What size bin for a family of four? What capacity do I need? We always try to help customers work out which bin to buy, and the best method we've found is to work backwards from your wheelie bins! Here's how...
The way to start is to work put how much waste you generate by answering these questions:
1. What size wheelie bin do you have?
It’s probably either 240L or 120L in size – or you may have one of each. (A 240L wheelie bin typically measures 100cm high and 55cm square; a 120L version is again 100cm high but 40cm square.) Traditional dustbins are typically around 100L.
2. How quickly do you fill it?
240L
If you fill a 240L wheelie bin each week then you are generating around 30L of waste a day – with probably 20L or so of this generated in the kitchen.
If you empty your kitchen bin every 2-3 days then you need a bin that will take around 40-50L of waste.
120L
If you half fill a 240L wheelie bin or fill one 120L bin each week then you are generating around 10-15L of kitchen waste a day – and emptying your bin every couple of days means you need a 20-30L bin.
3. What if you need to Recycle?
Sorting your recycling and waste at the throwaway stage in the kitchen really does make the whole process much easier. You’ll probably find that you generate more paper and plastic for recycling than rubbish.
Our smallest Recycling bin is 22L (with 2 x 11L compartments) and then they increase in size through 30/33L to our mid-sized bins. These are 46-48L and have splits such as 30L & 16L or 24L & 24L and our largest recyclers have 2 x 30L compartments. You can match these compartment sizes to your total volumes of recycling and waste.
4. Need more than one 60L bin?
If you need more capacity then take a look at our Recycling Sets which go up to 120L. Even if space is limited, you can use 2 or 3 slim, narrow footprint bins lined up together.
5. Food waste
If you need or want to keep your food waste separate you can use a worktop bin. These are great for putting in food scraps while you’re preparing meals, or washing up. Even if you have a kitchen caddy provided by your Council, our simplehuman Stainless Steel or Hailo coloured worktop bins look a million times better in your kitchen.
We hope these ideas have helped, but it's even better if we can hear about your needs, so do give us a call if you need help deciding what size of bin is best for you.
See our Buying Guide to Bin Sizes for more information.
