When you need to get rid of old tyres, there are a few things you need to know. First, it’s illegal to throw old tyres into landfills; secondly, burning car tyres can release harmful chemicals and toxins into the environment.
For these reasons, car tyres should either be recycled or repurposed. If you don’t have a use for your old car tyres, you’ll need to find a tyre recycling or collection service. In this article, we’ll go over everything you need to know about tyre disposal.
How to get rid of old tyres
Tyres are challenging to recycle because they’re made from a mixture of rubber, steel, and textiles. Each of these components needs to be separated from the waste tyre before they can be processed, and this is what makes recycling used tyres so tricky.
Recycle Old Tyres
Fortunately, there are a lot of recycling centres that will dispose of your old tyre for you. You can search recyclenow.com to find your nearest centre.
The cost will vary depending on where you are, but if you cannot find any details on recyclenow.com, you can always check with your local council.
Can You Put Tyres In A Skip?
Yes, you can put tyres in a skip. We charge from £5 per tyre; you only need to add the tyres during the checkout process once you’ve selected your skip. But this will vary by company, so check with your skip hire company to see if they will accept tyres and the charge.
Repurpose Old Tyres
Before getting rid of your old tyre, you might want to think about reusing it yourself.
Make a Tyre Planter
Everyone has seen the brightly coloured tyres used as a planter. Fortunately, they’re straightforward to make and can be great fun to do with kids. Check out how to make a tyre plant pot for a quick guide.
Make a Tyre Swing
Another one children will love, is the tyre swing. You can set the swing up in a tree, or if space is limited and you have the skills, you can build a frame and mount the swing on it. Check out this hand guide on how to make a tyre swing for your garden.
Make a Pond or Water Feature
This one will require the most effort but can leave you with a lovely water feature. It doesn’t just bring a little tranquillity to your back garden but has the added benefit of attracting birds and other wildlife. There’s a great guide on turning an old tyre into a pond or water feature, and you might find it easier than you thought.
Will a Garage Recycle Old Tyres?
If you’re taking your car in to replace a used tyre, most garages will be happy to dispose of your old tyre for you at no additional cost. If you’re in any doubt, it’s worth checking with the garage before you go in, but you’re unlikely to run into any problems.
What Happens to Recycled Tyres
When the landfill directive was implemented, tyre recycling saw a dramatic increase which had a range of positive knock-on effects:
- It helped reduce waste and pollution caused by tyres dumped in landfill.
- Reduceduction in the materials used when making new tyres.
- Reduced the amount of energy needed to make new tyres.
- Reduced CO2 and other greenhouse gases produced while manufacturing new tyres.
As mentioned before, recycling tyres is complicated as they’re made of rubber, textile, and steel. The tyres are ground down to separate the materials before being used, with the vast majority of the tyre being rubber.
One of the most common uses is re-treading old tyres to give them a new lease of life. Re-treading restores the tyre’s structural integrity, so it’s like new, but it costs a fraction of the price of a new tyre.
The recovered rubber is also used in construction materials, road surfacing, soundproofing, and energy production.
The old tyres can replace coal to produce gas and oil used in various industrial processes, which helps reduce carbon emissions.
If the old rubber isn’t used in any of the above, it can be ground down into something called ‘crumbed rubber’. This is fine in consistency like coarse sand and is used in a wide range of products, including rubber flooring, underlay, road surfacing, and mudguards, to mention a few.
Hopefully, you’ve found the article helpful and have a good idea of what you want to do with your old tyres and a bit of info on the positives of getting them recycled or repurposed.
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