Inflatable pool toys are a bit odd. On the one hand, they are not recyclable (we will discuss why in a short while); on the other hand, you won’t want to put them into your regular garbage bin. Although, for the latter, you aren’t left with much choice.
Inflatable pool toys cannot be recycled. They’re made of a type of PVC that is not easily reused, so they end up in landfills. Your best option is to try to seal any leaks in your existing pool toys and minimize purchasing new ones in the future.
On this page, we want to walk you through why you can’t recycle pool toys and what you can potentially do with them.
Recycling Inflatable Pool Toys
You cannot. This is because while inflatable pool toys are constructed from plastic, they are made from the only plastic that cannot be recycled; PVC.
Now, technically, PVC can be recycled. However, we do not do it all that often. This is because of the way that PVC has been made.
It’s packed to the brim with all sorts of additives. To recycle PVC, all of these additives would need to be separated.
This requires a lot of equipment and a lot of human resources. It is so expensive to recycle PVC that it is just cheaper to produce new PVC to keep up with its demand.
There are some places where you can take your PVC inflatable pool toys to be recycled. This is because one method can be used to recycle PVC…to an extent. This is known as mechanical recycling. The idea is that the additives in the inflatable pool toys will not be filtered out.
Instead, more additives are put into the plastic. This can help eliminate the PVC’s toxicity once it has been ground down.
The plastic made from this process is not the same as standard recycled plastic. It cannot be used for the same purposes as other recycled plastic. However, it can be reused, and that is something.
You may need to go to your regular waste disposal place to determine whether they recycle PVC. If you have a plastic recycling bin near your home, then you may be able to add PVC to it.
However, there is no guarantee that it will be recycled like this. In many cases, it will just be removed from the recycling and put into a landfill anyway. You can’t tell.
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Disposing of Inflatable Pool Toys
Now, here is the tricky part.
In most cases, you will have no choice but to put the inflatable pool toys into your regular garbage can. The problem? This is likely going to be ending up in a landfill.
We want to reduce the amount of garbage that goes into landfills. We want to recycle as much as we can.
This is especially true when it comes to PVC. As we have said, PVC will be packed with various chemicals. These are harmful chemicals.
Once the PVC is in a landfill, these chemicals will be released into the environment. It will kill the land. It can get into the water supplies. Honestly, it is never going to be a good thing.
Some places will burn their garbage to help prevent it from going into landfills. While this isn’t the best idea because it can pollute the environment, it is the main option many places are now turning to.
However, burning PVC is awful. It releases highly toxic chemicals. It isn’t good for the planet.
The problem is that you have to dispose of the PVC inflatable pool toys this way. There are very few other methods that you can use to get rid of it. It is incredibly annoying.
The only thing you can do is avoid buying PVC products in the future. However, even this will be difficult since nearly every inflatable pool toy you can buy uses PVC in its construction.
This is one of only a few types of PVC products that you can’t make using alternative methods. Try to cut back on PVC in other areas of your life, though. This will at least reduce the demand for the material, which can benefit the planet.
There are a few steps you can take to dispose of inflatable pool toys properly:
- Check with your local recycling center or waste management facility to see if they accept inflatable pool toys. Some facilities may have specific guidelines or requirements for how the toys should be prepared for recycling.
- If your local recycling center does not accept inflatable pool toys, you may be able to donate them to a local community center, school, or charity.
- If your inflatable pool toy is no longer usable, you can cut it up and put it in your household trash. Be sure to follow any local guidelines for disposing of household waste.
- Consider reusing or repurposing the inflatable pool toy before disposing of it. For example, you could use it as a decoration or a makeshift obstacle course for kids.
- Suppose you have a large number of inflatable pool toys that you need to dispose of. You may find a local business that recycles inflatable items in that case.
- Finally, it’s important to follow all local regulations and guidelines for disposing of inflatable pool toys. This can help to protect the environment and prevent unnecessary waste.
What To Do With Old Pool Toys
We recommend keeping your inflatable pool toys, at least for a short while. This applies even if the pool toys are broken.
Chances are that you are throwing out the inflatable pool toy because it is broken. This means that it no longer holds any air in it, i.e., it will no longer inflate.
You will often run into this problem if you regularly buy pool toys. This means that you will forever be sending PVC inflatable pool toys to the landfill.
We suggest that you put the broken pool toys to use. In the future, whenever one of your other inflatable pool toys breaks, you can cut a small piece off another broken toy and apply it to the hole. You will need to use a bit of waterproof sealant for this.
This is something that works surprisingly well. It also means that you do not yet have another inflatable pool toy to send to the local landfill.
Sadly, beyond this, there isn’t much that you can do to reuse these pool toys. Therefore, you should try to avoid buying them wherever possible. It will be for the benefit of the environment. Instead, look for toys that can be recycled.
Conclusion
While inflatable pool toys can be recycled to an extent, it is difficult and costly. As a result, the only viable way to get rid of them is to put them in the standard garbage bin. This will send them off to the local dump.
However, try to avoid doing this if you can. It is damaging to the environment.
If you want to minimize your impact on the planet, I suggest not buying pool toys or searching for a more environmentally friendly option.
