, don’t throw the in your glass recycling bin as they’re made from a different material. Instead, separate your bottle tops and place them in with your metal or dry mixed recycling waste.

How many times can glass be recycled?

Glass can be infinitely recycled and will not lose any of its quality or purity. Its long-lasting nature means you can recycle it forever, as the raw material never wears out. For this reason, waste glass should never go to landfill as you can endlessly reuse, recycle and repurpose it.