What to do With Your Old Bicycle

What to do with your old bicycle? Whether it’s due to warmer weather or you’re starting off a health kick you, might open the garage or shed and find your old bicycle in an unusable state. Explore the best options to recycle or responsibly dispose of your bike with Clearabee.

How many bikes are there in the UK?

Bike market trends showcased by Cycling Industry and Mintel show total the sales of bikes are on a downward trend but there are certain areas of the market that are experiencing plenty of growth. For example, the relatively new concept of motorized e-bikes are continuing to sell more and more each year. Even with the market growing in some areas and shrinking in others, well over 1 million bikes are sold in the Uk each year.

Most of these bicycles will be first-time purchases but many will be to replace an old or broken bicycle. North London Waste Authority that 11,000 bicycles are thrown away each year and that only 1 in 10 people attempt to fix or repair their bike before throwing It away. There will be an occasion where a bike has absolutely had it and will be needed to be thrown away. In these cases, it is important to think about what method you use to ensure your old bike is handled responsibly.

Get Rid of your Old Bicycle With a Clearabee Collection

At Clearabee we are able to recycle over 95% of the waste we collect. We will use local recycling centres to save on emissions of CO2 as well ensuring that the centre has high rates of recycling. At Clearabee we have a range of options for disposing of waste of all different sizes and for bikes we’d recommend our ‘Man and Van’ collection.

Our flexible load size costs £84.99 and can collect a cubic yard worth of waste which is roughly equivalent to 2 washing machines. That is a fair bit larger than a single bicycle so you can use the extra capacity to get rid of any additional items you may have lying around. For example, the packaging from your new bicycle, broken equipment or electrical items that can be difficult to get rid of. A ‘Man and Van’ collection can be at your home within the same day of your enquiry and will do all the heavy lifting on your behalf.

Things to Do With Your Old Bicycle

On our domestic rubbish removal runs, old bicycles are often among our loads. Before you chuck it, here are some things to do with that old bike.

Refurbish your old bicycle

As long as you’ve not driven over it or it’s completely wrecked, there are a few companies now offering bicycle refurbishment. It can be an economical option and really easy to do, even if you want to give it a go yourself. Videos like this provide an overview on some of the steps you can take to perform a quick refurb on your own bike. You can start with a simple chain replacement to a complete respray of paint, depending on how much time you want to invest.

Donate your bicycle

Whether it’s to a local charity shop or to one of the many charities throughout the country, donating your old bike instead of throwing it away is a great option. There are social enterprises across the country who recycle or refurbish old bicycles so they can be re-used or recycled appropriately. Re-furbished bikes are then sold or given to communities where they can be used.

Bike Works is one example of a social enterprise in London doing just that and Re-cycle is a great initiative helping disadvantaged people in Africa with recycled bikes.

Up-cycle your bicycle

For those who are extremely vigilant and willing to put the work in you can attempt to up-cycle your old bike. Take a look at this Pinterest board to see what can be done and for some inspiration.

The Easiest Method To Get Rid of Your Old Bike

At the end of the day you may just want to get rid of your old bike, and with a Clearabee collection, you’ll be receiving the peace of mind that it will be disposed and recycled.