The nappy bin is increasingly becoming and important part of childcare, this article explains why and what do look our for when choosing a nappy bin for the service sector.

Childcare is  important for many people in the modern world who try to juggle careers and families – a daily struggle for many households as is finding appropriate childcare.

Nobody will just leave their child with anyone no matter the qualifications and standards of the nursery and the staff, people need somewhere that can reflect their own wishes in the way they bring up their children.

Increasingly, people are reverting to more natural methods and eco friendly ways of raising their children and the resurgence in use of non-disposable nappies is one example.

More and more families realise the need to reduce waste and the nappy is unfortunately a large part of the problems we have in finding landfill space and preventing environmental damage. This is why many parents are now dismissing disposable nappies and reverting to the terry type towelling nappy.

And parents expect those that car for their children when they are not around to abide their wishes in the way they bring their children up which is why many nurseries and child care workers are buying nappy bins.

A nappy bin is more than just a bucket and there are several aspects to consider if you are to start using them.

Size

Firstly you need an appropriate size. Small nappy bins may be okay for a home environment but when it comes to a professional childcare setting, the larger the better. A 65  litre nappy bin should be considered otherwise you may find yourself having to empty too often and will have to do more washing than is necessary.

Lid

Preventing smells, germs; and ensuring children can’t get access to the nappy bin is vitally important. This is another reason why a large 65l nappy bin should be considered and just as importantly you need to make sure it has a good fitting lid, otherwise smells can generate.

Recommendations

Here are some things to look out for when looking to buy a nappy bin:

Size matters with nappy bins - 65l nappy bin

• Choose a large a capacity as possible, a 65l nappy bin is recommended
• One that is Rugged, polyethylene is perhaps the best material as it is easy to clean and won’t allow germs to linger.
• Chute lids for discretion and hygiene will prevent children from accessing the nappy bin and will make them easier to use
• Airtight top will prevent smells

One of the unforeseen challenges to any business, local authority, council, institute or contractor is equipping a new building or facility with refuse bins. Waste bins after all are a common-or-garden object, so how difficult can it be?

Well actually, choosing the wrong type of bin can have all sorts of repercussions in the smooth running of any building or institute. Ensuring you kit any building out with the right equipment is crucial and making sure you select the right bins is no different. Not only can litter and mess build-up if the right bins are not provided but all sort of other problems can occur – from vermin to potential fires.

Essentially there are four things to think about when supply bins for a building, facility or institute:

Type of Waste

The first thing to think about is the type of waste that is disposed of. This will go along way in helping you decide what type of rubbish or waste bin is required. If food waste is being disposed of a good kitchen bin with appropriate lid is essential and so is an external bin capable of repelling vermin and pests and also keeping smells at bay.

In most offices, the largest volume of waste is paper based. Whilst simple waste paper baskets are adequate inside the building, you will need to ensure any external bins are fire retardant in case the paper is accidentally or deliberately ignited.

Fire retardant bins should be considered if combustible materials like paper is discared in quantity

Size of Bin Required

The size of both internal and external bins relies on two points:

* The frequency of emptying

* The amount of waste discarded

Location of bins

Another aspect to get right is ensuring the bins are in the right place. If bins are in the wrong location littering and waste time can often occur. Think of the workforce and where they will be when they require a waste bin.

Volume required

Ensuring you have enough bins is also important as is choose the right bin for the location too – kitchen bins should be provided where food is served and in bathrooms some sort of sanitary bin will be required.

The care sector is an important but challenging industry. Ensuring vulnerable people are cared for requires a multitude of skills and abilities, but when mistakes are made criticisms can often be scathing.

Hygiene is one aspect where many sections of the care industry have come under criticism in recent years; the spread of hospital acquired infections being one reason, which is why those working in the care sector now consider hygiene to be amongst one of the highest priorities.

However, whilst a lot of emphasis is based on cleaning and ensuring floors and surfaces are clean, waste management is often overlooked as a secondary priority. But waste management is vital in any care sector surrounding, particularly in preventing the spread of infection.

Overflowing bins, the wrong type of receptacle for soiled garments or lack of regularity in the emptying of waste bins can add to the risk of infection or of disease spreading.

Hospitals,care homes and even nurseries need to ensure they have the correct bins and waste management procedures for dealing with things such as soiled garments, used bandages and even nappies. They all need to be stored in the correct receptacle to protect people in the care sector from risk of infection.

Sanitary bins are not the same as conventional bins. Bandages or hygiene products need to stored carefully before they are disposed of and while there are laws governing the disposal of such items to keep them from regular rubbish landfills, there is little legislation governing the storage of these items in the care sector itself.

However, sanitary bins, and even nappy bins are created to ensure that soiled items or products that could possibly contain pathogens are stored safely without risking the spread of disease. They are manufactured with good quality lids and are often pedal activated to reduce the risk of spreading germs through repeated contact with the bin itself.

A nappy bin is often overlooked but is important to prevent possible infection

They are also manufactured from bacteria resistant materials such as Polypropylene which offers limited surface area for germs to attach to.

The size of sanitary bin or nappy bin obviously depends on the amount of items disposed of and the regularity of the emptying of the bin but its always wise to err on the side of caution because of the bin gets full and just one sanitary item is disposed of improperly, serious repercussions could result.

The bin plays a vital role in the care sector and other service industries. It is a crucial part in ensuring hygiene and plays a part in the fight against hospital acquired infections.

Care sector bins have to function under far more demanding circumstances that conventional rubbish receptacles. From the type of waste to the vast quantities of waste that can accumulate in the care or service industry means that when it comes to sourcing bins for the service or care sector, a lot of thought needs to go into it.

Firstly, the type of material that is discarded will influence the type of receptacle required. Any service industry or care work that involves infants will need somewhere to dispose of soiled nappies. Smells and risk of access from children means that large nappy bins have to have a good fitting lid.

Sanitary bins

Other types of sanitary bins are required in the care sector too. Geriatric care and medical procedures require bins to dispose of this material. Any sanitary bin has to store items that have the potential to cause infection so the quality of the bin can’t be a compromise.

Fire retardant bins are also a consideration in many buildings in the care and service sector. Any public bin at a hospital has to be fire retardant as the risks of a fire could be catastrophic so most hospital bins are fire retardant.

Finally, you must plan carefully remember the to assess how much waste is going to be disposed of and of what type. It is also crucial to know how often the bin will be emptied as this will have a large impact on the size required. Also think of the people that will be using the bins. Children need to be prevented from accessing hazardous material while any bins that re to be accessed by the aged or infirm needs to be easy to use.

Sourcing and buying good quality bins for the service sector isn’t necessarily difficult. Choose a vendor with experience and that can supply a large range of bins to ensure you are always supplied with they type you need.

Every year there are reportedly thousands of bin fires nationwide. They are not only a nuisance for the fire service who have to spend hundreds of man hours and resources putting them out, but they are also a danger to buildings and lives.

Often, if a bin is left close to a building the flames can catch – causing a disastrous fire. Lives can be lost and businesses closed down through wanton vandalism and arson. However, there are several things that can be done to eliminate the risk of bin fires and reduce the chance of it turning it an even more serious fire.

First of all, it is important to reduce the chance of somebody starting a fire. Many bin fires are started in residential wheelie bins that are left out overnight. If possible do not to put wheelie bins out until the morning of collection, this will reduce the chance somebody has to start a fire unnoticed.

Keep bins away from buildings. If a fire is started you can reduce the risk to the building from the fire. Also ensure the bin is not overfull. Cutting down the fuel will reduce the fires effectiveness and also it can prevent burning rubbish from spilling to the floor and causing the fire to spread that way.

Don’t leave boxes and other litter around the rubbish bins, if the bin is full, you need another or its time to buy a large external bin instead.

Avoid placing anything that is overtly flammable in the rubbish bin. If you have to dispose of cardboard and paper, try bundling it together tightly, it will be harder for any fire to catch that way.

You may want to consider fire retardant bins, particularly if are a business or local authority. Members of the public can become victims of bin fires and that can leave you facing serious claims, both financial and possibly criminal. Fire retardant bins are already used in hospitals and other places so it may be worth considering replacing the external bins with them.

Anyone wanting more information about bin fires and reducing their impact should contact their local fire service who will be happy to provide additional guidance.