Regardless of how you use your knives-good or absolutely terrible, sooner or later the question arises that the knife no longer performs its former functions well. The question of knife disposal arises – let us tell you how best to dispose of an old knife.
The right place does not reveal itself as it does with plastic bags, onion peels, or food cans, because kitchen knives are dangerous items. But there are ways to dispose of knives without endangering people. We show them to you.
Never dispose of old knives in the household waste without protection
If you want to dispose of a kitchen knife, do not throw it in the household garbage under any circumstances! The yellow bag is also not the right place for unsecured sharp objects. For the employees and also for yourself, the knife in the trash could otherwise become a great danger.
If you can’t find an alternative to dispose of your kitchen knife, you should pack it safely. To be able to safely throw the knife in the residual waste, wrap it with materials such as newspaper, cardboard, or kitchen crepe. The key here is to layer the wrapping very thickly around the knife and additionally secure it with tape.
Of course, the aforementioned paper wrappings may not be used when disposing of knives via the yellow bag. However, if you have enough bubble wrap leftover or a large number of plastic bags, you can wrap the knife in this and secure it with tape.
Important: Not every city allows knives to be disposed of in the yellow bag. To be on the safe side, call the responsible authority. The specialists can usually give you good tips on how to dispose of knives. You can also often find specific information on the proper disposal of individual items on your municipality’s website.
Alternative ways to throw away of kitchen knives
As mentioned earlier, disposing of knives via household trash or plastic waste is not ideal. However, some alternatives should also be available in your local area. For example, scrap metal collectors often drive through the streets to collect scrap metal. Without further ado, approach this person and ask them to take over your knife. The advantage is that the person is directly informed about the presence of a knife and can protect himself accordingly.
Social department stores also gladly accept old kitchen knives. These are first refurbished and sharpened on-site and then passed on to people from socially disadvantaged backgrounds. This way, your knife will even serve a good purpose after it has been disposed of.
If the call to the responsible authority has shown that you can dispose of your knife at a special place, this solution is optimal. Usually, there is an area for metal scrap at the regional landfill. The specialists working here will accept old kitchen knives from your knife block and safely feed them into the disposal cycle. Depending on the region, this may incur costs, but the staff responsible will inform you of these in advance.
Conclusion: Rash action is dangerous
Before you dispose of your old kitchen knife, a call to the competent authority is worthwhile in any case. This way, you can be sure that you are turning in the knife to the right place without violating any applicable regulations. It is not recommended dispoing of a knife “on the off chance”, because if something does happen, you will blame yourself a lot afterward.
By the way: especially expensive knives are designed for a long lifetime. To enjoy your cutting tools for as long as possible, we recommend using wooden cutting boards as a base and treating your knives regularly with a knife sharpener.
Hey. I’m the author of this blog. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve seen my dad slickly stabbing. Later he taught me how to throw knives and axes at a target. Then I fell in love with knives, especially about them. This blog is in honour of my dad.
