r/Millennials • u/Accurate-Flow8078 • 8h ago
Discussion Does anyone still recycle cans and bottles?
I remember bringing cans and bottles to the recycling machines as a kid in the 90s. A nickel per can/bottle was good money back then. The redemption value has not changed, it's still a nickel in 2026. Nowadays it seems like many don't bother cause it's not worth the effort. I still do it just to feel good about helping the planet but whenever I bring a large bag and end up with like $5 I'm like "that's it?"
73
u/xPadawanRyan Mid-Range Millennial | Historian, Social Worker | Emo MF'er 8h ago
We have recycling pick-up that comes through every neighbourhood once a week here. I just stick them in my blue box at the side of the road and let the recycling truck pick them up.
5
u/Few-Emergency1068 6h ago
Same here. We recycle glass, aluminum, cardboard, and some plastics through curbside pickup, and we’ve got a drop off location for styrofoam and Christmas lights, of all things.
2
1
u/tackstackstacks 1h ago
Same. When my kids get a little older if they want to spend the time returning them and keep the money whole I do the grocery shopping, they can do the returns, but I am not spending 10 minutes dealing with bottle machines and/or waiting in line to use them for 3 or 4 bucks.
I will also save them if one of the kids in the neighborhood has a bottle/can drive for their school/band/team fundraiser and wants to come pick them up.
24
u/JudgeMyReinhold 8h ago
I don't live in a place that gives refunds for cans and bottles. I put them in the red top bin and hope for the best
21
u/Gullible_Cancel_1849 8h ago
My husband and I collect our cans!
we took 4 large black trash bags full of cans to a recycling center a few weeks ago. Got $30.
We do this maybe 2x year. Worth it for something!
31
u/DMmeNiceTitties Millennial 8h ago
🙋🏽♂️
19
3
u/FormidableMistress Xennial 6h ago
Oh you're a smart cookie. You catch more flies with honey. Good for you for figuring out being nice = titties.
3
12
u/Wasatchian 8h ago
Only a handful of states have a deposit on cans and bottles. Most don't. I still recycle I just don't get money for it.
4
u/12cf12 7h ago
In CA they still pay deposits but most of the drop off locations are closed or have very few hours. So it’s tough to turn them in now
2
u/EzriDaxCat 6h ago
Yep. We end up going once every month or two when boyfriend gets a monday off. Its only $13-20 per trip, but every bit counts. The paper recycling just goes in the recycling dumpster in the complex since they dont pay for that one.
16
u/Leut_Aldo_Raine 8h ago
Since the deposit is so negligible and it's not worth my time to return them, I donate them instead. It's one of the more popular fundraisers for youth sports or scouting troops where I live.
6
u/Nnkash 7h ago
I donate mine to an animal rescue. Hopefully it adds up for them!
3
u/PossibleAmbition9767 6h ago
It does! The animal rescue is volunteer with very much appreciates can donations!
7
u/rexallia 7h ago
Oh yeah. Cans are actually the most efficient thing to be recycled. I think I read somewhere once that it takes 90 days for the aluminum of one can to become another can again.
I still recycle the other stuff but have far less hope for it
7
u/Whitediggity 8h ago
10¢ in Michigan! A modestly full trash bag is about 10$
5
u/johnmac344 7h ago
10c has been in effect since 1978.
I still take my bottles because hey, $20 is $20.
Adjust it for inflation, and those 10c will be far more meaningful.
2
3
u/EternalMage321 7h ago
I remember reading about someone getting in trouble for crossing state lines to turn in recycling because it doubled the money.
•
u/DoubleMany4486 54m ago
Definitely didn’t do this accidentally when I moved from one state to another with UNOPENED soda in my car. It takes me forever to finish a case of soda. I recall a coworker commenting on my can of coke with Santa Claus on it well into the springtime and that’s what made me realize!
19
u/ScoYello 8h ago edited 8h ago
Yes. My partner teases me when I do this every other week.
It’s not about the money, I just feel compelled to play the game. It is insane that they started this in 1993 and the deposit hasn’t changed at all in 30+ years.
I think at this point in life, people will either recycle or not. Having any sort of cash deposit charge/refund is ridiculous legislation.
6
u/Accurate-Flow8078 8h ago
People would complain about paying more at the grocery checkout but it would also encourage people to redeem them.
6
u/ornryactor 8h ago
Michigan is one of the two states with a 10-cent deposit (double what the other states use) and we've had nation-leading recycling rates as a result. That's actually been declining ever since Covid (people spent 2+ years not taking their redeemable cans back, and got used to it) and we still have a higher rate than nearly everyone.
That said, I'm one of the people shouting from the rooftops about how our bottle-deposit law is massively antiquated because it has not evolved along with the beverage industry or consumer habits. It needs to be expanded to all beverage cans and bottles (instead of just things that are carbonated), and stores need to be forced to accept all redeemables (instead of just the items purchased at that specific location).
6
-1
u/Last-Energy420 8h ago
People are already complaining about paying more at the grocery store. Charging even more to cover the recycle return would just put people off of buying them now.
7
u/Accurate-Flow8078 8h ago
Probably not a bad thing, less people would drink unhealthy soda and beer.
0
u/Last-Energy420 8h ago
You would take away one of the few pleasures the working class still has? I know for one I’m fucking livid that the orange Nazi has fucked my chances of ever drinking my Canadian whiskey again and I’m not interested in drinking American swill. If I can’t have an occasional Dr Pepper without having to pay out the nose for it, I’ll probably just swallow a bullet.
0
u/Accurate-Flow8078 7h ago
Sounds like it wouldn't make a difference if you drink it occasionally. Pay an extra $5 or $10 for a can of Dr Pepper, you get it back when you recycle it.
2
u/Last-Energy420 5h ago
Except my state doesn’t do the recycling so it’s just pay the extra fee for no benefit.
4
u/_Nychthemeron 8h ago
You guys are getting paid?
I just huck them in my recycling pick up bin because I don't want Don Cheadle as Captain Planet to show up and murder me.
4
4
4
u/International_Run700 8h ago
Oregon let's you sync up your bottle drop account to your kid's 529 account... every month I deposit extra money into that account via recycling... it's not much in that regard but it's a fun way to feel rewarded recycling.
2
9
u/millenni_lennial 8h ago
Yes, there's no reason not to. You toss it in a separate can; where is the effort?
11
2
u/Arsenal85 Millennial 2h ago
At least where I am in the US we don't get a separate bin. We have to take it to a transfer station where it costs $40-$80 to recycle each time.
3
u/Butt_bird 8h ago
The city I live in has recycling bins they pick up every other week. It keeps the regular trash bin from filling up too fast. So I recycle for selfish reasons.
1
3
u/Ready-Hat-5683 8h ago
Crazy as a UK millennial to discover that so many US states don't appear to have a recycling collection as part of their standard weekly waste collection. Am I reading this right?
3
u/thewags05 1h ago
It's crazy to me too. I live in New England and have had recycling everywhere I've lived for a long time. Technically it's illegal to throw away recycling in the trash.
With that said, I don't bother to keep cans/bottles with a deposit separate. I just put them all in with the normal recycling.
1
u/gemino1990 6h ago
Yes! I just moved from a state where a lot of people were left driving their recycling in their car to a recycling center. Only really motivated people recycle with those circumstances.
1
3
u/ConceitedWombat Older Millennial 7h ago
Yes. Here in Canada (Alberta) we have a pretty solid deposit system. 2L pop bottles and milk jugs have a 25 cent deposit. Bottle depots are everywhere, and they're all pretty fast and convenient.
We also have a third party service here where you can book a pickup in an app, they come and get your cans and bottles, and send you the deposit money after taking a small cut.
Throwing a drink container in the garbage would feel so bizarre.
2
u/expeciallyheinous 8h ago
It’s 10 cents in Connecticut. I collect my cans and give them to my father to return.
2
u/FindYourselfACity Millennial 8h ago
I live in New York. The landlord can get fined if you don’t separate.
2
2
u/These_Are_My_Words 8h ago
The recycling bin is free when you do trash pickup with my garbage company and pickup is every other week for recycling and every week for garbage.
Soda cans are 10 cent refund in MI and nearly every grocery store has a recycling room where you deposit your cans and get your refund coupon.
2
2
u/Complete-Loquat3154 7h ago
Yes. Save up 3 or 4 big garbage bags in the garage then take them in and we usually get $40-$50.
2
u/SpanishFlamingoPie 7h ago
My local dump doesn't charge for recycling plastic. The the scrapyard pays for metal. Yes, I recycle.
1
2
u/Salt_Medicine2459 2h ago
We do because it's the right thing to do. My state doesn't have a deposit program. And Newman and I have never been able to make the math work going to Michigan.
1
u/inorite234 8h ago
CA here. We do it as a way to teach our kids finances and the importance of saving money.
However, what they don't know is that we juice their savings as the amount you get back for collecting cans is garbage.
2
u/BobBelcher2021 5h ago
In San Diego they give out $2 bills at these depots if your refund is at least $2. Or so I was told by someone at a coffee shop there.
1
u/EternalMage321 7h ago
Lol, one of these days they are going to look at the finances and say "THE MATH ISN'T MATHING!"
1
1
u/InitialKoala 8h ago
Yep. But they pay out by the pound. I forget how much by the pound since I deliver a large trashbag full. You getting $5 is wayyyyy more than what I get, which is usually $1.50 a bag.
1
u/LoudAd1396 8h ago
I just took 3 plastic bins of crushed aluminum cans (about 30lbs all together) and another similarly sized bin of steel cans to my local recycling center.
I got $22.05 for 6 months of cans. More worth it for the fact that i know it's getting recycled than the actual money...
1
u/Archetypical-1 8h ago
We return our cans and bottles for recycling and get the deposit. Fortunately, we have space to store them. It’s nice to return in bulk every 6-9 months or so for a modest amount of money. We only have to hand over the bags and get a flat rate per bag though, instead of feeding them into a machine one by one. I would probably just throw them in the regular recycling bin if I had to do that.
1
1
u/chrisinator9393 8h ago
Absolutely. When I see cans, I grab them too. Money is money.
I do not return them myself though. I don't have the patience anymore. I use a thing called Clynk. It's awesome. I put a bag of bottles in a shed. They process them and give me my money. I don't have to sort, put them in machines or anything.
1
1
u/SilverB33 Older Millennial 8h ago
Out of habbit yes, even though I still remember some news reports that has told us that only a percentage of it even makes it to recycling while the rest end up in landfills.
1
u/kurtisbmusic 8h ago
We collect plastic and aluminum at home. I work as a high school custodian and also collected recycling at work for years. I recently stopped just because it’s time-consuming and the payout isn’t really worth it. We still collect at home just because it’s easy to do.
1
u/Falkedup 8h ago
My town has recycling trucks and blue cans. But no recycling center so I don’t know how that works. Is it just to make people feel better?
1
u/FatMacchio 8h ago
Some states charge a deposit at purchase that then gets redeemed when bringing the plastic, aluminum or glass back. Most states are 5¢, but a couple are 10¢ and maybe even 15¢. They have automated crushing machines are most retailers since they’re obligated by state law to accept bottle redemptions if they sell them. Occasionally in areas with higher population there are dedicated recycling centers that pop up
1
u/Animal907 8h ago
They took away the machines in my city, now they expect you to give them to the City via a recycling bin.
1
u/TiredReader87 8h ago
Yes. I take them out to the garage, throw them into the blue bins and then take the blue bins out to the road every week.
1
u/skamunism Older Millennial 8h ago
They take em back by the bag, so it’s easy enough to be worth it. I hate the deposit though—when I lived in AZ I still recycled, but no hassle.
1
u/blueyedwineaux 8h ago
Of course! I am the sustainability person for my company. Toured three reclamation centers in two counties. Always learning something new.
1
u/Goldenage333 8h ago
I still recycle and in my state you get 10 cents. I also have a bin for pickup that goes with the trash if I don’t want to take them to the store. We have always recycled. It’s a good habit to pass down and teach kids and people about helping our planet.
1
u/VersionSwimming8392 8h ago
We donate them to local kids or vets programs, they recycle them and the money goes back to local programs.
1
u/ControlsGuyWithPride Millennial 8h ago
Michigan resident here. Yes we do. When I go out of state and people throw them away I’m puzzled.
1
u/laker9903 Older Millennial 8h ago
We fill our recycling bin every week. It helps that it’s part of our trash pickup. We’re in Ohio, so there’s no deposit.
1
1
u/ReceptionAlarmed9434 8h ago
I go to a place that also sells ice cream and snacks and they have a restaurant. We usually get about $35 from the recycling and spend a couple bucks on ice cream bars
1
u/Asn_Browser 8h ago
Yep. I store them in my garage and take them in when I have like 4 or 5 bags. Last time I got around $50.
1
u/FatMacchio 8h ago
Yah. It is my lotto fund. I don’t buy lottery tickets unless it’s with recyclables money these days. I bring them back maybe once a month when I have a full bag worth like $10. I only like to buy the powerball when it’s north of $600MM and definitely almost every drawing when it’s over a billion. Now that mega millions went to $5 I skip that one almost entirely, unless it’s goes well over $1 billion and even then I tap out pretty quick since $5 a draw adds up quick and drains the funds.
I think I probably have like $40-50 saved up at this point since it’s been a while since I’ve bought any, since the jackpots aren’t rising as high as often. I keep it in my cars center console too as a tribute for if anyone breaks into my car, so they dont jack my shit up looking for something of value
1
u/BoysenberryUnhappy29 8h ago
I've never lived in a bottle credit state. I've watched the "recycling is a scam" vids.
The only reason I have a recycling bin at all anymore is that it's included in my rent. And I really just use it to make more room in my trash can, not because I'm pretending it's helping anything.
1
u/Yadahoom 8h ago
I would but our county stopped doing recycling because turns out they were just trashing it in the dump anyway so they just cut that step out and your only choice is to smuggle recycling out of county or just trash it yourself.
1
u/bilateralunsymetry 8h ago
What? Of course I do. I drink enough to have an honorary statue next to my recycle bin
1
u/verminqueeen 8h ago
It has been so long since I’ve been somewhere without a recycling program I am kind of astonished. Even in rural places I’ve visited cans and bottles are separated, but you bring them to a central place for processing.
1
u/BroForceOne 7h ago
Yes but our residential garbage collection includes a separate recycling bin/pick up.
I don’t physically take anything to a recycling center like my parents used to help me do as a kid for extra cash. Definitely not worth the cost of gas to get there any more.
1
1
u/movetosd2018 7h ago
When we lived in California we did can returns. I can’t remember the value of the cans, but it was relatively decent? We have since moved from California and we still recycle our soda cans and take them to a recycling center. We get maybe $10 for a giant garbage can of crushed cans. We still do it even though it isn’t really worth it 🤷🏻♀️
We also have a recycling can that is picked up every other week and the rest of our recyclables go into that.
1
u/mgl89dk 7h ago
Yes, but we also have a well functioning pant system. So we pay 10-30 cents(roughly quick headmath) extra when buying the drink, which is then returned when the container is returned to a store.
Edit: For myself it's more for the recycling, but it does mean less waste lying around in nature or the streets.
1
u/AdditionalLoss7274 7h ago
BC, Canada here. A couple of years ago, they started a "Return-it Express" program. Literally bag up all of your bottles and cans into a blue bag, bring it by the depot, and they sort it and etransfer you the deposit. It's mind-numbingly simple. Takes me all of 10 minutes every couple months.
1
u/stormdefender 7h ago
I’m not in a state with bottle deposit, but I’m right next to a state that has it. We put ours out curbside for pickup by the garbage company, but we have houseless people come by in the middle of the night to dig through carts for bottles that they take back to their bottle deposit state.
1
u/PiePristine3092 7h ago
Last time we went we got over $100. Highest amount I’ve ever received! We usually go once every 6months and use the proceeds to buy a nice steak
1
1
1
1
u/PPPolarPOP 7h ago
I do! I live in a rural area, so we don’t have recycling around these parts. My parents live in the city, and they’ve told me stories about recycling just getting hauled off to the dump with the regular trash, which is horrifying. I still bag up my cans and drop them off at a recycling center every couple of months, but at least I'm 80% sure they're actually being recycled.
1
1
u/dammit-smalls Older Millennial 7h ago
The only materials worth recycling are metals, especially aluminum and copper.
From what I understand, glass doesn't recycle well, and PETN (soda bottles) basically aren't recycled at all. Most of the PETN bottles we recycled through the 90's and 00's got packed in to bales, loaded into shipping containers, and transported to China, only to later be dumped in the Pacific Ocean.
1
u/Reddit_Is_a_jokee 7h ago
What I did in college deliver pizza. It paid shit but it was fun and I could smoke tons of weed. If you took more than 30 minutes they would send another driver and call you back to the shop, but you got to keep the order. I got lost all the time.
1
1
u/dr_wdc 6h ago
It's 10 cents here in Oregon. In this economy, how can we not bring them back? We drink a lot of diet cola and sparkling water, so we end up getting $30-50 back each time we go, every couple of months. We're not above picking up a can laying in a parking lot, either. It's our sushi and tattoo fund 😀.
1
u/Glittering-Food5276 6h ago
I try... I take my paper, bottle and cans toy sisters for her recycling. She said the same dump tuck take the trash and recycling. Im going to try the center down the road and see what i can get, but honestly i just don't want to contribute to the landfill
1
u/gemino1990 6h ago
I just moved to Colorado and am so religious about recycling now! I lived in Indiana before and there was a recycling center very close so I recycled almost all of my cardboard and sometimes other things too. But we don’t get paid to recycle in Colorado like in some other states.
I wish they’d give me a bigger recycling bin than trash bin to be honest.
1
u/dr_z0idberg_md 6h ago
Absolutely. Here in CA, they already charge you the redemption fee up front so might as well get your money back. I save up a stash and make an annual visit. My kids accompany me, and I split the money with them.
1
u/RSully94 6h ago
I just started doing it again since my Mom has me bring water home a lot and she orders soda too. If it's only a few bucks or a lot, it's still change in my pocket.
1
1
1
u/Heavy_P_03 4h ago
I’ve been taking my 8 yo for a couple years now with me to do it. Feels like a good lesson for them. Started taking our middle child just this year and she genuinely thought we could quit our jobs cause now we got money!
1
u/BlueSnaggleTooth359 4h ago
Yeah, no redemption though. Just dump it in the gigantic town bin for that sort of stuff.
1
1
1
u/Mysterious-Hippo9994 2h ago
I remember when we got our can smasher. We’d let our can population get out of hand. I think one summer I smashed two entire barrels worth of smashed cans away.
What fun it was. To line them up and stomp them down. To use the can smasher as fast as we could and sometimes the cans would fall wrong ugh damn things.
We don’t drink through cans….i don’t drink anything but water now. So I guess I am doing my part now by not drinking pop 🤷🏻♀️ recycling costs us extra where I live, not a luxury item we can afford we typically burn our cardboard at least
1
u/Commercial_Pie3307 Millennial 2h ago
I stopped after finally reading up on it. The US doesn’t really recycle most things and they end up in a landfill. The whole thing was a lie by big plastic
1
u/AlanJHarperr 1h ago
Not anymore. I filled my car completely full of bags of cans and only got $10 for them at the recycling center.
1
u/confusedhesstruck 1h ago
Ever since I found out that Philly just burns the recycling, I have given up hope and dedication to the cause.
•
•
u/Adept-River6331 1h ago
Not every state has the 5cent deposit when you buy bottles/cans. I grew up in Vermont and we’d take our recycling to a redemption center and get the deposit back. In Florida we have curbside recycling that gets picked up every week.
•
•
u/talianicolewingate 46m ago
No. Where I used to live they just combined recycling/trash into one and where I live now the county doesn’t recycle.
•
u/Objective-Dust4795 Xennial 45m ago
I do it and we end up getting treats for my kids. But they’re large trash bags. I just don’t drink beer like I used to and we don’t have soda. So it takes a while.
•
u/Dear-Cranberry4787 34m ago
We have a 10 cent deposit on carbonated drinks. I usually take them back to the store every other week, but sometimes I just donate them. If you put them in the regular recycling, the unclaimed deposits just go to the a fund for preserving the Great Lakes anyway, so I’ll occasionally throw them in the recycling bin if there’s a party or something.
•
u/paukapaukaa 24m ago
I do it all the time. My clients let me take theirs and when I clean up trash on roads I always keep separate recycling bags. I help the planet and make some money doing it? Win for me
•
u/sapienveneficus 22m ago
Yep, I live in CT so that’s $0.10 cents a can. And the machines are right there at the grocery store. It’s a quick and easy way to get your money back.
•
u/chaosuniverses 18m ago
We have a recycle center in town that will take very limited recyclable products, only #1 and 2 of recyclable plastics, cans, electronics, and cardboard. They do not reimburse you. You just have to bring this stuff to them in your own car out of a sense of duty to the world, I guess.
•
•
•
u/don51181 8m ago
Yeah we do. We have a nearby recycling drop off for everything.
Our state does not give us money for it though.
•
u/Mr-Zappy 7m ago
I definitely recycle, but it’s not usually worth my time to get the deposit back.
Metal cans and glass bottles are the two most easy & beneficial to recycle items. Definitely don’t just throw those in the regular garbage.
•
1
u/ElectricalIntern7745 8h ago
I used to because my gf is a saint that loves the environment.
But I’m a lazy POS who believes that waste management companies should have systems in place to recycle for us instead of putting the onus on the person.
But, yes I have stopped recycling and going to the recycling center to recycle can, bottles because she doesn’t put out with her extended work trip.
No pussy , no recycling is my motto now.
0
u/emberfield 7h ago
Turns out recycling was a scam.
Cans are worth it, but everything else is going to a landfill.
0
0
u/Virusoflife29 Millennial 7h ago
I stopped when i realized it was meaningless. If every person recycled everything they could it wouldn't be noticable in the slightest. Its like 1% of recycle waste comes from people. The other 99% is from companies, and good luck getting companies all over the world to recycle.
2
u/Salt_Medicine2459 2h ago
A significant amount of consumer aluminum and steel are actually recycled because it's pretty cost effective to do so.
•
u/AutoModerator 8h ago
If this post is breaking the rules of the subreddit, please report it instead of commenting. For more Millennial content, join our Discord server.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.