As you may already know, throwing out an old mattress topper or pad in the trash isn’t the greenest of choices. Plus, it’s against city ordinance in some areas, which can earn you a ticket for illegal dumping, along with a hefty fine.
Whether you’re making some simple home improvements with an upgrade to a more luxurious mattress pad or the one you have now is just worn out, you want to make sure you’re disposing of your mattress topper in the most responsible way you can.
So we’ve shared some ways you can recycle the foam mattress topper that are good for the environment and great for your wallet.
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Can You Throw Away an Old Mattress Topper?
Although your trash collection service may take bulky bedding items, including old mattress toppers, mattress pads, bed frames, bedroom furniture and box springs, throwing these household items away isn’t the eco-friendly option. Especially with a foam mattress pad.
Whenever you put an old mattress topper out to be picked up with your regular trash, it gets taken to the nearest dump or incinerator for disposal while landfills all across America keep piling higher and higher with old unwanted junk.
Want to learn how to get rid of a foam mattress topper? Average mattresses and memory foam mattress toppers are generally not made of very eco-friendly materials. The most common materials used to make mattress pads include latex, memory foam, polyurethane foam, polyester blends, feathers or wool.
Although feather and wool toppers are more sustainable, they are incredibly expensive. Many cheaper memory foams are petroleum-based, and often include chemicals like formaldehyde, benzene and naphthalene. This makes memory foam especially bad for the environment and throwing away those foam mattress pads is really not a good idea.
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When old memory foam mattress toppers are left in a landfill or dumped somewhere, they start to decompose. This can lead to the release of hydrogen cyanide, isocyanates, and flame retardants, all of which have a very negative impact on our planet.
For this reason, it’s important for you to make an effort to recycle your used memory foam mattress topper by giving it to friends, family, or anyone else who may want it.
If your mattress topper isn’t in such great condition, you should drop it off at a local recycling center or salvage it by repurposing the materials with a little bit of creativity.
How to Dispose of a Mattress Topper or Pad
Now that you know the environmental issues with throwing that old mattress pad into a landfill, it might be time to think about some alternatives to trashing that old topper.
Instead of throwing them out, you can:
- Recycle the foam mattress topper
- Repurpose memory foam mattress toppers
- Donate mattress toppers
Recycle Mattress Topper & Memory Foam Pad
Throwing your foam topper into the trash cart or a dumpster can be bad for the environment. Instead, check out these ideas for recycling your old mattress topper.
Where to recycle foam mattresses?
Most cities have local recycling centers that accept a wide-variety of items that you can’t typically put out with your standard recyclables. Is memory foam recyclable? Yes, Because of the materials it’s made of, your old foam mattress pad needs to be processed in a specialized facility. When you contact your local recycling center, ask them how you can use any local recycling programs or drop-off sites.
Even though they’re primarily for mattress and to recycle memory foam, most centers also accept bedding related materials including foam, steel, or wood that come from bed frames, box springs, and used mattress toppers. These materials are used to make new products.
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When you recycle your old mattress topper instead of throwing it away, you’re helping your community and the environment by reducing landfill waste and pollution.
Recycling, and in this case, memory foam recycling, also boosts the local economy by creating demand for jobs in the recycling industry and supporting economic growth.
Contact Local Board of Health or Health Department
You can call your municipality or city’s Board of Health or local Health Department and ask about any recycling programs they may sponsor. Many public works departments and local health boards have recycling programs that focus on recycling mattresses. This information can usually be found with a simple search, or by visiting you local government’s website.
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Contact Your Mattress Topper Manufacturer
Most memory foam manufacturers understand that the materials they use are not always environmentally friendly, and offer resources to assist their customers with mattress topper recycling options. Some manufacturers could possibly take your old foam topper through a buy-back or disposal agreement. But this important information is not always on the label.
Can’t find any mattress recycling information?
- Visit the manufacturer’s website and search for their contact information.
- Contact the store where you purchased the mattress pad to ask about recycling options.
Repurpose the Memory Foam
There are many ways to repurpose your old memory foam topper instead of throwing it away or dealing with having it recycled.
- Create pet beds for your dog or cat
- Place it on an old bed frame and make a trundle bed for your kids
- Cut it up and make pillows or stuff saggy couch cushions
If your foam mattress topper isn’t in terrible shape, it might be worth holding on to. Any overnight guests you have in the future would likely appreciate the added comfort of plush memory foam to their bed. Especially after a long stretch of traveling.
Some people have even been known to use them to cover plants in the colder months or to cut the mattress pad up into rags for cleaning.
If you’re about as crafty as a potato or just don’t have the time to deal with the thing, using a junk removal company is likely going to be the easiest way to get rid of your old mattress pad.
Donate a Mattress Topper to Charity Organizations
There are several nationwide charities where you can donate mattress toppers, including:
- The Salvation Army
- Goodwill
- Habitat for Humanity
- Furniture Bank Association of America
There are also local charities that will accept used mattress pads, including:
- Women’s Shelters
- Family Shelters
- Homeless Shelters
- Thrift Stores
For regular mattress protector pads that are no longer usable for beds, you can use them for making diaper changing pads, quilts, pillows, etc., and then donate the finished products to a nearby shelter or other charity.
Best Way to Get Rid of a Mattress Topper
The solution to getting rid of your old mattress topper (or any other junk items, for that matter) that is most likely to be the best option for you is to use a junk removal company.
It might sound weird to hire a professional to get rid of a mattress topper for you, but it’s really the option that makes the most sense.
Especially when you have other junk items you need to dispose of, using a junk removal company requires much less time, money, and energy on your part.
When deciding which junk removal company to book a pickup with, it would be very hard to find one you would be more satisfied with than LoadUp. Loaders are motivated to recycle a foam mattress and donate as many items as possible to avoid the fees that come along with dumping loads at a local landfill. With LoadUp, there’s a much better chance that your mattress topper will be disposed of in an eco-friendly way than with those other guys.
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LoadUp is a nationwide, professional junk removal company that offers fast, easy, and affordable junk removal at a price that’s usually 20-30% lower than what most other junk removal companies charge. When Loaders recycle or donate your unwanted junk, they save on dumping fees, passing the savings onto you!
LoadUp is proud to be the cutting edge of the junk removal industry with our own technology platform, which helps us provide our customers with amazing features, including real-time updates and live GPS tracking.
LoadUp provides customers with an honest and upfront price even before they book, green disposal methods such as donation and recycling, and removal service as soon as next-day.
All of the independently contracted Loaders carry a $1M minimum insurance policy and are thoroughly screened with multiple background checks before they complete any pickups on the LoadUp platform, so you know you’re safe with them in your home.
Learn more about our services, why LoadUp is the best choice for junk removal in America or how to book a pickup with us. Give us a call or message us online today!
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