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A refillery just opened in my town this past weekend, where you take your own containers and can buy a range of products in bulk - from food, to cleaning supplies, to pet needs. I think it's a super cool concept; I went in to check it out and was impressed by the range of products they had. I had just run out of dish soap so was looking specifically at that. They were charging about $0.34/oz, which if my math is correct, is about double what I would pay at Costco for dish soap. I understand that shopping sustainably is always going to come with an upcharge, and I want to be as sustainable and limit waste as much as possible, but how do you justify paying nearly double? Any discussion or insights would be much appreciated!

does anyone have suggestions for good shampoo/conditioner bars? or some sort of other zero waste shampoo & conditioner alternative? i have long, fine 1a hair.

I love LA

This roll-on applicator for biofreeze has been amazing, but now that it's almost empty I wish there was a way to refill it! Anyone have any thoughts on how I could get this ball out without damaging it (at least too much)?

Best way to dispose/repurpose hundreds of large 9" cardboard tubes? They won't recycle them because the cardboard is too sturdy and they are hard to dispose of due to the bulk. Would make a great log cabin if they were painted and weather proof, maybe? Appreciate ideas.

i’ve been using bar soaps, shampoo, and conditioner for forever without any problems. however, with now bringing them into communal showers, they disintegrate extremely quickly.

i don’t have a wooden storage unit for them. i’ve just been putting them on the little shelf in my caddy, but now that i’ve already had to buy new shampoo 2 months into the school year (very fast for me considering i wash my hair less often), im looking for alternatives.

does anyone have any advice for keeping bar soaps safe when i don’t really have personal storage for them?

I have a bunch of empty pens and refills, along with the plastic packaging the refills came in. I’ve been collecting them for about a year (Idk why), but now I want to get rid of them. Throwing them in the dustbin feels like a waste after all that effort. Is there a good way to reuse them, or somewhere I can donate them?

Note: They’re all plastic body ballpoint or gel pens that cost around ₹10–20 each.

Brita's website points you to using TerraCycle, but there's a wait list to join and no local 'drop-off' sites near me (TerraCycle doesn't even let you select Brita as an option to filter the map). Any recommendations or advice?

In case it's helpful, I'm in the Bay Area, California, USA.

A question on making the waste to waste not transition

How do you make space for all the "waste" that isn't waste anymore?

Where are you putting your dirty reusable paper towels until you can wash them again, when there isn't a hamper nearby?

Where do you (conveniently) keep recyclables when there isn't much space for a bin in the home?

Maybe a discussion about how we transition from a waste-oriented place to a non-waste-oriented place.

Thank you

I'm a crafty person, but sometimes there are textiles in my closet or home that I cannot do anything else with. I also started a new job recently and feel so short on time... I have been getting ads for brands like Trashie, Ridwell, and Retold. Has anyone used this type of solution? Which is more legit?

My SUP I bought used is well over 10 years old and has been repaired a few times. The manufacturer said I’m limited in options now, glues don’t last forever. I’m riding on it carefully for shorter treks because I hate to get rid of it, but that’s not the safest plan longterm since it’s not holding air. I hate to put it in a landfill, and if I can’t repair it I wonder if there’s a way to use or save it - like make art or a big tote… I’m not sure, but I like how it looks. Anything creative I could do with it?

I had this squeegee with a telescoping handle but the squeegee part broke. I've removed it, and the attachment is still there so that I could screw something else on there, or otherwise attach something. Anybody got any ideas? It extends to about 4 ft. I'm leaning towards adding some kind of clamp so that I can switch out different things. Not sure how I would do it though.

I have friends who make some good food - from barbecue, salmon, biscuits and gravy, chili. The husband goes to the grocery store nearly every day. However, they refuse to eat leftovers. They may have enough left for another day or two but they just immediately dump it in the garbage can. It’s not a second thought.

The husband recently told me “You all are so good with keeping food” and I I said it will taste just as good tomorrow as it does today :-)

I do like to save money and I do like leftovers! The first time I really realized the amount of waste was at a party they had when they later went to throw everything out. I stopped and questioned it… and put some things in the refrigerator. They were tossing a small army of food though it was in the air conditioning during the party. I was told I was compromising food safety.

I think their method is wasteful and extreme.

Why would people refuse to eat leftovers? A sense of entitlement?

Recently got the news from Wild that they're discontinuing roll-ons for the US market 🫠 soo sad especially when i just started falling in love with them.

I refuse to wear any deodorant that shows white or has aluminum in it. anybody in the same boat as me? I'm hoping they bring it back before I run out of my next 3 refills. otherwise, what other options would you guys recommend??

Hello.

I am a vegan and cannot find any milk alternatives that do not contribute to plastic waste. I would prefer the cardboard cartons that unfold without the cap.

Any brands that do this? Or offer a local glass jar refill location?

Main concern is going 100% no plastic.

Thanks!

[edit: Content]

Thanks for all of the suggestions; indeed, it seems buying from bulk sections & making my own will be the most sustainable! Thank you!

I'm looking for an eco friendly and cruelty free lip balm with an SPF of 50 or higher. My skin is very sensitive to the sun to the point I will burn even WITH a high SPF when I'm regularly reapplying it, so a low SPF certainly isn't going to cut it for me. All the eco friendly lip balms I've seen don't have an SPF above 30 so I'm really struggling to find something. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

A few years back, I purchased several different kinds of cloth reusable menstrual pads. They're high quality and because I couldn't decide on what kind, I have TONS. I only used 4 because I stopped needing them just two months later. Now I don't know what to do with them! They're just sitting in a box now because what am I supposed to do with them??

They were such an investment, but I'm not even looking to sell them, I'd be fine giving them away, but is that weird? Like I've removed the ones I've used, of course, but is that even something people would want? I can give my word that they were not used, but I'm still hesitant to like post them on a give away site.

Any thoughts?

I am moving out for the first time soon and I want to get as many eco friendly alternatives as I can, which ones are and aren't worth it? I already use dishcloths instead of paper towels, don't use disposable utensils/plates, typically use reusable period products. i want to use laundry detergent sheets and soap concentrate tablets and such. what are good swaps?

I'm on a zero waste journey and would like recommendations for Zero Waste or Frugal Youtubers and books

We have all heard that Wild is owned by Unilever, which is unfortunately good reason to quit the brand, and i have not purchased any new products since they were bought up.

I do, however, still have a couple lip balm refills i got as part of a gift set from an unknowing family member about a month ago, and frankly, I’m struggling to use them, despite having a lip balm case and being an avid lip balm user.

The lip balms are incredibly waxy, to the point that they feel more like they’re casting a mold of my lips instead of keeping them from being chapped. It feels just as dry and almost unmovable, and it’s awful. It’s to the point where the lip balm is completely unusable to me unless i put some other softer lip balm on as well, which defeats the whole purpose of trying to use up what i have.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what to do to make them softer and smoother? And has anyone else had the same experience i have had? What are your thoughts on the lip balms, did they work for you?

Searching for refills that work well on oil and preferably come in paper, tins, or compostable packaging. (Or are recipes I can make at home that aren’t just diluting gel/liquid soap from plastic containers.

The best I’ve found is from a brand called canary and it does a 7/10 job getting off oil (from makeup/skincare, bike chains, or cooking), and is better when it is newly refilled, but its efficacy diminishes over time. I tried blueland tablets 5 years ago and hated them because they didn’t work well or cut through oil. I’ve diluted Dr. Bronners in the past, but I now live in a place that unfortunately doesn’t recycle plastic. There are also no refill shops nearby. I’ve thought about just grating bar soap and dissolving in water but that apparently needs a preservative and I live solo so I don’t go through soap quickly.

I’ve heard Meliora might make refill tablets and that borax makes powdered soap, but I’m interested in what else is out there or what y’all’s experience is with these? TYIA!

I’m in Canada and I swear every time I go to the store I end up with another reusable grocery bag. I used to use the plastic ones as garbage bags, but what can I do with these?

I obviously use a few to grocery shop but I genuinely have an entire shelf full. Should I just use a few as garbage still rather than buying garbage bags? Can I donate them or reuse them in another way? I’m open to suggestions!

EDIT: thank you everyone for the suggestions! I just wanted to clarify that of course I reuse them but I used to live with roommates who would buy a new one each week/get grocery service and when they moved they left them all! So we’ve definitely accumulated over the past year. I’m going to check out some spots to donate extras for sure. Thanks!!