Many of us may think of the humble waste bin as just a simple receptacle for throwing our rubbish in; however, there are a wide variety of different types of rubbish bin, all designed for different tasks and purposes.

Design is highly important when it comes to selecting the right type of waste bin. So when you are looking to buy a rubbish bin, whether its for the home, business or institution, there are several aspects of bin design you should look out for.

Practicality

The most important facet of any bin is its practicality. However it is to be used it needs to be practical. When you are looking to buy a bin think about how it will be used – is it high enough and easy to throw waste in?

The size too is highly important. Think how much waste will go in and how often it will be emptied. If it is too small you can end up with an overflowing bin while too large a bin can be difficult to empty and handle.

Lids

The lid is highly important on many rubbish receptacles. While waste paper bins don’t need them your kitchen will soon reek if the kitchen bin doesn’t have a decent lid. The design of the lid here is important for practicality too.

A kitchen bin should have a pedal operated lid or another method that prevents you from having to touch it; sensor bins are the latest method for hands free bin use.

Durability

If it is an outdoor bin it needs to be durable. Not only has it got to sit out in all weathers and be manhandled by the refuse collectors, but also it needs to be sturdy enough so that vermin can’t it over or remove the lid. If it is a pubic area it perhaps should be floor or a wall mounted bin to prevent vandalism.

Bins can be stylish and practical

Style

Style is also an important facet for bin design, especially for those we around the home. Nearly every room has a waste bin sat in the corner so it needs to fit in with the décor and style of home. Some really nice designer bins are available manufactured from a wide range of materials, these can be proudly displayed rather than half-hidden behind the furniture.

The world of technology seems to be travelling faster and faster. Within the last decade we have seen the rise of mobile phones, the internet and a whole of host of gadgets, gizmos and ways of communicating.

But one area where you wouldn’t expect all this sci-fi technology to infiltrate is the kitchen, and in particular, the humble kitchen bin.

However, even the menial kitchen bin has had a twenty-first century make-over in the guise of the sensor bin.

Sensor bins

Sensor bins are not just stylised gizmos either. They make look modern and designer but there is practicality behind them as they are an ingenius solution to a common problem:

Handling bins is way of spreading germs around our kitchen so every time you throw something in the bin you should thoroughly wash your hands – but do you, and if so, you know how annoying this can be, having to keep running to the sink as you are preparing a dinner.

There are swing-top and pedal bins that do solve this problem but swing tops have the problem of the lid getting dirty very quickly while pedal bins can be cumbersome to use.

Sensor bins, as their name suggests, sense when you approach with a handful of waste. The bin lid, controlled by a battery powered motor, raises the lid and then closes it once you have disposed of the rubbish and walked away. This means you don’t ever have to touch the bin and the bin lid will remain clean.

Sensor bins are not cumbersome either. Most sensor bins raise the lid silently,quickly and effortlessly and are so easy to use you’ll wonder how you lived without them.

They are stylish too, many of them are made from a good quality steel that is easy to clean and looks modern and contemporary – and will suit any kitchen from the rustic to the modern.

Ensor Bins are an ingenius and high tech solution

They are not expensive either, many sensor bins can be purchased at a relatively low price, especially from online rubbish bin suppliers and they come a variety of sizes – up to 50 litres, large enough for even a commercial kitchen.

Each year, every household in the UK gets rid of about one tonne of rubbish. From kitchen scraps and waste containers to old newspapers and tin cans, a myriad of items are thrown away by each-and-every-one of us.

Coping with all this rubbish is down to the humble dustbin, wheelie bin or household bin. But things have been complicated in recent years with the need to recycle, fortnightly bin collections and restrictions to the amount of waste some households in the country are permitted to throw away.

All this has made getting rid of household rubbish a complicated task. Having to use different bins for recycling, trying to avoid pests and smells, and keeping on top of the household waste can be a chore. But here are some tips to make dealing with your rubbish problems a whole load easier:

Kitchen

Perhaps the busiest bin in the house. Nearly everything gets chucked into the kitchen bin from food scraps to old cartons, tins and wrappers. One of the biggest problems with kitchen bins is the mess and smell they can produce. But there are simple ways to reduce this. Firstly, a good tight fitting lid is a must for any kitchen bin. This will prevent smells but the lid does pose other problems.

As we frequently cook in the kitchen, touching the bin is unhygienic – so rather than frequent hand-washing you should consider a pedal bin, swing-top or even a sensor bin. Sensor bins are fantastic as they open and shut automatically, sensing when you are near and raising the lid just in time.

Sensor Bin - opens automatically

Recycling bins

To make that task of separating different items into different bins consider buying recycling bins.

Many of these are colour coded so you can separate waste before you have to put it into the different recycling receptacles outside. And if you haven’t room for several different bins – think about a double triple compartment recycling bin which are a convenient and space saving way of separating waste.

Bin deodorisers

All kitchen bins should be cleaned regular to prevent smells but a great way of ensuring your kitchen doesn’t stink of rubbish is to use a bin deodoriser. Bin deodorizers ensure your bin smells fresh and clean – no matter what you have been throwing away.

They are everywhere; on roadsides, along pavements, in our homes, front drives and at work. We hardly give them a second thought but the humble rubbish or waste bin does a highly important job that keep our homes, streets and city centres clean.

There are several types of waste bin used by each of us. There are those that we dispose of our waste at home or work. The outdoor bin where this rubbish is stored until collected by the local authority of waste management company, then there are the public litter bins provided for us on the high street to ensure our streets are kept clear.

But there are other types of rubbish receptacles that are increasingly being commonly used, including:

• Recycling bins
• Gardening bins
• Bin banks for bottles and cans

At Home

Many of us may remember the traditional dustbin that most homes had. Either metal of plastic it was this bin that stored all our household waste until it was emptied by the dustmen.

However, increasingly as more local authorities have switched to fortnightly collections and the need to reduce landfill and encourage recycling, these types of outdoor bin have slowly disappeared from our neighbourhoods, to be replaced instead by wheelie bins and recycling bins.

At Work

Similar changes have happened around the workplace too. Recycling is now much more common at our places of work, although the business sector has a long way to go to achieve the same levels of recycling that happens in the domestic environment.

However, it increasingly common for business, especially offices to recycle paper in paper recycling containers. Other recycling containers such as cup collectors that are used to recycle disposable coffee cups from dispensing machines.

Transparent bins prevent explosive devices from being hidden

In Public Areas

Bins in public locations such as along the high street or in parks are often immobilized by being floor or wall mounted to prevent vandals (and even theft) and vermin from emptying the bins.

However in recent years it has been commonplace for terrorists to use bins to hide explosive devices this has led to a decline in the number of bins in enclosed areas such as railways, airports and shopping centres although transparent bins can often be used in these areas – often a clear bin bag suspended from a frame.