Reuse Plastic Bottles: Top 20 DIY Tips

From Networx' Sayward Rebhal:

Plastic grocery bags and plastic water bottles -- those disposable environmental nightmares -- have become iconic in the current green revolution. Which is why plastic grocery bags are banned in many states, with many more on the way. Alas, single-use soda and water bottles are still ubiquitous. And even those of us who refuse to buy them, somehow seem to find ourselves in possession of the little landfill disasters.

So you've found yourself with a stash of bottles, maybe from your Couch-To-5k run, or your company-provided lunch, or that one time you got caught on a long drive in the middle of nowhere. Beverage trash still happens to mindful people! But that's okay. There's plenty of ways to get creative and up-cycle them for new and useful purposes. Here are a few fantastic ideas to get you started.

Got any other ideas? Leave them in the comments!

All captions/tips courtesy of Networx.

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Comments

[weethreads]

03:04 PM on 01/28/2012

This article is ridiculous. Ugly ideas for reuse. I'd rather go thirsty than drink from a plastic bottle!!! There is no such thing really as "recycling" plastic - highly toxic to do so, and it degrades so much, it NEVER goes away. It just ends up in the landfill then leaches into our water system and hence food supply. We will all be "made of plastic" someday from ingesting so much of it (even if we avoid plastic in our kitchens at home)! Plastic is just plain terrible.

[SimonBao]

02:49 PM on 01/25/2012

With all due respect, these are terrible suggestions.

There shouldn't be any interest in re-using plastic bottles. Plastic bottles should be avoided whenever possible (and 95% of the time, it's possible).

Those plastic bottles which cannot be avoided should be properly recycled.

[trumphent]

01:55 PM on 01/25/2012

I have a sister that is in climate science denial rehab. Her biggest fear is the real but not so scary Pacific Plastic Patch. I visited her recently to discover that her entire family is hooked on cases of the tiniest size of bottled water. That prompted me to send her a stainless steel water bottle I told her it was her starter kit. Oh well, she at least puts her empties in a recycling receptacle.

[Kenz300]

12:10 PM on 01/25/2012

All plastic needs to be recycled. We need to move to a more sustainable way of life.

[fralala]

10:57 AM on 01/25/2012

Why don't they make our side walks, play areas, bus benches etc, made from the recycled plastic, like they did with the boardwalks?

[BlueinVA]

09:22 AM on 01/25/2012

If you are going to waste money on plastic bottles of water, do NOT reuse! Washing them in warm soapy water leaches even more BPA into those bottles -- which you will drink when you refill.

[Audrey Godbout]

08:56 AM on 01/25/2012

It is not just the waste but molecules from the plastic is leaking from these bottles forever....I remember in the 80's where you had 2 liters bottles of pop....it tasted way better was safer and easier to recylcle....why don't we just go back to that, we can afford some broken glass way more than "foreign" molecules right now

[Stevenson52]

06:03 AM on 01/25/2012

Just go cold turkey.

[ECJIM 3ABTPA BONHA]

02:20 AM on 01/25/2012

What they said:>>> "The best idea is to not buy bottled water in the first place" Theres no good reason to buy bottle water....what a waste.

[trailerguy]

11:29 AM on 01/25/2012

Bottle water is a scam. especially in the US, if you are concerned about water quailtiy get a filter.

[Oginikwe]

01:55 AM on 01/25/2012

The best idea is to not buy bottled water in the first place.

[knarfc]

12:39 AM on 01/25/2012

I reuse our plastic bottles. I put the caps back on and use them as packing material for the antique phones that I sell on Ebay. I use them along with other packing material, they are light. I use a box inside of a box when I ship. So the bottles cushion the inner box against dropping or tossing of the outer box.

[Rich Cash]

12:18 AM on 01/25/2012

I have never bought bottled water. Why buy water when it comes from the tap for free? (or at least minimal cost that you're already paying for). Reminds me of the joke about the French founders of Perrier. One said to the other "Hey, I'll bet we can get those stupid Americans to buy this fizzy water just because it's French and we put it in a pretty green bottle." The rest is history.

[Moose Luck 99]

09:46 PM on 01/24/2012

Hey USE GLASS BOTTLES!

Toxic Plastic Water & Baby Bottles - A Health Concern Explained
www.squidoo.com › Healthy Living
You have probably heard about the negative health effects of using plastic ... The making and disposal of PVC releases dioxin, a poisonous cancer-linked chemical. ... For storing or heating food use Pyrex, glass or ceramic containers instead

[Norma Corlis]

07:01 PM on 01/24/2012

Just junk