Don't Crush Your Cans and Other Ways You're Recycling Metal Wrong

Recycling cans is a no-brainer for keeping your home's green score high, but properly recycling aluminum foil, soda cans and steel is also important since making recycling mistakes can put unnecessary strain on the system at large. 

Metal products are some of the most recyclable materials and more than 90% of the products made from steel can be recycled, according to the American and Iron Steel Institute. Aluminum foil, pots, pans, wire hangers and even small appliances can all go to the curb. Since metals are nonrenewable natural resources (they can't be replaced as quickly as they're used), they're limited in supply, which is why it's important to recycle your cans. 

That's why recycling metal cans and doing it the right way is paramount for lowering your carbon footprint. Knowing what to do with cans after use and discarding them correctly will keep your local exchange humming along. Here's how to recycle your metal cans, and what not to do. 

For more, here's what to know about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Which sorts of metal cans can be recycled?

All metal cans are recyclable, if they have been cleaned. Examples include:

• Beverage cans, like soda and beer, including the tabs
• Paint cans
• Canned goods
• Aerosol cans

Cleaning metal cans

Don't do this: Toss cans into the recycling bin before cleaning. If foods or liquids are left in the cans, they can contaminate an entire batch of recyclables, rendering them useless. Unrinsed cans can also attract roaches, rodents and other nasty critters that you don't want crawling around your bins.

Do this instead: Make sure all cans are clear of liquids or foods that could be left in the container. You can do this by rinsing the can when you're finished with it.

What to do with the lids

Canned goods: Don't remove the lid only halfway before placing it into the recycling bin. Instead, completely remove the lid from the can and place it inside the can (after rinsing). Only place lids inside an empty can made of the same metal material.

Aerosol cans: Lids on aerosol cans are typically plastic, so you should remove those before putting the cans into the bin. The plastic lids should go with other plastic recyclables, as the heat applied during the metal recycling process will completely destroy any plastic recyclable mixed into the batch.

Do I need to remove paper labels before recycling cans?

Generally, you don't need to remove paper labels from metal or aluminum cans before you chuck them in the recycling bin. When the cans are recycled, the heat applied to the metal burns away the paper and the adhesive glue entirely, meaning there's no worry that your contributions might contaminate the batch.

However, there are other cases in which you might want to remove the paper labels before you recycle something. You can take these labels off of your metal cans and toss them in with your paper recycling if you don't like the idea of the labels getting turned to ash in the recycling process. More importantly, you do have to remove the paper labels if you're recycling plastics, because the recycling process for metals and plastics is different.

When in doubt, it's best to contact your local recycling facility. One Reddit user familiar with recycling facilities pointed out that, while the mechanics of recycling are important to understand, each recycling plant has their own unique machinery with different capabilities -- they aren't standardized, and so it's not simple to give a one size fits all answer.

Making a quick call to your local plant will ensure that you know what can and can't be recycled, and what might contaminate a batch of recyclables.

What else should I do?

• Avoid puncturing aerosol cans to remove the remaining liquid.
• Make sure all paint is either dry or completely rinsed out before recycling. If you have leftover paint or other hazardous waste, take it to a drop-off center near you.
• Don't crush aluminum cans before recycling because they can contaminate the batch.

For more recycling information, here's how to properly recycle plastic and the right way to recycle paper and cardboard.

FAQs

From talking fridges to iPhones, our experts are here to help make the world a little less complicated.