Sometimes it can seem that everywhere you turn someone wants you to buy something.

And it can be very tempting not to give in and buy it because most of us feel like we might actually need it.

But the truth is we probably don’t, outside of the basic necessities of food, shelter, and water.

So, what is there to do when you’re got caught up in the cycle of “stuff”?

Luckily, there are many ways to be less wasteful, but here are five to help us all start out and keep our homes and our planet from being overrun.

Buy second hand

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Speaking of garage sales, instead of going out and buying something new when you need something for around the house or maybe the kids to need new clothes, shop second hand.

You can go to garage sales, thrift stores, and now, thanks to technology, there are online forums and Facebook pages that also sell nice items second-hand.

Just like the garage sale, you are re-purposing things instead of just throwing them away and filling the world with more trash, which is really good and helps you to live more sustainably.

Care about who you buy from

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There are certain companies that care about waste too, and it’s a good idea to buy from them versus others who don’t necessarily do that.

Do a little research to see who you are really buying from and how they treat this planet.

There are companies like BioLogiQ who use recycled materials to build and create other sustainable materials.

You may see which companies help you to recycle or even incentivize when you do so.

Have a garage sale

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If you are looking around your house, storage shed, or garage and thinking, “I don’t even know where half of this stuff came from let alone the last time I used it?” It’s probably time for a garage sale.

A garage sale is a great opportunity to give a second life to items you don’t use anymore and receive a little profit from them.

And when it is all over the items you didn’t sell you can donate and wa-lah! So much less clutter and waste.

Buy less and less plastic

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Plastic can be so easy, especially when you have kids who like to touch everything and who aren’t very gentle with things either.

But the hard part about plastic is after you ‘re done with it and throw it away, when it gets to the dump it ends up sitting there and just adding to all the other trash that is there.

If there is a way for you to use less plastic or to make sure you recycle the plastic you are done with, you can help lessen the waste and help keep things like the ocean cleaner.

Donate your time

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One great way to keep yourself from being tempted to buy more and more is to use the free time on your hands to volunteer somewhere and help.

Helping others can make you more grateful for the things you already have as well as give your time to others or causes that may sorely need it.

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Recycling isn’t just throwing your soda cans or other plastic items in a blue container, it’s making little changes each day to help prevent waste and re-use more.

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Recycling can seem like a positive but daunting task, but it’s a lot easier to implement than it seems; and fortunately there are several ways to be better at recycling that aren’t a huge adjustment at all.

Here are a few of them that can help you to start recycling today.

Find out what goes where

First things first – it’s important to learn what you can recycle and what you can’t.

According to Waste Management, recyclables that can actually be recycled are metals, paper, cardboard, glass, and plastics. Electronics and car batteries can also be recycled, but not in the same places that household recyclables can be recycled.

Knowing what can and cannot be recycled will help you when throwing things away and what you should save and what is just plain old trash.

Clean it off

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Most people are unaware, but if certain things that you recycle still have food or any other type of waste on them it makes it difficult to recycle, and most of the time they end up needing to be thrown away anyways.

One dirty product, or one with food waste still in it, can contaminate an entire bale, containing thousands of pounds of collected plastics, according to Waste Management.

So before you put it in the recycling bin, make sure to rinse out that plastic Milk jug or wipe off that sheet of aluminum foil.

Buy Recycled

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According to EPA, 544,000 trees would be saved if every household in the United States replaced just one roll of virgin fiber paper towels with 100 percent recycled ones.

Those are pretty big numbers if you think about it, and all it takes is replacing a product you use daily with one that uses recycled materials.

Reducing Your Footprint

We are lucky that we live in a time where finding products made from recycled materials is pretty easy, all it takes is a quick internet search or a look at a label.

Even larger companies can get in on using recycled materials, such as using Bioblend, which can help create plastic out of recycled fibers. Another way is by using recycled aluminum, glass, and electronics.

Whether it’s for your home and business, there are ways to recycle and use recycled materials for anything you do.

Make it easy

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We all know that if something is easy, we are way more likely to do it. Recycling can be one of those easy things, making sure it’s going to be something always checked off on your to-do list.

Most cities offer recycling pickup, and most offer mixed recyclables bins, so you don’t even have to worry about sorting what you want to recycle yourself.

Checking your local city’s page or contacting your Waste Management company is how you can find out if that is available to you and also where you can sign up for it.

To Save the Planet, Start Small

Learning to recycle doesn’t have to mean changing your entire life; it can be accomplished by just taking a few small steps and making a few small changes.

The result will be you feeling like you are contributing to the health of the planet as well as contributing materials to help run our economy along. It really is a win, win.

The post How You Can Be Better At Recycling, Starting Today! appeared first on InstantELLA.