recycling trash

[Betsy38]

I am a new host this summer and have had 4 sets of guests.  Each guest has a lot of trash!! I've set out recycling bins and people do recycle, but the bins aren't big enough.  As anyone had any experience encouraging their guests to reduce consumption (i.e. plastic water bottles, etc.) and reuse before throwing away or recycling? I have a big jug of water in the refrigerator for the guests and reusuable water bottles available. Or is dealing with a lot of trash just part of being a host.  I'm horrified at the amount of waste and trash!  I would love your thoughts.

Thank you.

[Farah1]

@Betsy38 sometimes, I feel the same way. It *breaks* my heart to see guests purchase bottles and bottles of water for their stay despite the fact that the tap water is drinkable and very safe in Washington. I do tell my guests that tap water is drinkable and it is safe. However, I see a common pattern that guests from California tend to buy the water bottles and then I have witnessed and tried to stop them from pouring all this clean water when they want to check-out because they did not want to bring it. I would think that for someone who come from a state that have had water issue would be more considerate with water usage... I can use it to water my plant if they don't want to drink it, lol. Anyway, I never try to encourage them to reduce consumption as I don't know what is the best approach yet. I understand that people have different lifestyle, preferences, and habit. I also do not advertise myself as a green/eco house, so I do not want my guests to be bothered as they do not expect to reduce consumption.

[Betsy38]

Thanks for responding.  I agree - I don't want to "preach" or make someone uncomfortable about using and wasting so much, but we do advertise our property as on an organic tree farm.  I"m afraid there isn't much anyone can do, and actually our guests have recycled, they just have so much trash!!!  Shocking about your guests from California!  Best of luck....

[Jann3]

I am still tryng to figure out why you are so upset that guests have "so much trash." Maybe you have adopted a lifestyle that doesn't realy take into account the average traveler...and should simply be a bit happier that they recycle at all. People DO have the right to consume. It is absolutely no one's right - not even a host's - to limit the amount of consumption during their guests' stay at your propoerty. That, I am sure,  DOES fall within AirBnB's non-discrimination policy. Your life is yours. Theirs is theirs. i undestand you are venting but you can't change others. Be considerate. 

[Brenda475]

We all should be given a choice to recycle and minimise waste in order to reduce our carbon footprint.  Airbnb could promote a green star rating that encourages recycling and awareness of consumption usage. It's your choice as to whether you participate.  Hosts to offer incentives such as large containers for take away meals/picnics, simple signage and educational material for recycling.  

[Kenneth18]

@Betsy38

This is my approach, i introduce my guest all the local eatery in my area. Not only that, providing them the menus of my favourite restaurants and prices to show them how cheap it is to eat out. This will encourage them to cook less. 

[Betsy38]

Funny!

[Linda108]

@Betsy38  My shared home listing is in the desert of Southern California.  When I greet my guests I always encourage them to drink a lot of water because of the very low humidity and of course high temps.  I give each guest a their own double walled plastic drinking glass and encourage them to get as much ice and water from the refridgerator.  The result is that there are little or no plastic bottles of water; they can take it with them in the car during the day; the guest appreciates the extra care I provide.    

[Betsy38]

Great idea!  I'm going to try it!

[Jann3]

So, I'm probably gonna be the one host that "green" people hate in this thread (not talking to you @Farah1 😂) but it is not our jobs as hosts to try to "encourage" guests to do any conservation simply because our recycle bins are too "small." My thought is this: Get a larger bin! My bin is 64 or 90Gal (i think) for 3 apartments, one of which is to be an AirBnB within a month, and we NEVER fill them up!

Are you speaking of the recycle containers IN the unit/apt not being big enough? Or are you talking about your properties' recycle bin?

My general thought is - and will be when my guests arrive - IF they want to use so much water, coke, take-out, etc... then I would be THRILLED if my recycle is too small for them. I would get a much larger bin or hold their recycle until the next pickup (Home Depot). I would be thrilled the guests are recycling too much! It is not for us as hosts to try to limit their consumption. That is a sure way to either a negative review or a complaint against them through AirBnB! I drink a LOT of water each day! Most of it is "Smart Water" (or at times Crystal Gyser) Why? Because I know it is safe WHEREVER I go! Disneyland or Seattle or Mexico...and MY BODY IS USED TO IT! It is safe. I am seriously concerned about "back-end issues" when I travel. The safest way is to stay with products your body is used to...or carry enough Immodium-AD to handle it.

Let's not go overboard with trying to "teach our guests a lesson." That's - like I said - offensive that you think you know better than they do.

Also, have you ever thought about getting a free-standing compactor - to put in your garage or unit - and using that to compact recycle more fully before putting it into your bin? If you want to - really - help the planet, that would save # of pickups by recycle truck, it would save space in the truck and it would help your eco-footprint.

[Karen313]

@Betsy38 Please be thrilled that guests recycle & deposit trash in the appropriate places (at all.)

[Betsy38]

I am!!!!  I just continue to be dismayed at all the trash and waste people produce!

[Daniel1666]

I really do need t understand why renters get offended at people cooking at their rentals. My problem is that there is no Airbnb policy for trash collection. I am at small studios in humid Toronto Ontario for 9 nights. I reported to renter that trash started to smell, all he said don’t do nothing my maid will collect. Well small studio smell like rubbishy because there is no trash collection policy by Airbnb. Has same experience in Japan, although there we were told to leave garbage in balcony which helped with not having smell inside the place. There has to be a policy in place as its unsanitary to have garbage for more that 5 days inside a studio. Anyone can help clarify? I know from owning a home I must have garbage collected weekly or I would be in trouble with health department...

[Darva1]

I have a similar problem, but it's because we live in the country, and there is no garbage service here. We compost, recycle, burn, and make 3 or 4 dump runs a year. In one 5 day stay (our first) the guests left more trash than we generate in an entire year. We don't have a vehicle large enough to make a dump run, so we had to hire someone to haul it away. It cost us more to deal with their trash after 5 days than it costs us to take care of our trash for a year. As new hosts, it was something we hadn't even thought about. 

We've written new house rules, asking guests to separate their recyclables, burning, and trash, and requesting they haul out their own trash if they generate more than two 40 gallon bags of garbage... It seems awkward, but I haven't yet come up with another solution.  i suppose we could add a trash fee along with the cleaning fee, but that doesn't seem ideal, either. 

I'm looking for suggestions! Thanks for any help you have to offer.

[Sierra29]

Our rental is in the mountains in VT, and our house cleaner brings trash and recycling to the dump- we do not have curb pick up. Our solution is to ask people to be mindful of their trash and recycling during their stay. We explain drinking water is extremely safe and delicious, make sure there are enough plates and dishes for everyone and then some- making it unnecessary for people to use disposable plates, glasses, etc.. Our house policy is anything beyond leaving one bag of trash and one bag recycling each at the end of their stay, needs to be taken to the local transfer station or brought home with them. We have all the transfer info right on the door of the trash under the sink.

We ask people to leave any good items in the fridge so our cleaner can decide if they can use it. Also if the cleaner can't get there right we don't have rotting food just sitting there in the trash. We have not had any push back on this until a recent large group- our house can sleep 14 people. The last large group felt it unfair a couple can leave one bag and one trash and those are the same rules as 14 people staying at the house. Large groups have not complained about this before however, we are reassessing our trash policy and might allow a group of 6 or more to leave two bags each recycling and trash. We are also considering charging another a little more per person over 6 guests and let that extra cost pay for the extra bag of trash we have to pay for. 

When I travel I often find myself learning new ways to sort recycling, compost and I am not in the least bit offended or put off.