Lately, there has been a ton of chatter online surrounding how to correctly recycle and dispose of safety razor blades in an eco-friendly and sustainable manner.
Historically, people have found all sorts of creative ways of getting rid of their used double edge razor blades - most famously, by slotting double edge blades into the walls of their apartments, an unconventional practice that dates back to the 1870s.
Thankfully, we don't have to resort to such measures, and as modern day shavers with access to the Internet, we can opt for more sustainable and practical ways of disposing of blades - and keep our walls free of hazardous sharps.
Though some safety razor users will simply wrap their blades in toilet paper and throw them directly into the trash, it should go without saying that this is hazardous and highly discouraged. A garbage disposal worker could be seriously injured when handling trash will with dangerous objects. Instead, keep your blades in a metal blade safe until you're ready to dispose of them.
In this post, we'll be covering the most eco-friendly, sustainable and responsible methods of disposing of your double edge razor blades...
The Rockwell Blade Safe - Comes with the Rockwell Shave Kit
1. Rockwell Blade Safe + Your local recycling center
When you're done with the blade, you can slide it safely into a Rockwell Blade Safe. Because the container is all metal, it's able to be recycled. By collecting your double-edge razor blades in a metal blade safe, you'll be able to dispose and recycle it in the metal bin at most local recycling centers.
We recommend securely sealing the blade safe or metal container of your choosing shut using some tape before recycling.
It's worth noting that most cities have their own regulations and guidelines for recycling DE razor blades and you should confirm with your city around which method is most suitable.
The Rockwell 6S Faux-Leather Packaging
2. Sharps containers
Most pharmacies and drug stores can provide you with a sharps container (oftentimes free of charge) at your request. Once you've filled up a blade safe with used blades, you can transfer them over into an approved sharps container, duct tape it shut then drop it off at a drug store or pharmacy. Once again, this is situational and not always a viable option.
3. Collection Programs
Many municipalities in North America and abroad operate safe sharps collection programs. If you don't have a sharps container as mentioned above, you can get creative and use a tin can or another metal container to collect and dispose of your blades at approved sharps collections locations. Depending on your area, these could include: hospitals, pharmacies (see above), clinics, community-based organizations, police stations, waste transfer stations, or safe sharps collection drop boxes.
4. Razor blade mail-back programs
Some companies will offer mail-back programs and encourage you to ship them your used razor blades so that they can recycle them accordingly.
Unfortunately, most of the existing services ask you to mail them back in paper envelope that they provide - this is incredibly hazardous as this puts postal service workers at risk and has the potential to cause damage to mail processing machines if for any reason the blades cut through the envelope.
If you do choose to use this sort of mail-back service, ensure that your blades are shipped in a secured metal container.
Do you have any methods for recycling blades that we missed? Tell us in the comments below!
Ready to upgrade to the smartest, most sustainable way to shave? Order the Rockwell Shave Kit today. Try risk-free for 30 days - if for any reason you're not thrilled with the comfort, closeness and quality of the shaves, the return shipping is on us!
