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Eco-friendly hangers |
13 Comments |
| By Matt Mayer in Conservation, Green Living, Green Products, Recycling | May 10, 2007 | ||
Readers Digest has a story this month discussing a product called EcoHangers. According to the article, each year approximately 3.5 billion hangers end up in the landfill. (Seriously? Am I the only person who keeps hangers that come with my clothes? Who throws them away??)
In theory, EcoHangers are biodegradable so they cause less impact in the landfill compared to metal or plastic hangers. (In reality, because landfills are compressed and robbed of air items in the landfill rarely decompose) They can obviously be reused, but since they are biodegradable it would seem like you could add them to your compost pile just like cardboard, or since they are made from cardboard you can put them in your recycle container it would seem as well.
Apparently the hangers are free for dry cleaners to use. They can replace the traditional hangers that come with their clothing at no cost to them. If you use dry cleaning services you might want to ask about this or mention this product to them. They could lower their costs and be more friendly to the environment all at the same time. Now that’s a smart idea!
Click here for more info about EcoHangers.
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Hun Boon said,
This doesn’t make sense.
People who bother to ask their local cleaners for eco-hangers are the kinds to recycle and reuse their hangers anyway.
I’m also wondering how they’re going to make money out of this product if they’re giving them away for free.
herb man said,
Anything to help the planet. At this juncture things are looking cloudy ( environmentally speaking ) We have to start somewhere
Matt Mayer said,
Apparantly the hangers have advertising on them, which is how they cover the manufacturing costs of them. I couldn’t find a picture on the net, but the article had a picture of the hanger with an ad for Van Heusen on it.
My hope for these hangers is more focused on the less eco-conscious people. If the dry cleaner changes on their own they will be able to make an impact through no change of their own.
Tara said,
When my sister worked at a department store, she learned that those stores frequently throw away the hangers from the clothing you buy. The process of saving, storing, and sorting by type of hanger and size, is less efficient than having product arrive on or with custom hangers. (i.e. the hanger used for a size 6 dress is different than that used for a size 12 pair of pants, which is different than one used for a size 16 coat, etc.) So after they take the shirt or pants off the hanger and fold it to put it in a bag for you, they just pitch the hanger. I presume that’s where the majority of this hanger waste comes from, not from dry cleaners and the like.
Though I’ve no doubt that dry cleaner hangers are a source of waste. Those thin metal hangers aren’t good for storage of clothing, so many people toss them in favor of purchased heavier hangers.
I probably visit a dry cleaner once every five years, when I truly cannot figure out another way to clean some product like a comforter that’s been peed upon by a cat. Dry cleaning itself is an environmental nightmare.
Ed Canales said,
Tara
The drycleaning idustry has evolve in the last 10 years. I do not use them ofter but lately , I have been reserched them and there are eco-friendly cleaners if you look for them. If concern about the enviroment, find out the details about the industry to make an educated decission for you and your family.
Happy trails… Ed
Lynae said,
Well I visit a dry cleaner almost everyday of the week. Knowing that it is already bad for the enviroment, I am going to ask my dry cleaner about the hangers and request that they check into it. I toss all of the metal hangers that we get. I am not a very green person, but if this is one thing that I can do to help, I am game. I personally think that it is a great idea.
AmI Green said,
“(In reality, because landfills are compressed and robbed of air items in the landfill rarely decompose)”
This woudn’t be going to the landfill in my house. This would be in the recycle bin for yet another life.
And to start with they are made from 100% recycled paper. That right there, IMO, makes them better than wired hangers.
I do hope these catch on. So far no cleaner in my area has them. (And while I rarely use dry cleaning -heck half my clothes are hung to dry – I would definitely chose the one with eco hangers over the others.
Nick said,
In the UK most shops you go to ask if you want to keep the hanger, which at least helps to cut down on people simply throwing them away as soon as they get home. But that I don’t understand anyway – we never seem to have enough hangers in our house, mainly due to my girlfriend forever buying new clothes, so we never throw them away.
Henry said,
We run the Becohanger Scheme in the UK. It is a scheme to exchange the wire coat hanger for an environmentally friendly cardboard version that is strong enough to do the job required of it. The product is handed out for free to our rapidly expanding network of dry cleaners and laundry services. The product’s manufacture, storage and distribution is covered by the selling of advertising space on the front of the hanger – This way advertisers get to be eco friendly – dry cleaners get to become more environmentally consious and the consumer helps to reduce their own carbon footprint.
Have a look on the website for more details http://www.wannabeco.com
Thanks
James said,
The Becohanger is a really interesting idea – must be the same one you are talking about above. It is an eco friendly advertising platform – one of the only ones I’ve come across where the product has an intrinsic value as well. Good stuff…
John the cleaner said,
Dry cleaners have been trying to get these hangers for years. They are difficult to get for some reason. I would even pay to be able to get them but due to advertising and the media company in charge of distribution, it is almost like working with the government to get them.
Alex said,
John – We can supply you with Becohangers – without advertising but because of this they will incur a cost – is this still something that might be of interest to you?
Freddy said,
ecohanger express has these hangers for sale. they are $63 for a box of 250. I pay $44 for a box of 500 wire, paper covered capes. That is a difference of 16.38 cents per garment. In dry cleaning that is a bundle when margins are so thin. Would you pay 25 cents extra per garment for a recycleable paper hanger versus a recyclable wire hanger?
Problem with the wire ones is if they are the least bit bent they cost more for a dry cleaner to recycle and use. We take them in the front door and about 85% are unusable and go out the back door.
These are not intended for the 10% of people that bring hangers back but the 90% that don’t and is that 90% ready to pay more for their cleaning as well?