How does everyone handle trash onboard?

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by 44'cruisingcat

This pretty much applies to everything. You had space for it when it wasn't garbage.



On our cat the aft lockers in each hull are "smelly storage" areas. Oil, jerry cans and garbage bags are kept there, so any smells are downwind from us.

Yes but once it is garbage, it can begin to smell.
I’m not putting garbage bags in my food storage areas and I doubt you will either. I have a smaller boat and the only place I could store trash is inside the Lazarette, but I don’t as it’s also full of lines and fenders etc.
So we store our trash in bags tied to the base of the mast, and yes in real severe weather it is likely to go overboard. Never had it happen, but then I have yet to cross oceans. However I can’t remember ever having two bags on deck either, and those are regular kitchen sized bags, if you break down and get rid of all boxes and vacuum seal anything you can, the only real trash is cans, and it’s not like we go though more than say two a day. I guess I could mount a can crusher on the mast, but I just don’t have the need.
I’ve never thrown anything overboard, because I’ve never been out for the length of time that would make that necessary.
I abhor plastic, I have a real issue with it, it ticks me off, it’s just simply not necessary, so I’d never throw that overboard.

[senormechanico]

Re offgassing plastic, what do you think that recurring film (especially on a new) car windshield is?
It's offgassing car interior which is largely plastic.

[jmh2002]

Originally Posted by Chotu

At that point, I'd be pretty tempted to keep some plastic Aquafina or Fiji water bottles onboard and fill them with the filtered water. Ha ha

They might not be suitable for a small boat since they are glass but Evian and some of the other French and Italian bottled water companies periodically release nice "designer" bottles.

I used to keep them and reuse them as decorative decanters for the table or cold storage bottles for the fridge (I would replace the cap will a proper stopper too).

[Sparx]

Originally Posted by 44'cruisingcat

On our cat the aft lockers in each hull are "smelly storage" areas. Oil, jerry cans and garbage bags are kept there, so any smells are downwind from us.

...We do something similar. Three 5 gallon buckets with lids ride on a rack in the starboard aft locker. Typically one of these buckets holds garbage. The lid keeps any smells contained, and the rack keeps the bucket from tipping or getting lost in the bottom of the locker. Other buckets may hold non trash items ready for when they are needed. The rack is placed so that the buckets are easy to access.

Having stripped out all cardboard and superfluous packaging before goods came on board helps reduce the volume of trash generated during daily activity. A 5 gallon bucket often holds a week of garbage.

[StuM]

Originally Posted by Chotu

At that point, I'd be pretty tempted to keep some plastic Aquafina or Fiji water bottles onboard and fill them with the filtered water. Ha ha

That's exactly what we do.


Also keep a dozen bottle frozen in the bottom of the freezer

[StuM]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

the only real trash is cans, and it’s not like we go though more than say two a day. I guess I could mount a can crusher on the mast, but I just don’t have the need.

Generally I find that there's no need to crush anything other than drink cans (which are pretty light and easy to crush). Anything else, just cut the bottom off with a can opener and flatten them

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by senormechanico

Re offgassing plastic, what do you think that recurring film (especially on a new) car windshield is?
It's offgassing car interior which is largely plastic.

And the famous “New car smell”

[sailorboy1]

what a long thread for the subject

I basically flatten and tie tight in plastic bags and when possible take the trash ashore.

[Mike OReilly]

I flatten everything that can be squashed. One of my strengths as a "big guy" is we don't need a compactor [emoji6].

If you rinse any tins and jars, and toss organics, there really isn't much that can smell. At least that is my experience.

[thinwater]

Re. Off-gassing, my real interest was in any literature that suggested residuals from plastics inhibit bacteria and algae. Part of my living is engineering industrial wastewater plants (chem e) that treat water contaminated from plastics manufacturing and the monomers and plasticizers used to create them.


While there is evidence and common sense that these things aren't good for people, bacteria are not people and are perfectly comfortable eating things that would kill you 5 different ways, either slowly or quickly. Thus, I'm pretty sure they are NOT what keeps bottled water from turning green.


That said, I don't use bottled water because it is waste, as many have pointed out.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by thinwater

Re. Off-gassing, my real interest was in any literature that suggested residuals from plastics inhibit bacteria and algae. Part of my living is engineering industrial wastewater plants (chem e) that treat water contaminated from plastics manufacturing and the monomers and plasticizers used to create them.


While there is evidence and common sense that these things aren't good for people, bacteria are not people and are perfectly comfortable eating things that would kill you 5 different ways, either slowly or quickly. Thus, I'm pretty sure they are NOT what keeps bottled water from turning green.


That said, I don't use bottled water because it is waste, as many have pointed out.

There is or was a type of plastic that years ago was advertised as inhibiting growth, the bladders of Camel Baks were made from it.
May have just been marketing, I did not pursue it.
Seems they still make that claim, and call it “HyrdoGuard”
https://www.camelbak.com/en/customer...ttles/bpa-free

[RickG]

In the Virgin Islands recycling is managed by private donation-supported groups. On St. John we have a group that takes aluminum cans. For plastic, we have to transport it to St. Thomas. We don't have options for steel cans. Trash goes in public dumpsters, then to a landfill on St. Thomas that is nearly at capacity.

A cool project on St. John focused on reducing single use containers is the St. John Eco Station. They sell concentrated biodegradable cleaning products in bulk to consumers. We buy kitchen, glass, and bathroom cleaners by the ounce and put them into our Home Depot squirt bottles mixed with water.

We go out cruising frequently. We prefer places without a lot of people or infrastructure. I keep a contractor bag in a lazarette that we place bagged kitchen and bagged bathroom waste that cannot be recycled; all food packaging is rinsed to reduce smell and flies. We rinse aluminum cans, crush them by hand, and they go in a recycling bag. Food scraps go overboard, except when we are in the St. John Virgin Islands National Park or the Coral Reef National Monument zero discharge zones. The contractor bag works great.

We use a composting head. It is a small C-head and lasts two people a week. The waste goes in a 5-gallon bucket with a gamma seal lid. After working hurricane cleanup, we found a rocky beach margin area above the tide to dump the waste. The local flora seems to like it.

Cheers, RickG

[capn_billl]

Here is my take on the dispose packages at point of purchase controversy.

IF I remove all packaging when I purchase it, its disposed at one place. Not only will that motivate the retailer to have more environmentally friendly alternatives, but recycling even if not implemented now, is easier with a pile on the retailers doorstep, than scattered (properly), all over the bottom of the ocean, or burned on a beach.

[S/V Adeline]

The problem I have with suggesting leaving packaging at the retailer is they have no control over packaging. Sure, they will dispose of it for you, but most have no direct contact with any manufacturer.
For the case of coke in a cardboard tray, held with rings AND wrapped in plastic, call coca~cola and demand change.

[CassidyNZ]

As far as I know, in New Zealand no retailers will allow shoppers to strip packaging off and leave it behind. I have a friend who owns a major supermarket franchise - I shall for interest ask him how he would react.