Does anyone recycle carpet

By reusing or recycling your used carpet pads and carpets you may reduce overall disposal costs, save landfill space, and help achieve the diversion goals of your city or county. For information on AB , the carpet stewardship law and the California Carpet Stewardship Plan, visit the carpet stewardship program webpage.

Synthetic fibers make up more than 99 percent of the fiber used by the United States carpet industry. Each fiber has strengths and weaknesses that must be recognized and should influence how it is to be used and constructed. The following fibers, in order of importance, are used in the production of carpets:. Contamination is the primary reason why recyclable scrap carpet does not get recycled. Some contamination comes from careless handling of carpet during its removal, when other demolition debris ends up in the load.

Carpet tack strips and nails are common and serious contamination problems because a piece of metal will tear up recycling equipment. A magnet might help, but not for bits of stainless steel or aluminum.

Other contaminants that are not easily removed and can make carpet unrecyclable include paint and drywall mud. Carpet must not be contaminated with body fluids, chemical or pharmaceutical contaminants, and asbestos. Excessive moisture also impedes carpet recycling.

It makes carpet heavier and interferes with fiber-testing devices and other machinery not to mention the potential for moist carpet to contain mold or mildew. Collectors must protect old carpet and pads from rain and snow by using closed containers and overhangs.

Recyclers use near-infrared spectroscopic analyzers aka laser gun to determine the carpet fiber type because each requires a different processing technique. These analyzers are expensive and are therefore mainly used by carpet processors. The following websites have further information on fiber analyzers:.

Habitat for Humanity , which accepts construction materials for affordable housing, is one organization that may find use for high quality reusable carpet, although it may require a minimum amount of about square feet. CalRecycle's California Materials Exchange CalMAX portal helps businesses find markets for materials traditionally discarded, including carpet and carpet pad.

When it comes to recycling, not all carpets are created equal. Some are much more readily reused or recycled than others. In particular, carpets made from nylon are highly valued by recyclers. However, as nylon carpets sales decrease are supplanted with polyester or other less valuable materials, it makes the economics of carpet recycling more challenging. Carpet cushion carpet padding is the foundation for every residential carpet installation. The following are different types of carpet cushion:.

You can send your rebond carpet pad to foam recyclers in your area. Recyclers may pay for used rebond foam pad. A number of these pad recyclers are also listed in CalRecycle's list of carpet and pad recyclers. Check your local directory for listings of other pad recyclers check under "Recycling Centers".

Below are requirements and best management practice guidelines to assist those handling or storing carpet:. Used carpets may be recycled to make new carpet or as a component to produce other products such as auto parts, carpet pad, plastic lumber and parking stops.

JavaScript is required for this site to operate correctly. Please enable Javascript in your web browser and then refresh this page. CalRecycle maintains archived information on its website as a record of its activities for use by the public and CalRecycle staff. Program News Learn about the Carpet Stewardship Program.

Though the network is still in its infancy—recycling facilities aren't available everywhere yet, and homeowners typically pay from 5 to 25 cents per pound of carpet to recycle it—more facilities are joining, and costs will likely drop as CARE expands.

Right now, recyclers are available in 26 states; visit CARE for an up-to-date map and listing. Individual carpet companies are doing their part, too. Many manufacturers offer lines that contain recycled content, and some let you ship back samples or old rugs for free. Take our cheat sheet to the store, and make sure to ask your carpet dealer if there are rug recyclers in your town:. Mohawk : The company's EverStrand carpet fiber incorporates PET polyethylene terephthalate from recycled plastic bottles, using percent postconsumer recycled content.

Shaw : Some lines of this brand containing Anson nylon use recycled content and can be recycled at Shaw's facility in August, Georgia.

Milliken : Its Tesserae carpet tile incorporates 33 percent recycled content. Flor : The Fedora line uses 80 percent postconsumer fibers to make new carpet tiles and is available in seven colors. Domestic recycling has seen a sharp rise since legislation change in In there was 10, tonnes of household waste recycled - from a total of 22, Since the millennium and the increasing number of people taking part in recycling, there have been a number of benefits made clear, through results:.

One of the key points is that it is far less expensive to, Lambeth Council in stated that it is 6 times cheaper to dispose of recycled waste. This saving is beneficial for a range of stakeholders - households, businesses and local public services. It requires far less energy to create products from recycled materials, rather than sourcing already limited raw materials.

One of the major benefits of recycling is the positive impact it has on the environment, reducing climate-changing carbon emissions.

In the UK, there have been significant improvements on the impact on the environment thanks to recycling. The first area to explore with regards to recycling carpet, is the reason why you would recycle it in the first place. Carpets are incredibly difficult to break down in landfill due to the complex and rigid fibres, this means that where possible, recycling carpets is a great way to reduce your impact on the environment. Particularly for businesses, where it is their legal responsibility to look to reduce and reuse materials where possible.

While carpets may not be an item that is regularly disposed of by individual households or business, it can have a longer-lasting impact on the environment due to how long it takes to break down. Therefore, when changing or replacing carpet whether in a home, office or industrial setting, looking into how you can recycle it should be a priority.

Carpet is a complex make up of materials and fibres which can mean that the recycling of the material is difficult. However, it is possible to recycle all elements of carpet - despite it requiring a little more work. Recycling carpet depends on a range of factors - such as the condition of the carpet, the volume of carpet being disposed of and the type of carpet. However, another distinguishing factor is generally whether the carpet comes from a household or a commercial setting.

Luckily, there are services available for both. However, with around 25 million homes in the UK, this is a lot of carpet. If you are looking to dispose of used carpet, there are multiple paths that you can take to recycle it, preventing the long time it would take for :.

Infrastructure around carpet recycling is changing and this means that in the future, this will be a more accessible way to dispose of your carpet. Commercial carpet is a different prospect to recycling domestic carpet, as usually the quantity is considerably higher.

This means that it is vitally important that commercial carpet is recycled rather than sent to landfill. Carpet Recycling UK, who partner with Birch Carpets, provide extensive resources for business and organisations looking to recycle commercial carpet. Their aim is to make connections between carpet recyclers and re-users and divert commercial carpet waste from landfill. Since Carpet Recycling UK launched in , they have members from across the carpet industry and therefore are one of the best methods for businesses to recycle their carpet and improve on their sustainability.

For businesses, in addition to this organisation, there are a number of commercial waste disposal companies who will take care of this.