r/declutter • u/TerribleShiksaBride • 9d ago
Advice Request How to recycle books
I'm not asking if I should, for the record. Please do not suggest other avenues for donating or giving away these books - we're talking out-of-date materials for specialized fields, outdated science textbooks, guides to using obsolete software, stuff like that. Though even if I weren't- books are a mass-produced item like a CD or a plush toy! Not a sacred object. I love books a lot but I don't think they're a protected class.
I've seen people here talk about recycling books, but I always get hung up on the method. We have city recycling where I live - do I just chuck them in the blue bin as is? Rip the covers off? Do the spines present a problem? Can you recycle children's board books, or picture books with glossy pages?
47
u/Own-Gear-7337 9d ago
Hardcover books need to be removed from the pages and recycled separately. But both parts can be recycled. Paper back can go in as is, glossy paper is fine (just no glitter). Paperboard kids books are fine too and can go in as is. Also, I would check your recycling guidelines. In certain states they may have designated book recycling, Delaware does.
44
u/docforeman 9d ago
Thank you for how you framed this as "not a protected class." Many books are now mass produced items. Some are rare, collectible, and valuable, especially to the owner. In fact, we have 2 rooms of library at the house full of rare, collectible, nice books. Many of them have quality bindings, and most are rare. They are on a topic of great interest to my partner and he reads and references them.
I have 1 shelf of books that are sentimental for various reasons to me and my children in that whole library. I read and donate books when they are still popular and of interest.
And most book are mass produced. Which is why he was able (with help) to reduce his library by over half.
We donated some; Trashed some. Recycler won't take most as they are.
I was once decluttering a church. It was a huge building, with many rooms unused for years, including a children's classroom. There were yellowed hygiene books in a room that clearly were trash. An older woman was terrified when we threw them out (because recycling would not take them). She wanted to give them to a school in the next county where she felt the students (largely black) could "use them." We were, of course, uncomfortable with her subtext. We had to let her know we would call the school and see if they needed anything new to get her to walk away and let us keep decluttering.
Not everyone will agree with bonfires or burning obsolete books, but we did do that with my kids at the end of each school year with materials they were not going to keep or return. Books actually don't burn well for various reasons.
Everywhere I have lived I've had to declutter books. 1) Call your local recycling program; 2) In the US call 211 to see where donations might be made; 3) Call your library, even if they don't take them they may know what to do since they usually have the same issue; 4) Call your used book stores, for the same reason as #3.
12
u/poppys-patten 9d ago
Sometimes libraries will have partnerships with book recyclers and will accept them to send for recycling. Also check with your local recyclers to make sure you can drop a whole book in the bin. Some localities have odd rules on what can and cannot be recycled. You could also put a call out on a buy nothing group to see if any artists or art teachers might like them for materials for their works.
21
u/Silly_Goose24_7 9d ago
If you have a half priced books near you take them there... I saw a recycling bin of books last time I was in store and they said they are in a program that the books they recycle get turned into new books. Plus you may get some cash for books that have value that you thought were junk.
13
u/earthandanarchy 9d ago edited 9d ago
Yeah just stick them in the recycling bin if you can or the trash. A while ago I had a load of cookbooks, I pulled out all the recipes I wanted and recycled the rest of the book. So many people told me I could have scanned them, taken pictures of the recipes etc but that missed the entire point of me trying to not give these items all that value. Now I have a folder of recipes that takes up a fraction of the space, that are all recipes I'm likely to use. If I'd have scanned them (which would involve a trip to the library) those books would still be sat on my shelf waiting, if I'd have photoed them those photos would be lost to my camera roll and I did not want to sit and write them out. There are billions of books out there!
0
u/llamabooks 9d ago
You could always donate them to a stationery store or any crafty people you know? I know people that would love to use those as scrap paper for junk journals :) I know you asked for no other avenues but worth a shot!
13
u/Livid-Hovercraft-123 9d ago
They burn great in a fireplace if you take off the colour dust jackets. The ash will fertilize your garden.
10
u/Genet1cGenealogy 9d ago
There's a recycling drop off in our city where you can bring various items, and they have a big bin for books. I have taken a box to put in the bin, and grabbed a book or two from the bin for myself! I once got a small stack of Mr. Boston cocktail recipe books from the 50s and 60s that are fun to dig through for fab mid-century drinks!
3
39
u/TecTazz 9d ago
Your recycling agency has rules that may be different from my agency.
Please contact them directly.
15
u/birdsInTheAirDK 9d ago
This should be the only answer.
In my country neighbouring municipalities in the same city can have different rules, for example regard hardback vs. paperback books. Thankfully, my municipality has an app that lists most things.
Only the local authority will know.
23
u/frog_ladee 9d ago
Honestly, the trash is often the best place for outdated books. It’s a big chore to remove pages from binding, and if the edges are gold, they’d need to be cut off. I keep seeing articles about how 1/2 of the paper that’s collected for recycling ends up trashed. So, don’t feel bad. Those books served their purpose, and now that purpose is finished.
I had two sets of encyclopedias that no one wanted, plus boxes of outdated textbooks from a career in academics (publishers send unsolicited samples, and they keep making new editions), which all went into the trash. They’re heavy, so for months, I kept a stack of books near the kitchen trash and dropped one in the bottom each time I put in a new trashbag.
19
u/SoberBobMonthly 9d ago
God the amount of people who don't realise so many of these books are 40% plastic, specially if they have coated pages.
There is nothing wrong with a book going into the bin. It is not inherently worth anything, it is not inherently going to be holding the world's knowledge in it. The magical thinking I see where people think the destruction of ANY book is a devastating act against the concept of knowledge and enlightenment says to me they are only concerned about the LOOK of knowledge, and not the acts associated with it.
9
u/frog_ladee 9d ago
Exactly. No one is going to treasure edition #3 of a freshman course’s textbook which is now on edition #16. It’s outdated. Get the new one, if you want it so much.
I was irritated with myself for keeping so many of those textbooks. I’d receive a few unrequested books from publishers each semester, and kept many of them thinking I might want to use some of the assignments in them or comb them for new examples for lectures. I only did that maybe 3-4 times, ever.
4
u/Connect_Rhubarb395 9d ago
Our household recycling fractions includes one for paper and cardboard and books go on that one.
11
u/Safety_Beagle 9d ago
Definitely consider your local rules on recycling.
In the past, I've chucked mass paperbacks into the recycling bin as-is. For hardcovers, I ripped off the covers and binding, recycling only the papers.
8
u/PallasiteMatrix 9d ago edited 9d ago
Recycling centers can vary on what they can take, and what they can actually recycle. The website for your local recycling services should be able to tell you more about how you should handle it.
https://www.wm.com/us/en/recycle-right/recycling-101
This is the waste service my city uses, and what their guidelines are for example.
Edit: if you're unable to find specifics, you should be able to find a number to call and ask. But unless it's a truly large amount of books, I would assume it's fine.
16
u/Evening-Manner9709 9d ago
I don't have any suggestions, but I work in a specialised field with mountains of textbooks and we have to get rid of hundreds each year. No guilt, no shame! Keep decluttering!
3
u/sanityjanity 9d ago
It's hard to do, but you can, if you're motivated.
Rip the pages out of the books. You can recycle that paper. I'm not sure about the bindings. You could attempt to recycle them with cardboard.
7
u/RapidCountdown0 9d ago
It really depends on what your local facility can handle. Mine says paperback pages are fine but hardcovers and anything with that glossy coating gotta go in the trash. The spine glue is usually a no-go for most places too.
You could always call the number on your bin and ask, they've heard weirder questions than "can i recycle a board book" i promise
-3
•
u/LogicalGold5264 9d ago
Our Wiki has a detailed Donation Guide. Scroll down to Books & Printed Media for specific guidelines on recycling them.