At Plymouth Foam, an Altor Solutions company, we want to wish you a happy Earth Day week! Taking care of the planet is everyone’s responsibility. We are a big proponent of finding creative ways to reduce waste and reuse products whenever possible.
If you have followed along with our blog over the years, you will know that expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam often gets a bad rap. As such, we work hard to educate consumers and businesses on all the ways EPS creates less waste and promote information on how to recycle it. This Earth Day, we’re sharing fun and creative ways to reuse EPS foam around your home.
One great way to reuse EPS foam is to turn it into insulation for your home. We’ve talked before about what an excellent insulator EPS foam is. And while it is generally installed during construction, there’s nothing to stop you from using it in drafty corners of your house. For example, consider using it around old windows that leak or at door jambs. This can help keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer, reducing your energy bills and carbon footprint.
Another fun way to reuse EPS foam is to turn it into a play surface for kids. EPS foam is soft and cushiony, which makes it perfect for creating a safe play area. You can use it to create a soft landing pad for swings or slides or even build an entire play structure. Plus, since EPS foam is so lightweight, it’s easy to move around and rearrange as needed.
If you feel crafty, you can also use EPS foam to create fun DIY projects. For example, you can use it as a base for floral arrangements or cut it into fun shapes to create custom wall art. The possibilities are endless, and with a bit of imagination, you can turn EPS foam into just about anything.
Lastly, it makes for a great filler at the bottom of pots to improve drainage. Just make sure to have at least six inches of soil between the foam and the plant’s roots. We recommend only using it for decorative plants and avoid using it as a fill for food plants.
Of course, if you don’t see a use for it around your home and aren’t crafty, the best thing to do with EPS foam is to recycle it! EPS foam is recyclable, but it requires a special process to do so. Many municipal recycling facilities do not accept EPS foam, but there are specialized facilities that do. Plymouth Foam has a recycling dropoff area at its Plymouth, WI, location if you live nearby. If not, Altor Solutions and the EPS-IA have recycling locator features on their websites.
Here is a review of what we can take and how to recycle with us.
What Plymouth Foam can recycle: #6 Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) foam that is white, clean, dry and free of debris. This includes items such as insulated coolers and protective packaging for electronics, household goods and toys.
What Plymouth Foam CANNOT recycle: Food service containers such as foam plates, takeout containers, meat trays, egg cartons, packaging peanuts and any non-EPS type foam.
How to recycle EPS with Plymouth Foam: EPS Foam material for recycling can be dropped off anytime in our convenient blue and white Recycling Bin in the parking lot of our facility at 1800 Sunset Dr., Plymouth, WI. If you have any questions on recycling of EPS please call us at 920-893-0535.
We’d love to talk with you about your applications for EPS foam use or how to recycle it, we encourage you to get in touch with us!