Recycling today is our topmost priority because the trash is accumulating in millions of tons. Scientists have thought of sending our trash to the sun because they can’t think of how to dispose of it.
Just imagine how expensive that will be and how desperate have we become in resolving the trash problem. Most simple answer to this enormous problem is to recycle all kinds of materials we discard.
Let us see how we can turn our trash into treasure by recycling it successfully.
We will have to classify each material as below to think of how to recycle it as best as possible.
You can see there is a huge opportunity in recycling business for the entrepreneur in you to turn trash into treasure helping to solve the biggest problem of the world at the same time.
Are you Interested in recycling business? Then read on and add your ideas to our brainstorming. Maybe you can come up with better ideas.
Here are 20 Profitable Recycling Businesses That you can Start Today
1. Wood Recycling
Wooden doors and furniture are thrown out every day to modernise a home or office.
Many beautiful boats are junked because they don’t want to bother about them anymore.
Advertise that you collect old furniture for free and people will start calling you.
You could restore them by polishing them or painting them hiring carpenters and sell them at a flea market or by giving free ads in Facebook and local newspapers.
Some real old stuff can be turned into plywoods which is compressing wooden dust into usable wooden tables etc.
2. Construction Waste
Many buildings are demolished and the debris is sent to landfill.
Instead the concrete can be powdered and reused as it’s nothing but sand and little gravel etc. The cement in it can serve as little gravel to be mixed again with fresh cement to make it all stick together.
So you can do it too by using a machine to break down the waste. Start supplying concrete mix and also recycle some bricks and iron rods etc.
Don’t forget to recycle the wooden doors and windows.
3. Cooking Oil Recycling
Did you know you could collect used cooking oil and sell it to big companies converting them to biodiesel?
You can also set up a refinery yourself to do it yourself. Put up a campaign for collection to help the environment at the same time.
McDonald’s and others discard oil used for frying chips etc in huge quantities. Leave a drum for them to collect it and they will be happy.
Cooking oil is also used in the manufacturing of soap if you want to start a unit.
4. Electronics Recycling
Priv Badoo is the CEO of Blueoak Resources in California. Her start up aims at mining precious metals from E waste.
Mobile phones have metals like steel, gold, silver and copper which can be extracted.
Now most of the electronic waste is being shipped to China and other countries where it is processed by hand under hazardous conditions.
Would you set up a processor to stop that and turn the e waste into treasure?
More information can be obtained from Priv Badoo if you want to do it.
Apple company is recycling 71% of its waste.
5. Printer Cartridges
Iscrap app is on YouTube too to help you recycle printer cartridges if you can get them.
Start collecting them and install the app to get started.
Alternatively, you can find out how they are making money by processing this kind of scrap to start a business yourself.
If you are working in an office and you see a lot of printer cartridges sent to rubbish bins, then you see the opportunity of working with them.
Say goodbye to your 9-5 job and be your own boss to earn more than just a salary.
6. Scrap Gold
Do you have unwanted or damaged gold jewellery? You can also find others like you who are keeping such scrap at home.
You could turn your gold scrap into cash by getting best prices online.
USA scrap gold will return your gold if you’re not happy with the prices you pay.
You could start a business Today offering best prices for scrap gold if you connect both ways online.
So what are you waiting for? Get started today and start making easy money online.
7. Tire Recycling Business
You must have heard of retreating tyres is a good business when new tyres get older.
If you are into tyres, what do you do when you can’t retread them anymore? 52% are burnt for fuel. What a waste!
Turn them into crumb rubber to make slippers. 14% are dumped into land refills.
You can save mother earth from such disasters.
Rubber mulch is used for asphalting the roads which is more durable.
Use it to make swings etc for playgrounds.
Licenses are easy to get because govt would love the idea of recycling.
8. Glass Recycling Business
10 million tons of glass waste is produced every year in the States. Americans are good at low cost recycling of old bottles to new bottles than other countries.
Be the one to work on it and bring credit to yourself and your country. It is 100% recyclable unlike only 90% recycling in Europe.
Produce the molten glass by crushing it with sand, lime stone etc. Only 33% is recycled in the US. What a pity!
Make beautiful glass vases and crystal ware to earn money from the waste.
9. Waste Collection Center
Start a waste collection centre to recycle most waste which is profitable like you have seen.
You could set up your collection centres at factories and restaurants around you to collect the waste you require.
So you don’t pay people to collect it. If you know where to send it, you know how to turn your trash into treasure.
Starting with paper, you can collect all kinds of waste like plastic and glass etc.
Hire people if you can to bring them from the collection points you have set up.
10. Paper Recycling Business
You can set up a plant to recycle the paper you collect to make new paper.
Ink and staples etc are removed by washing with soapy water to make slurry.
First you have to grade it.
Then with slurry you can make newsprints and cardboards etc.
Paper is rolled up into large rolls and then cut up to be sent to shops according to their requirements.
Pretty easy, isn’t it?
The plant may cost you around $20000 for the machine.
Add salaries and rental expenses according to the area.
11. Packaging Material Recycling Including Plastic.
Only 30% of the plastic bottles are recycled in the US.
So you have a huge opportunity to get the rest of it into recycling business. Think of the plastic wraps and bags going into landfill.
Plastic bottles are washed in soap water to remove labels etc. to be chopped up.
Then it is turned into a gooey stuff when heated to be turned into plastic pellets and sent to make different plastic products like baskets or buckets etc.
If you want to set up a plant, it will cost you around $60000.
12. Electric Wire Recycling
We all know copper is accepted as a valuable scrap once separated from PVC cables.
Your local public works department may accept pvc waste if you don’t want to recycle it.
One manufacturing unit sold it at $0.30 per lb.
Scrap copper sells at $2.30 per lb.
You can burn or remove the insulation with a knife.
Just get the copper out.
A wire stripping machine will cost you $500.
Get started to start making money with electric wire recycling business.
13. Battery Recycling
Batteries are bought at junk yards for money even for worn out car batteries. 99% batteries are recycled in the States.
Even triple A battery can be recycled for cash. You can get around $12 for a used battery.
These are dangerous for the environment. So many people will be happy to get rid of them.
Batteries are broken with a hammer to neutralise the sulphuric acid with baking soda that turns into water.
Metals are recovered to recycle.
14. Home Items Recycling
House hold items like raw vegetables can make your compost.
Any left overs with layers of dry leaves etc can be composted nicely in your back yard.
Plastic and paper waste, we have already discussed. Wooden furniture can be restored or sent to make plywood.
Steel and other metal utensils and furniture along with windows or doors are melted to make new stuff.
If you have old tyres and toys of plastics, they can be recycled too.
Clothes are recycled by selling what you don’t need. Some old clothes can be made into doormats like they show on YouTube.
Buttons are used for decorating.
Shoes can be sold or donated when you have too many.
Try to recycle everything in the best possible way.
15. Recycling of Aluminium Cans
Aluminium is a valuable metal. It can be profitable to melt the cans and made into new cans or any products that can be sold. What would you make from molten aluminium?
Kitchen utensils or big cans for storage of rice or flours and any condiments like chips can be preserved airtight to keep them crispy and fresh.
Setting up an aluminium recycle plant does not require a huge space and it can be done in your garage if you can get NOC from the City.
16. Garbage Recycling
Any garbage at home or business should be classified into dry and organic. Organic waste like left over food can be donated to orphanages when it’s still fresh or made into compost.
Dry waste should be separated into glass, paper and cardboards, plastic, and electronic waste which can be sold for cash.
Batteries are recycled for cash.
I have seen Romanians in Italy make their living by what they find in garbage.
They are looked down by the society which is wrong.
17. Steel Recycling, Scrap Metal
We all know steel is valuable and can be reused by melting it to make new utensils to use in the kitchen.
Steel is also used in buildings to make them stronger.
So if you can see scrap available, don’t let go of the opportunity to make money.
Either sell it to recyclers or set up a plant to melt it and make what you want.
18. Computer Recycling, E-Waste Business
Computers can be resold by upgrading them or opening it up to get whatever is reusable.
I have seen people in Mexico get usable things out of them like the tube which is expensive.
Sometimes they can be used for setting up CCTV or just watch movies connecting a DVD player.
When nothing can be done then treat it like e waste like explained above.
19. Recycle Waste Water
Waste water is purified and used in farming. You can set up a plant for recycling dirty water from drainage to make it usable.
Do it for yourself if you need it for farming or for others if they will pay you. It cannot be used for drinking or household use like washing.
But water used for washing etc can be used for flushing a toilet or plants.
Soap is a pesticide and keeps insects away while it is not harmful for water.
20. Food Waste Recycling
Food cannot be wasted. Any left over food from a restaurant or private houses should be saved up in a refrigerator.
It should be distributed among orphanages and shelters before it’s lost. Whatever is gone bad should be composted.
Many supermarkets have started a happy hour at the end of the day to sell items at 60% discount.
It’s working very well.
Food that is going to be wasted can be bought today to make products to be sold in the next few days.
For example, buy peas etc when they are about to go bad and peel them to keep them in a freezer for a month.
Bitter gourd can be saved by washing them and slicing them to be sun-dried or dried in a food dehydrator which can be kept for a long time before using.
If you are thinking that recycling plastic is a myth, then you are wrong. Top companies like Coca-Cola, Unilever, PepsiCo, Nestle, McDonald’s, Procter & Gamble…
