General Chat

Sounds like one of those logic puzzles!

A house has four bins - black, silver, brown and green

The black and silver bins are collected on alternate weeks

The brown bin is also collected bi-weekly, but on a different day

The green bin is collected every five weeks

If the brown bin is collected on a Thursday and the green bin is collected on the fourth Sunday after a solar eclipse, what is the name of the bin-man's cat?

Sue x

We have 4 bins:

Black - household
Silver - some recycling (with a big list of does and don'ts)
Brown - garden
Green - paper

The black and silver are on alternate weeks, the brown is also 2 weekly but on a different day and the green is every 5 weeks. Our green bins are smaller than the others - same height but narrower so they still work on the same mechanism as all the others. I think the black bins are available in different sizes too in our area - you get the standard size unless you ask for smaller / larger.

Tina x

Sheila, what area of the country are you in, not heard of smaller bins, how do the dust carts collect them.
Carol

We have grey for normal waste, green for garden, collected alternate weeks. We have a black box for glass, paper and tins, collected fortnightly. We have no food bin, although you can buy 'hot' composters from the council at reduced rates. Also you can opt for smaller wheelie bins. We have to take cardboard and plastic to the recycling centre.

Agree Sue, all I can add is if it ain't broken don't change it.
Carol

Carol - I have seen the bins in inner city areas and you're right they are an eyesore. I'm not sure what the solution would be but I'm thinking that if people don't have a large garden or any garden there wouldn't be a real use for a garden waste bin.

S x

Have to add this has not happened to me yet, but am ready for a fight, do not want them outside my front window, and we do recycle.
Carol

Glitter baby same colours different system, Brown an green bins one week Mondays (household and garden) blue bin all recyclables, tins, bottle plastic bottle newspapers, yoghurt pots, butter/margerine cartons, meat/fish trays, tetrapack, cardboard, card, greetings cards, shredding following week Mondays, food waste every week with whichever big bins

Sue, exactly, can imagin you have lots of space, but here in North London many terraced houses with hardly any front gardens an eyesore.
Carol

Here where I live in Aus. we have had 3 bins for years. A red bin for general waste, a yellow bin for recycling and a green bin for garden clippings. The red bin is picked up weekly and the other two on alternate weeks. Works well for us because we all have yards where the bins can be kept neatly and out of sight.

S x

Nope....we have blue bin....food waste.
Green bag....garden waste.
Black bags from dustbin.....usuaul household waste.
Carrier bags for newspapers and cardboard.

Forgot....Black box....tins, glass.
Collections Tues and Thurs.

The annoying time is when the neighbours in our road and round the corner park cars very haphazardly.....then the dustcart won't even try ro collect (don't blame them sometimes)
Usually a small open backed truck comes a few hrs later or next day.

jude

Think we get a good service here.

Every Tuesday is the green bin.

One week on Thursday is the blue and the following week is the brown.

They do random checks and if any problem you get a tag on it with the reason why written on it.

Ours is identical to Glitter baby plus a smaller green food waste bin collected weekly. I actually like our system as I believe in recycling. I can imagine though that in terraced houses it can be difficult and if you have nowhere to keep the bins. Like Bob we keep the brown garden bin (which we pay for yearly) in the rear garden and the other two out the front.

strange, the way that various councils delegate bin colours,
ours are black for household, brown for garden waste/cuttings etc
and green for recycling......our brown bin lives in the garden and only comes out for emptying but the other two are out front..
fortnightly rota'd
black,
then green and brown

Bob

I know what you mean Carol , it hasn't been very well thought out has it . Considering any " new build " houses seem to have less and less space outside and some of the older terraced ones don't have good access round the back . My daughters both live in flats that have very large communal bins but half the time they have something stupid like an arm chair shoved into them .
I wouldn't want to responsible from trying to sort out a collection method that will suit all , it can't be done really can it : (
Round here , if your old and or infirm you can register to get the bin men to come and collect off your property , which is something at least .

Amanda in principle think it is a good idea, if you have the space. But around where I live see them pertruding over people's front windows, not a pretty sight.
Carol

We have 2 wheelie bins, 1 black for general waste and 1 green one for grass cuttings and garden waste, but not soil and trees. We went to fortnightly collections about 2 years ago and we also had a red box which has a divider, one side is for glass and the other for tins. this was collected on green bin days, then about 9 months ago we got a blue box and a blue bag. The box is for paper and the bag is for cardboard, these also were collected on green bin days. The problem I used to find was that the black bin was filled with alot of plastic waste, but 3 months ago we were given an orange net. This was for plastic bottles and trays, Now I fill my black bin 2/3rds of the way now.

I live in a maisonette above a shop. Although I have a decking area ouside my back door I still have a heck of a job humping the one wheelie bin, 2 re-cycling boxes and bag for newspapers etc down a steep flight of stairs. Nothing yet for food scraps etc, they are still running a pilot scheme in our area. I feel sorry for myself just thinking about THREE wheelie bins. lol.

It wouldn't be so bad if the bin men came at the same time every week. Some weeks they haven't been by the time I have left for work at 8:30am and are still there when I come home at 6pm. I live in a holiday town and quite often they are nearly half full when I get home. :((

We have had two big wheelie bins for several years now . When they where being introduced the town / area in was up roar as people don't care much for change .
I personally have never minded them ( I keep them in the back garden , right next to the back door ) , the black one for general waste is emptied every two weeks and it really doesn't stink to high heaven , the other for recyclables is emptied on the other week .
I do believe that the area is tidier for having them , in the " old days " if a bin bag ripped on it's journey to the lorry , the men didn't have time to pick up any bits that spilled out , so rubbish day then generally resulted in an eyesore .
You will get used to them , it just takes awhile .

That's good glitter baby, we could probably get ours in back garden, but they are a blight on most areas.
Carol