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A to Z guide on waste - T

Some ideas to help you decide what to do with your unwanted items.

Telephone directories

Find telephone numbers and other contact details or methods online.

Take them to your local recycling centre or to any of our household waste recycling centres.

You can add them to some kerbside collections where available. Please check with your local district or borough council.

Televisions

Offer it to friends or family.

You can sell your old television on internet auction websites, apps or social media or at a car boot sale.

Offer it on your local Freecycle or Freegle network.

If your television is broken then take it to any of our household waste recycling centres.

Tetra Paks

See cartons under A to Z guide on waste - C.

Textiles and clothes

An estimated 336,000 tonnes of used clothing is discarded each year in the UK and around 30% of clothing in wardrobes has not been worn for at least a year.

Organise your wardrobe to find forgotten clothes and prevent buying unnecessary items.

Wash clothes and textile items at 30 degrees and avoid using a tumble dryer (where possible) to extend clothes lives.

Buy clothing and textile items that are longer lasting and better quality.

See if there are any courses available to teach how you can repair and upcycle clothing and textile items or contact your local alteration service.

Donate clothes and textile items to charity groups or local groups or projects or pass clothes onto family members or friends – especially useful for baby and children clothes.

Sell unwanted clothes on internet auction websites, apps or social media.

Watch out for the plastic sacks that are posted through your mail box that provide door collections.

Poor quality clothes can be made into industrial cleaning cloths or rags and dusters.

Old curtains or duvet covers could be made into new cushion covers.

Recycle unwanted clothes and textile items by adding them to your kerbside collections where available.

Take unwanted clothes and textiles to the textile banks at your local recycling centre or any of our household waste recycling centres.

In the UK each home has about £1,200 worth of forgotten clothing.

Timber

See wood under A to Z guide on waste - W.

Tins

Take them to the can banks at your local recycling centre or to any of our household waste recycling centres.

Add them to your kerbside collection where available. Check with your local district or borough council.

Tip

We refer to tips as household waste recycling centres.

Tools

Borrow a tool from a friend or family member if you only need it for one job.

Give unwanted tools to a friend or family member who may need them or offer them to local groups or projects.

Donate them to specialist charities such as Tools for Self Reliance or Tools with a Mission (TWAM).

Sell them on online auction sites, apps or social media.

Toothbrushes

Use a toothbrush that has a detachable head and can be changed.

Use your old toothbrush for cleaning items such as your shoes, plug holes, taps, fridge and tiles.

If you have a broken or unwanted electric toothbrush you can take it to any of our household waste recycling centres.

Toys

Donate old toys to charity shops, play groups, hospitals or children's homes.

Sell on online auction sites, apps or social media.

Advertise on Freecycle or Freegle networks.

Trees

Collect leaves from trees and mulch them down in a plastic bag with holes in it for one to 2 years. Use the leaf mould in your garden border.

Use larger branches as firewood.

Offer branches and wood on Freecycle or Freegle networks.

Be creative - purchase some mushroom spawn. Inoculate your branch or wood and grow your very own mushrooms.

Put some of the leaves into your kerbside collections where available.

Take tree trunks or branches of no more than 15cm diameter to our household waste recycling centres. Tree roots will need to be disposed of through a skip or skip bag.

Tyres

Search for tyre repair services, to prolong the life of your tyres.

You can take a maximum of 4 used tyres in one visit to any of our household waste recycling centres.