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Where to Donate and Recycle Household Items

A list of where to donate and recycle household items after decluttering.

So, you caught the decluttering bug and have been incredibly productive and ruthless in unearthing the unnecessary, redundant and unwanted ‘stuff’ that has been hiding in your home for years and now you would like to find a new home for it. OR…you know you need to get busy ridding your home of clutter but are just putting your plan in place. I have put together a list of charities to donate and places to recycle household items and declutter.  

Some of these are affiliate links and I will earn a small commission off of the sale of these products, but the price you are charged is not affected. You can see my full disclosure policy here.

In her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, Marie Kondo stresses that the purpose of an object is to bring joy. If an item no longer brings you joy or has a purpose in your life, you are doing that object and the person who does need or get joy from the object, a great service by bringing them together. I find it’s always easier to remove stuff from my home when I know it’s going to someone who will put it to good use.

So, not only would you like your discards to land somewhere where they might be useful, but we surely don’t need to add more to our landfills. What do you do with all your discards and where to recycle?  I’m here with some answers.

There are many agencies and charities where you can donate your gently used items and make them available to those who need it.  If you’re documenting your donations to charity for tax purposes, here’s a site that gives suggested values of commonly donated items.

Where to Donate and Recycle Your Gently Used Items:

 Where to Recycle Household Items:

  • The Earth911 site will provide locations in your area where you can recycle household items.
  • Computers and  Electronics
    • Staples, Office Depot, Best Buy, and many other local computer repairs/sales stores will accept your computers and parts (including all those cords, wires, etc…) for recycling. I was told they take most everything but televisions.  Take out or wipe your hard drive first.
    • Contact your local solid waste/recycling department.  Many have sites that will also recycle these items.
  • Compact Fluorescent and Rechargeable Batteries
    • Home Depot and Lowe’s Home Improvement
  • Paint and Fertilizers
    • Contact your local solid waste/ recycling department.  Many have sites that accept these items.
  • Packaging Materials (that popcorn stuff)
    • The UPS store or another local shipping store will often accept this
  • Wire Hangers
    • Dry cleaners will often gladly take wire hangers
  • Prescriptions and Medications
    • Check to see if your local Walgreens has a collection kiosk
    • Use this tool to find authorized DEA collection site.

Now that you have a list of charities and know where to donate and places to recycle …keep uncluttering!

Discarded Pencils with overlay where to take your decluttering discards
If you've been busy decluttering, you have piles of stuff that now need a new home. This list of where to recycle and donate after you've decluttered your space will come in handy. #wheretodonate
Where to donate to charity and recycle: stacks of books and household items for donation

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8 Comments

  1. I am in the process of redoing the house. And you can bet there is more than enough stuff that needs to go. My plan of action will be to have a yard sale when the weather gets better and then to donate like crazy. But only when my dad is not looking cause he hates to get rid of his stuff.

    1. I know you are having a blast making home! I can tell from just visiting and seeing your daughters’ room. But oh my, a yard sale is so cathartic! Maybe send dad away for a little vacay that weekend.

      Hugs, Lynn

  2. The local salvation army refused all items that may have been in a lawn sale and all furniture that was not solid wood ( no pressed wood or plywood), I have a 70 year old plywood bookcase that is in daily use! Calling first did not help we made THREE calls, drove 50 miles and returned hours later with 98% of the car, truck, and trailer still full, We then spent months delivering and donated items all around the area, rural, to individual churches.

    1. UGH! I hate to hear that. But even though it did not help you this time, think it is a great idea to call first. But man, they really let you down, didn’t they? It may be too late for you now, but do you have a Habitat for Humanity ReStore in your area? They seem to take most all lawn furniture and home furniture.

      Thanks for the heads up!

      Hugs,

      Lynn

  3. Thanks Lynn for the decluttering ideas and places to donate! I love St. Vincent de Paul and Habitat Restore! We have a Foster Care Closet near us. She gives items for Free to foster families and children, clothes, shoes, toys, books, furniture. She also sells some donations to keep the store open. Hopefully readers will see this and find their local Foster Care Closet! I feel so much better parting with things when I know they are going to a needy person! 💕

    1. Hi Mary,

      I couldn’t agree with you more! I much prefer donating to local charities where I know my donations will have immediate impact. After my father passed away, we searched for a local organization that could take his suits to help veterans looking for employment post-military. I kept onto my dads suits for years looking for a place until I finally gave up. I did end up giving them to our church who had a family who could use them, so that helps.

      Thanks so much for writing in!

      Have a wonderful day!

      Lynn

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