What are the Differences Between Household and Business Waste?

Skip hires are easy-to-use, convenient, and dependable whether for domestic or for business purposes

But, if you’re not sure whether you need a skip that’s more suitable for domestic or commercial use, here’s a quick write-up to help you differentiate between household and business waste.

Household Waste

Household waste, also called residential or domestic waste, is refuse produced by households. It can easily build up if we’re not taking action to dispose of, repurpose, or recycle it properly. It can include both, hazardous and non-hazardous waste.

One of the issues with this type of waste is that we need to think before tossing something in the garbage as not all of it is waste. There are many recycling programs in communities that accept bottles, glass, cans, paper, and other items that can be broken down and reused.

Instead of throwing food scraps and lawn clippings in the trash, we can compost them, and in that way reduce waste and contribute to the health of the environment.

But, dead batteries and similar types of household waste can be hazardous, so we can’t just toss them in the trash. They need to be disposed of in special facilities.

Household waste includes plastic, paper, furniture, wood, tiles, plaster, clothes, garden waste, cardboard, and pretty much everything generated in the day-to-day operations of a household. It’s the waste produced by home renovations, wood-working projects, garden landscaping, DIY projects, or moving house that is expected to be smaller in volume than large-scale commercial waste.

Business Waste

Business waste, also known as commercial waste, is the waste generated by anyone who gets paid for their services (business) including their customers, as well as sole traders. In the UK, every business is legally responsible for properly removing its own waste.

Business or commercial waste can come from:

• Offices, shops, restaurants, factories, and other business premises
• Tradesmen like plumbers, builders, kitchen fitters, and tilers
• Mobile businesses like window cleaners, beauticians, and gardeners
• People working from home who have rubbish connected to their work
• Rubbish removal, man-in-a-van businesses, handyman
• Non-profit organizations and charities

It is the waste produced as a result of carrying out activities such as:

• Wholesale or retail trading
• Industrial and manufacturing processes
• Sorting, reprocessing, recycling operations
• Mining
• Hospitality services
• Accommodation services
• Activities carried out in households under a commercial arrangement
• Veterinary services
• Primary industries, including fishing, forestry, agricultural
• Educational services
• Health services, including nursing home operations
• Activities carried out by churches and charities
• Administrative services

So, if you’re an owner of some business, you have a legal responsibility for the waste your business generates. You need to:

• do everything you can to reuse, prevent, recover, or recycle your waste to keep it to a minimum
• sort and store it in a safe and secure manner
• arrange a contract with a registered waste carrier or the council to dispose of your waste

It’s really surprising how much waste we generate daily, whether that’s in our household or business. Therefore, we need to dispose of it regularly, and skip hire is becoming one of the most convenient ways for this job. Now that you know the differences between household and business waste, you can choose the right skip size for your needs.