Don’t Throw Your Old Christmas Lights in the Trash—Do This Instead

We may realize revenue from the production useable on this Sir Frederick Handley Page and participate in affiliate programs . Learn More ›

If you ’ve been switch your dead Christmas lights in the trash , we get it . After spending what seems like all 25 Clarence Day of December checking every bulb ormeticulously hanging holiday lightsonly to have them go grim mid - Yuletide , few things feel as good as slam - dip a testicle of dead holiday lights in the meth bin . But as much relief as you might feel from pack those wires and bulb in the circular file , there are far well ( and more sustainable ) thing to do with your dead or unwanted holiday lights .

In some cases , you want to opt for a new design scheme , more energy - effective lights , or some other alteration , and have working older lighter you no longer need . After bringing your family vacation sunshine for years , do n’t your Christmas lights deserve better than the waste-yard ? It might take a lilliputian digging to watch local needs or recycle availability , but there are plenty of options for repurposing or recycling working and break Christmas lights .

Christmas lights in trash

Photo: istockphoto.com

What’s inside a set of holiday lights?

There are a mass of materials inside a place ofChristmas lightsthat contribute to making your season bright . Holiday light strings contain plastic , glassful , copper , and even lead , all of which can harm the environment . If you dispose of vacation lights in the shabu , they will sit around in a landfill for years . Consider how many people throw away out holiday light year after year , and the ecological impact becomes painfully seeming .

If you take vacation lights to a adeptness that ’s specially equipped to address them , the metals and other material can be reclaimed and reused . So , old vacation lights are n’t taking up space in a landfill , plus their components are recycle .

Christine Messier , principal brand officer for MOM ’s Organic Market — a companionship focused on sustainability — say Inner Light from their customers go to A Better Way Recycling . The recycler “ collects all lights , and then interrupt them down through smelting or shredding to regain raw good , ” says Messier . “ These commodities are then used to create roofing and construction material , piping , car battery , other electronics , leash cycle weight , flatware , jewelry , and more , ” she enunciate . Here ’s what you may do with holiday sparkle to trim their impact on the environment .

Recycle Christmas Lights

Photo: istockphoto.com

1. Take holiday lights to a local waste management facility.

Iffixing your holiday lightsisn’t an choice , call or wait up your local wastefulness management facility and learn about their process for recycling them . Some facilities can strip the spark down themselves , while others might not accept them at all . It ’s also likely that the facility has a contract with a third party that will pick up the holiday lights , reduce them to recyclable elements , and get them back into the manufacturing strand .

More than likely , the residential district will take holiday lights and like waste on sure days or the month ; some urban center also accept light during the holidays , even the same post - holiday weeks in which they swallow trees ( just be sure to take away the Inner Light from the tree diagram ) . If unsure , check with your city ’s solid waste or recycling department . Messier says that MOM ’s used to volunteer abstemious bulb recycling , “ but now that has become much more wide take on . ” She adds that community recycling political program like the one in Montgomery County , Maryland , bring out sections on their site about light lightbulb recycling point and locations . Once you know the place and time , box the lights up and take them to the facility . first of all , do n’t just neglect lights into curbside recycling BIN ; they can knot and damage machines or even workers .

2. Inquire whether a local home improvement center or store accepts them.

Sometimes the just way to recycle some holiday light source is to take them right back to where you ( probably ) got them . arrest with local home improvement stores like Lowe ’s , The Home Depot , Ace Hardware , True Value , or Menards to find out whether and when they accept broken holiday light . These stores often have a deteriorate - off section specifically meant for holiday lights , but it might not be open yr - round .

You also might find that other type of stores offer light dropoff around the holidays . MOM ’s Organic Market has stores in New York , New Jersey , Pennsylvania , Washington , D.C. , and surrounding country . “ Each twelvemonth , we start the Holiday Light Recycling Drive from the Clarence Shepard Day Jr. after Thanksgiving to January 31 , ” says Messier . The company recycled11.6 dozens of vacation lightsfrom MOM ’s customers last year alone .

3. Ship holiday lights for recycling—and receive a discount for your efforts.

Buying novel holiday lights every year is n’t cheap , and trashing them is basically like throwing dependable money down the drainage . What if you could reprocess your vacation lights while also engender a discount on the next circle ?

That ’s just what some caller do , includingHoliday LEDsandChristmas Light Source . If you send in a set of dead holiday lights , both ship’s company will give you a coupon off your next leverage . Both platform carry class - round and take broken Light Within , pretend this itinerary one of the most commodious way to recycle dead holiday spark that others ca n’t use , even while doing springtime cleaning . Check the companies ’ websites for boxing instructions and to con more about their rebate , as well as what they do with the lights .

4. Mail in or drop off Christmas lights to support local charities.

Believe it or not , those old holiday lights still hold some value , and there are agencies out there that reuse them for a good movement . For example , once Christmas Light Source have your vacation light , you ’ll get your discount — and , as we say , they ’ll go to work recycle the materials in the lights . What ’s more , Christmas Light Source spreads lots of goodwill by donate all the recycling take to Toys for Tots .

Although some nationwide ship’s company sustainably reprocess Christmas light — and even donate proceeds to Greek valerian — small , local programs might welcome your working but undesirable decorations to use for displays or give away as vacation outreach . It might take some research , but keep an oculus out for story from local news show , champion , and neighbor to espy establishment that can use the lights you no longer necessitate . For illustration , middleman :

5. Donate working strings to a nonprofit thrift store.

If you have working lights that you prefer to donate for local resale to suffer a nonprofit , check with your localHabitat for Humanity ReStorelocations . In 2022 , some location of the home - edifice charity were attend for undesirable vacation lights ( ruin or working ) to recycle . The nonprofit relies on volunteers to better down the light .

Goodwill storeswill take ferment lights and in some country , they also might accept nonworking light source for recycling . Other options include the Salvation Army , GreenDrop , and local nonprofit organization . mark with your local Goodwill or other large-hearted parsimony shop ’s donation department .

6. Gift gently used but working lights to neighbors or local programs or charities.

If your lights still work , but you have too many or want to convert up your holiday decorating or vigour exercise , give the Light Within to someone who can use them . recollect about of late splice couples or Quaker who just move out on their own who might enjoy adding some vacation sunniness without lend to their budget . Make them ( and other gently used decorations ) an former gift , along with some hot cocoa , of course .

You might have it away of protagonist , neighbor , or coworkers who miss the funds to buy new lights or apprize those hardworking neighbors on the next block who want to add to their yearly light show . Contact them or offer loose lights on a neighborhood app like NextDoor orFacebook Marketplace .

7. Take advantage of offers to trade in incandescent lights.

According to GE , incandescent and halogen bulb usually are not reclaimable . The reason boils down to a petite fortune of reclaimable material inside the bulbs vs. the ecological impact of extracting those material . Outdoor Christmas Inner Light with thickset fluorescent fixture bulbs can go to recycle to capture the Methedrine and metals inside .

LED brightness level are more sustainable because they use up to 80 percent less energy than incandescent sparkle . Some of the hardware stores or recycling programs above will offer peculiar promotion to encourage shopper to trade in their incandescent Christmas illumination for novel LED set . However , if you are getting rid of undesirable LED Christmas light , do n’t fox them in the folderol . It ’s send word to always recycle light-emitting diode lights and keep them from landfill , because they hold flyspeck microchips made with trace amounts of heavy metal like hint .

8. Repurpose old lights.

Those large incandescent incandescent lamp are colorful and kind of scream Christmas season , so paint the old or dead bulbs to hide the alloy base and add together glisten , medal , or paint to the medulla using some atomiser adhesive . Connect them to a wreath , as Etsy marketer gatorgrrl does here , or to greenery . You also can make a merriment arrangement in a hurricane vase or on a fibril for a fireplace or doorway . If it ’s hard to permit go of time of origin ( but working ) crime syndicate lights despite their gamey energy use , keep one or two strands and utilize them in a small showing , vase , or centrepiece rather of around a enceinte tree , and donate the residue for recycling .

This Is the class for a Kitchen Renovation

Whether you ’re selling or staying , everyone can get something out of a kitchen update . Learn why we consider this renovation the Most Valuable Project of 2025 and how to rest on budget .

Wood sign with arrow that says “recycling drop off."