As a parent, do you ever ask yourself why car seat recycling is important? If not, we are telling you. Kids grow in the blink of an eye or so fast. Sometimes parents don’t even get enough chances to learn how to install their kid’s car seat properly. In the meantime, they have to go for the next size up. Most children from the beginning use three types of car seats.
When parents move up to bigger car seats, they have no other options than recycling the older ones. Moreover, you may need to recycle your car seat upon its expiration date; it gets crashed or smashed. Or you also need to recycle it when its internal parts become damaged.
Whatever the reason for recycling your car seat, knowing the environmentally friendly disposal options is a must for you. You can recycle your car seats on your own, look for their buyback program, re-using them, donate your car seat, or throw it out.
We will disclose more information about environmentally friendly car seat disposal. So keep reading this comprehensive guide till the end!
Is Car Seat Recycling Possible?
Before jumping to the discussion of how to recycle the car seat, learn whether recycling is possible. The answer is yes. Car seats are recyclable. But it cannot be easy to do so. Hardly may you find a car seat recycling station near you for recycling purposes.
The car seat is made of different materials. A typical car seat is made of plastic, hard foam, iron, fiber, leather, etc. All these materials combindly made the car seat long-lasting and durable. But the problem is that all these materials come with different recycling processes.
As a result, car seat recycling has become difficult. The way out of this problem is to recycle your car seat smartly. First, you have to separate its different materials. After that, recycle each material accordingly.
But we know it does not sound easy. It will require huge effort, time, and resources. And for this reason, many recycling stations refuse to recycle car seats.
Options For Responsible Car Seat Disposal
Spotting abandoned car seats next to the bins on the streets is very common. Many people left their car seats near the bin, hoping the council waste disposal services would pick them up. But the reality is the rubbish collection trucks leave them on the roadside.
So you have to find better disposal options. Now we will take you through all the responsible car seat disposal options. Check it below:
1. Recycle It On Your Own
Recycling your car seat through your municipality is one of the best disposal options. Either through the car seat recycling programs or through the municipality, you can recycle it. As we already described, recycling the car seat on your own is difficult as it is made of different materials.
You must separate your car seats for each material for individual waste streams. Most programs can recycle only metal parts and frame some plastic parts.
Metal and plastic parts have more value than fabric and foam covers. But you can individually recycle every part of your seat, including plastic, metal, foam, and cover. However, if you do it by yourself, it will take hours.
If, through the municipality, you want to recycle your car seat, then you must remove its cover. Also, cut off the seat’s harness, straps, and buckles. Basically, for recycling, you have to make it unusable.
2. Look For Car Seat Buyback Programs
Target for a buyback program where you can recycle your car seat. Many stores host events periodically whereby you can get a coupon for your next purchase by bringing your old car seat. It is a trade-in process.
After exchanging your car seat with a coupon, what happens to the seat depends on the partnered disposal company or retailer. Some companies may recycle only your car seat’s important materials. In contrast, other companies can recycle your car seat, including its fabric covers and foam.
3. Re-Using The Car Seat
Usually, the car seat’s lifespan is long, and you can use it for a long time. But sometimes, your baby’s car seat may become small, and you need a large one. In this case, the most convenient option is the Trade-up program or re-using the car seat.
People in a trade-up program can exchange their car seats with another. For example, one may require to upgrade their car seat from small to large and large to extra-large. They can trade up their car seat in this program. These programs usually contain donated large and small seats.
4. Donate Your Used Car Seat
To help others, you can donate your car seat to others. It will give you an inner peach. For no obvious reasons, we often look for unused things in our homes and offices and donate them. This is a good philosophy of living, and everyone should follow it.
But the question is, do car seats fall into the donation group? The answer is it’s a tricky issue. Donating your used car seat isn’t as easy as you think. Even if you have the charity intent in mind, with your car seat, we recommend you to slow down a bit.
The reason is some charities may accept it as donations, but some may refuse to take it. However, those who don’t accept the car seat as a charity don’t think they have bad intentions. They have their specific reason for that.
Without knowing your car seat’s history, many charities don’t feel eager to accept it. Any damage or issue in the car seat can cause an accident. Moreover, a small problem can go a long way, and anything can happen.
Many charity organizations don’t accept your car seat donation for all these reasons. On top of that, the experts suggest not buying a used car seat.
5. Through It Out
Before sending your car seat to a landfill, take it apart first. Cut off all its buckles, straps, and harnesses for recycling. Rendered the car seat so that it becomes unable to be used completely.
Before throwing it out, put the cover and straps in one bag and the shell in another dark garbage bag.
Can You Put Your Car Seat In A Recycle Bin?
Putting the car seat in a recycle bin is an idea everyone tries. We recommend dropping it immediately if you also plan to adopt this idea. As we already described earlier, the car seats’ most parts are non-recyclable.
So now question yourself why you will put a thing in a recycle bin that isn’t accepted for recycling. Also, the car seat’s size won’t allow you to put it in the recycle bin. The only option for you is behind the recycle bin where you can put your car seat.
But the problem is if you keep it behind the recycle bin, it won’t be considered for recycling. The recycling stations will consciously ignore it. Ultimately it will cause new pollution for the environment. However, by separating your car seat’s different materials, you can put them into the recycle bin.
When Should You Recycle Your Car Seat?
Your car seat recycling should be within its expiration date. Every car seat comes with a specific expiration date. Seeing the expiration time, many parents become suspicious, thinking that the cunning manufacturers are trying to make them buy more seats. But everything has a specific period to use.
Like other things, your car seat’s components can wear out due to excessive use over time. So for a good reason, it has an expiration date. Your car seat’s expiration date tells you about the seat component’s integrity.
Over time the seat’s plastic, metal, webbing, buckles, and foam will experience wear and tear. So within your car seat’s expiration date, you must recycle it for your baby’s safety. Look for the expiration date in your seat’s manual.
Also, sometimes your car seat doesn’t reach the expiration date, but you may still need to recycle it. Guess when? It’s when your car seat crashes or is smashed for any reason. Again if your car seat has any missing, worn out, or damaged parts, you should recycle it.
Check out the reasons once again that will recall you when you should recycle your car seat:
- For safety reasons, your car seat has been recalled
- Your car seat met the expiration date or became expired
- Kids have outgrown their car seat
- The car seat become crashed or faced an accident
What If There Is No Car Seat Recycling Option Near You?
In case there is no recycling program in your area or you don’t want to pay the recycling fee, then to reduce your waste, do the following:
- Your car seat is crashed or recalled, but it’s not expired and has all the safety standards. In this case, donate your car seat to a local charity program. You will surely find many hospitals near you accepting free car seat donations.
- If your car seat is expired and it is ready to go forever, then do the following:
- Dismantle your car seat.
- Recycle its metal or plastic.
- Separate your car seats and those parts that are not worth recycling or re-using.
- To get the re-use facility take any fabrics
What Are The Obstacles To Recycling Car Seats?
The greatest obstacle to your car seat recycling is a lack of reliable and correct information. Most parents aren’t aware of where to go to recycle their unusable and unwanted car seats.
However, USA’s different states have arranged for several programs to increase the car seat recycling rate. So, in short, the biggest obstacles in recycling your car seat are:
- Lack of correct information
- Not available trade-up program
- Restrictions on recycling the car seat plastic
- The car seat won’t fit in the recycle bin etc.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Dispose Of Old Car Seats UK?
To dispose of your old car seat in the UK, call your local council and ask them about their waste processing capacities. Also, you can look for the car seat trade-up program where you can trade up your old seat.
What Do I Do With Old Car Seats Near Me?
If the old car seat is in good condition and complies with the safety standard, you can donate it. Donate the seat to your church organizations, local charities, women’s shelters, or safety technicians. But in case of damaged or expired car seats, properly recycle them to ensure safety.
How Long Are Car Seats Good For?
Usually, the car seat remains good for 7-10 years. Within a defined period, you can use the car seat safely for your baby. But during the use period, the seat goes through a lot. Therefore it can become damaged before its defined life span.
Conclusion
And that’s the end of it! We have described all the environmentally friendly car seat recycling options. So if you want to recycle your baby’s car seat, you can follow any of the methods mentioned above.
Most of the parents don’t know where to recycle their car seats. And for this reason, they fail to recycle it properly.
But hopefully, the above guide has helped you a bit. Now if you have any other questions, you can comment. ASAP we will reply to you!
