A buyers guide to Trash Receptacles
When visitors come to your park, what do they see? Hopefully, they see a sparkling clean, inviting space that encourages them to linger a while. Keeping your park free of debris is a crucial part of projecting that image, and it’s an important way to honor the investment you’ve made in your green space.
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Trash receptacles deserve a lot more attention and respect than they get, mainly because these hard-working park accessories can help you keep your outdoor space cleaner. Playground Planners has put together this trash receptacles buyers guide to help you choose the right litter bins and containers for your park.
As you consider where and how to encourage visitors to dispose of their trash, think about the following questions:
How Many Trash Receptacles Does Your Park Need?
In general, you want a few trash containers around your park, especially near any seating or food areas. When it comes to litter receptacles, a guide or rule of thumb suggests they should be about 25 feet apart.
Where Should the Litter Receptacles Go?
Any transitional space, such as an entrance into a new space or into a park, should have a litter can. In addition, any space near seating areas, washrooms or picnic spaces should have trash receptacles since people are more likely to eat (and thus have food wrappers) there. Any areas where children congregate, such as playgrounds, are also good places to put additional trash bins. If you see debris in specific places in your park, these areas are also good candidates.
How Can You Encourage People to Toss out Their Trash and Recycle?
In addition to making your trash containers visible with bright colors and shapes, make sure they’re handy. Fewer people will use them if they have to walk off a trail to get to them. Also, make sure the bins are welcoming. If they’re overflowing or smelly, they’re less likely to encourage visitors to throw out their debris.
An area that does not get enough attention — yet is of most importance for our future generations — is recycling. Adding a recycling container to your park will not only show your visitors that you care about the environment, but it will hopefully encourage them to utilize it appropriately.
In today’s society of on-the-go lifestyles, more and more beverage containers and other recyclables are being consumed outside the home. Recycling saves energy, ensures our environment stays clean, conserves materials and reduces landfill garbage. By placing a recyclable container in your park, it can help teach, motivate and reinforce recycling at home as well — portraying a positive and eco-friendly park image to your community.
Finally, consider whether you might wish to add a sign thanking people in advance for tossing their trash and recycling. Some parks even add a fine for littering to ensure visitors know the rules.
Which Litter Containers Should You Choose?
Playground Planners has many litter containers and options and can even customize bins to your specific needs. In general, make sure you choose bins that are the right size. For heavy-traffic green spaces, make sure you buy large enough containers so that they will not overflow.
Think about bright colors or hues that blend into your space. Consider, too, how the bins will be used. Do you want an open trash bin or a closed one to discourage pests? If you opt for closed lids, consider carefully how large the opening needs to be to stay convenient. Look for bins that are easy to keep clean and empty out.
We hope these litter receptacles guidelines have you thinking about your green space and its cleanness in a whole new way. If you’d like to find the right bins for your park, contact Playground Planners to learn about our many options and our customization capability.
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