Imrubbish Bins Blog » public bins

Bin Safety and Security

Richard N Williams — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 19:56:12 +0000

Waste bins are an important aspect of waste management and keeping institutions and public locations clean and rubbish free, but there are several aspects of providing waste receptacles for the general public in these locations that have to be considered when installing public bins.

Locations like hospitals, hotels, airports and other transport hubs where members of the public congregate or stay, have to think about safety – and many of these locations have to adhere to stringent safety rules.

Fire

Hundreds of fires are started in bins each year, and while many of these are acts of petty vandalism in outdoor areas, if a hospital bin or those in hotels are set on fire then it could lead to catastrophic loss of life.

Stringent fire safety rules are set in places like this so bins need to be fire retardant. Fire retardant bins are commonly used. These are made from metal, including the lids and are sometimes bolted into place.

In outdoor public locations wire-mesh sack-holders are often used which are also resistant to fire and unlike plastic bins won’t melt if they are set on fire.

Bomb Threats

In public locations such as airports, an unfortunate consequence of the time we live in is the need to ensure that bins can’t be used to hide explosive devices in.This is why it is common to see see-through sack holders in these sorts of locales.

Other Issues

As vandalism is an all too common problem in public locations, often bins are wall mounted or floor mounted to avoid the contents from being spilled or the bin getting kicked over.

It is also important for bins that may contain private information to be lockable, this is common in locations that have to dispose of documents which is why lockable document bins were designed to prevent confidential information from being taken from the bin.

If you have to provide bins for a public location and are worried about security or safety, why not speak to your bin vendor who should be able to identify the type of bin you need and the safety requirements for that area.

Fire Retardant Bins

Public Bins – Importance of Numbers and Location

Richard N Williams — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:00:10 +0000

In order to keep a public location clean and tidy, the public bin is the most fundamental and important tool available. Providing receptacles for the general public to dispose of their waste is vital, especially in busy locations such as the high street, them parks and around fast food eateries.

Simply placing a bin in a public location, however, is not necessarily enough to ensure that the pavements and walkways remain clear and free from litter. Often locations either have bins placed in the wrong location, or not enough of them to begin with, which causes litter to be disposed of on the floor making the grounds unsightly and costly to clear up.

Having enough public bins and placing them in the right location is, therefore, an important aspect of dealing with waste in public locations.

Location of Bins

Placing a bin in the right location is key to ensuring a public area remains rubbish-free. Public outdoor bins need to be placed along walkways where the most footfall is, as those tucked away around corners will be easily missed.

Furthermore, the location of bins should depend on the type of facilities and services that are around. Areas with snack bars and eateries, for instance, will need bins around that are clearly visible, while remote areas with fewer people around and where food and other items that can cause waste are not sold will not be as important to place bins in.

Number of Bins

Ensuring you have enough public bins is also important. If outdoor bins get too full, too quickly then waste will soon spill out and build up around the area. Again, the number of bins is often dependent on the area. If there is a lot of fast food vendors around then several bins will be needed, however, in other areas a single bin may suffice.

Footfall is a good indicator to the amount of bins needed too. The more people, the more rubbish will be disposed of hence more bins.

Getting the number of bins and the right location to place them is an essential part of public waste management and getting it right is important to ensure the public areas remain litter-free.

Location of bins is important

Rubbish on the Streets

Richard N Williams — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 17:44:24 +0000

The streets of the UK are awash with rubbish at the moment. So many areas, from Birmingham to Exeter, Milton Keynes to Thame, mountains of rubbish remains uncollected – some areas not having a collection for over a month.

Caused by the winter weather disruption and council strikes, the waste is becoming a problem in many areas, attracting vermin and providing an unsightly hazard for residents. And many home-owners are feeling rightly aggrieved at having paid their council tax bills, while the local authorities are failing to provide the services they have been paid to do.

Waste left on the streets can cause a myriad of problems. Not only is it unsightly, with mountains of bin bags dumped on corners, but it can have further consequences too. Vermin is attracted to rubbish and many of the uncollected bin bags are ripped open as cats, foxes and even rats scavenge for food.

And while many areas now have wheelie bins, these barely have enough space for one weeks worth of rubbish, let alone a months worth, with the result being bin bags piling up on the streets next to the packed wheelie bins.

While councils have promised to clear the streets of rubbish over the next few weeks, many local authorities may suffer in the forthcoming local elections as disgruntled residents mark their protests in the ballot box.

And with more and more rubbish being collected each year, this is a problem that may soon become common, especially as Coalition cuts may generate more strikes and forecasters suggest harsher winters may be more frequent in the future.

But what can house-holders do to help alleviate the problem? Well one way is to ensure you recycle as much as possible. If you don’t already own any its perhaps a good time to buy recycling bins. By recycling we can drastically reduce much of the waste we throw away and its not just the obvious paper and glass that can be recycled too.

Metal, plastic bottles (in some areas) and food waste can all be recycled rather than thrown away in the rubbish bin. As recycling bins tend to be colour coded, they are simple and easy to use, taking little getting used to.

By using recycling bins you can drastically reduce the waste you throw away and can help prevent the build up of waste that is now littering our streets.

Busy Bins – Coping with Public Rubbish

Richard N Williams — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 18:09:43 +0000

There are many locations where the amount of rubbish thrown in public bins can be excessive. While high street bins are very busy, and those outside fast food restaurants in particular, there are some areas where even these pale in significance.

These areas are either places where vast numbers visit for a specific event, or places where people spend all day enjoying leisure facilities – and it’s these types of areas where waste management and keeping the place litter-free can be a real challenge.

Theme Parks and Zoos

Theme parks and zoos are a good example of this. Because these areas have captive visitors – in other words people stay within the confines of the park all day. This means everything they consume, food, snacks, drinks, cigarettes etc are discarded on site. For some theme parks, zoos and attractions that can mean tens of thousands of people throwing vast quantities of rubbish away every day.

Sports Stadiums

Sports stadiums are another such location. Here, even greater numbers in a far smaller area congregate, again consuming food and drinks – all of which has to be disposed of. Again, these are captive visitors so everything that is consumed on the premises gets disposed of there too.

Managing Waste

So how do locations like this manage to keep litter-free and handle all that waste? Well there are four aspects for waste management in such high volume areas:

Number of Bins

Ensuring they have enough rubbish bins is essential for these locations. Not enough bins will mean the waste bins that do exist will quickly fill, overflow and lead to littering.

Public bins have to be large

Size of Rubbish Bin

Another key aspect is ensuring the rubbish and litter bins are big enough. If bins are too small then the same problems as above will exist which is why large exterior and public bins are used in such areas.

Location of Bins

If the bins are in the wrong location people may not find them or may choose to dispose of litter on the floor rather than walk round looking for the bins so good planning to site the bins in the right location (such as near eateries and snack bars).

Frequency of Emptying

Finally, ensuring the litter bins are emptied frequently also ensures that they don’t over flow. Most areas like this have a team of waste management technicians who continually empty the bins disposing of the waste in large exterior receptacles.

Rubbish Bins for Business – Keeping the Outside Clean

Richard N Williams — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 17:48:05 +0000

The outside of any business is important. Image and the way a company presents itself are key factor’s to any business reputation and there is no more a direct face of any company than the front of the premises.

And while many businesses hire office cleaners and ensure the interior work space is kept well ordered, few, give much consideration to the outside. Litter, cigarette butts, bad smells and over-flowing bins can do more damage to a company’s reputation than a bad financial move or investment; however, keeping the front of any business clean is not difficult, it is all about having the right bins.

Keeping the front of businesses clean has become more complicated in recent times due to smoking restrictions; many premises now face a crowd of people huddled in the front of their office or factory – with the resultant cigarette butts on the floor an inevitability.

One of the first things that should be done to ensure a premises’ frontage is kept clean is to ensure that smoking bins and wall mounted ashtrays are provided. These need to be provided in the rght location though and while it might be tempting to place them far from the building to avoid crowds of smokers in the entrance, people may not use, especially when its raining.

Wall Mounted Cigarette Bin

Providing a smoking shelter is a better method of moving people away from the front doors, although these require the space to install.

Ensuring there are enough litter bins outside a premises is also important, especially for high street shops and eateries. By providing a bin outside your premises, even if your customers do not produce rubbish, will prevent others from disposing of litter on the floor outside your front door.

If smells or mess becomes a problem than a lidded exterior bin will be needed. These are often used by food businesses that dispose of food waste. The lid prevents smells and keeps vermin from intruding into the bin.

A wall mounted bin is a consideration if vandalism is a problem. Often bins around schools and pubs tend to be wall mounted bins as revellers and teenagers can often cause deliberate spillage.

Children and Bins Safety and Requirements

Richard N Williams — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 17:38:24 +0000

Rubbish bins are a necessary requirement of public bodies, institutions and businesses that work with children. Nurseries, schools and colleges generate a lot of waste and providing receptacles for safe and hygienic disposal is important; however, children and bins can often come into conflict and preventing injury, mess or damage is important when providing waste bins where there are children around.

From a young age bins are a part of helping bring up children. Nurseries require bins, not just to put the litter and waste into but also nappy bins as more and more parents wish to bring their children up in a more environmentally responsible manner.

Nappy bins need to be kept secure in nurseries and play schools. They should be large enough to cope with the waste requirements and sturdy enough to prevent little fingers from tipping it over. A 65 litre nappy bin is a good recommendation. It should be large enough for even the busiest nursery or care centre and sturdy enough to prevent accidental tipping.

65l nappy bin

Nappy bins should have a tight fitting lid to prevent smells too. This is essential and you should never overfill one, either.

For schools, while nappy bins are no longer a requirement, sanitary bins are required for older children’s bathrooms. These should be proper sanitary bins which prevent smell, infection and mess. As for the bins used by the rest of the students around the school, they should be large bins to cope with the waste of a busy school but should also be fixed.

Wall mounted bins prevent the bin from being either accidentally or deliberately tipped over and for areas like the canteen large sack-holders will be able to cope with the high demands. These can be quickly emptied and refilled and are ideal for busy areas.

Recycling bins should also be used, especially for items like glass. This is not just for environmental reasons, either. Glass bottles hanging around regular bins can lead to problems and is best stored in a bottle containers where it, or anyone else, can’t cause harm.

Rubbish Bin Security – Importance of Providing Safe Public Waste Bins

Richard N Williams — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 17:44:52 +0000

When providing bins for the public, whether you are a business, private organisation or a public body, it is important to remember that when providing rubbish bins there are safety and security aspects to think about.

Rubbish bins are an essential part of any building or premises, especially when members of the public are around. Ensuring there is somewhere to dispose of litter is important to keep the property clean but there are some important aspects to think about when installing and buying rubbish bins.

Hotel Bins often have to be fire retardant

Fire

An unfortunate side effect of most rubbish bins is that a lot of the litter can catch alight. Fires in public buildings can be catastrophic and even if no smoking policies are instilled in the area fires can still start, either accidentally or maliciously.

Fire retardant bins are especially important in buildings like hotels and hospitals where a fire could go unnoticed and spread before it can be dealt with.

Security

In busy pedestrian areas another aspect to think about is security. Bins have in the past been used to hide explosive devices in and a blast in a densely populated area could have terrible consequences.

See-though sack holders are often used in public areas like railway stations and airports. These prevent any suspicious package from being hidden inside as the contents of the bin are clearly visible.

Smells and Mess

Preventing smells and are also another consideration. Bins can be knocked over – deliberately or otherwise – so public bins should be mounted to either the floor or wall. If there is a food-premises around then you need to install a bin with a good fitting lid to prevent smells as this is unhygienic as well as repugnant – flies and other pest could be attracted to the bin.

Sourcing bins for public areas is not as simple as most people first think and if proper thought does not go into the problems that could occur then the rubbish bin could land you into trouble.

Politics of the Rubbish Bin

Richard N Williams — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 18:02:04 +0000

The subject of rubbish, waste collections and wheelie bins are a common topic in the newspapers and other media. It seems the subject of rubbish bins is a hot topic, but why?

The main problem with rubbish and waste collection is the sheer costs involved. Everything we throw away has to be either stored somewhere until it either rots or degrades, or it has to be recycled and converted into other useful items. And while more and more recycling is taking part all over the country, we still produce million of tonnes of landfill waste each year, the cost of which is crippling councils and local authorities who struggle for space which is in demand for housing, development and business.

While most of us are encouraged to recycle more and more, a lot of the difficulties are a0pften concerned with the various different recycling policies that run up and down the country.

Some areas, for instance, will recycle plastics, others cannot; in some towns everything gets thrown into one recycling bin, in others you have to separate you waste into two, three or even more, recycling bins.

But home-owners do not have to leave recycling down to the local authority, increasingly people are taking control of their own recycling and making use of the public recycling bins and bot that are becoming increasingly common on high streets and in supermarket car parks.

Colour coded recycling bins

One of the tools that is helping people take control of their own waste and recycling is the home recycling bin. Interior recycling bins, either separate colour coded bins, or bins with multiple compartments, allow householders to separate their own waste at the point of disposal so papers, metals and glass can be separated and easily disposed off at the appropriate paper, bottle, or can recycling banks.

One of the advantages of taking control of your own recycling is that when more draconian measures are forced through by the local authority, you are better equipped to deal with it, and indeed, if you local council turns up on your doorstep with yet another wheelie bin for recycled material, you will be totally equipped to begin using it.

Litter and Recycling – providing bins for Schools

Richard N Williams — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 17:47:22 +0000

Controlling litter and providing bins for schools can be a challenge, especially as more attention is focused on recycling. Providing bins for schools can be quite complicated as the type of bins, the requirements of them and the number needed can vary from school to school. But there are some basic principles:

Location

Ensuring the bins are in the right place will prevent a lot of littering and can reduce the number of bins that are required. Exterior bins should be mounted close to entrances, this is convenient for people coming and going but ensuring they are mounted will prevent accidents or vandalism.

Interior school bins need also to be in prominent locations: canteen and main thoroughfares are the best positions but anywhere near a vending machine is also advisable.

Size

Ensuring the right size bin is used depends on two factors: the amount of rubbish that is thrown into it, often this can depend on its position, and the frequency of emptying. If the bins are in the right position a large bin can do the job of multiple bins, this saves money, space and time in emptying.

Recycling bins

Encouraging Recycling

Recycling bins are common in most schools now as pupils are frequently being encouraged to recycle and to think about the environment. Most recycling bins are colour coded which can help people know what to go in each bin but for classrooms, where space is a concern, triple and double compartment recycling bins can be used.

Cup collectors and can and bottle banks are often supplied to schools for vending and canteen areas and many schools are now ensuring classrooms use paper recycling bins too.

Specialized Bins

There are other requirements in schools too. Large kitchen bins are a necessity for canteens that serve hundreds and bathrooms need to be fitted with not just bins for towels but also sanitary bins too.

So when it comes to ensuring a school is supplied with the correct bins it is best to choose an experienced school bin supplier that can help guide you through the process of your requirements.

The Grim Side of Bins

Richard N Williams — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:57:36 +0000

Over the last few weeks, the wheelie bin has become the centre of some unwanted attention after a woman was filmed placing a cat into it, seemingly for no reason. The story went around the world and the woman was (quite rightly) condemned from all directions; however, this incident was not isolated and the sad fact of the matter is, that bins, and in particular wheelie bins have been used for all sorts of sinister purposes over the years, and the latest incident is only one of several grim tales.

Animals are commonly found dumped in bins and the latest story at least had a happy ending in that the cat was retrieved safe and well, but many animals are found in public bins and not all of them are alive. Yet, it gets worse. New born and unwanted babies are also commonly found in bins – the Americans even have a term for it: ‛trash can baby’

It is because bins, especially large ones like wheelie bins have a lid and are unused for long periods of time that people use them for such sad reasons but wheelie bins have also been used for even grimmer purposes.

Several bodies have been discovered in wheelies bins, not to mention body parts, although this is often a mistake by the criminal as they are good places to preserve evidence as the bin lid keeps the elements away, making it easier for police to track the culprits.

Contraband, such as drugs and guns, are often discovered in outdoor and public bins too, and terrorists have been known to use them to hide explosive devices in – often in busy public areas to cause large scale mayhem. In areas like these it is common to see simple sack holders with transparent bags being used as bins to prevent anything sinister being planted and hidden in them.

Bins themselves have also been known to cause incidents too. Because burnable material like waste paper is often disposed of in bins, they can easily catch alight which is why in many places like hotels, hospitals and other pubic buildings, fire retardant bins are used.

Despite all these grim associations with bins, they are a real necessity and we would be awash with litter, rubbish and detritus without them. So next time somebody buts something in a rubbish bin – lets not blame the bin.