Can’t say we’ve used our dumpster rental service for these types of things. It’s lined with plastic and uses a filtering system – so it actually isn’t gross. Macro-Sea, a design firm in New York, made a dumpster swimming pool along with other “lo-fi” country club items. They found a developer who’d let them use the space, had dumpsters donated from a construction company (thanks to the economic downturn), and created a space that’s been promoted through art organizations in the area. It’s an invite-only deal at this point, but it’s a great way to think about reusing materials.

There were finer details involved, link filing down sharp edges in the dumpster and lining the bottom with sand to create a smooth bottom. The dumpster pools are insured and the “country club” has hosted photo shoots and lectures among other events.

Source: New York Times

So it looks like someone else found more food in a roll-off container. This time instead of fortune cookies it’s watermelons. What a waste of food. The roll-off container looks pretty rusted too. That’s too bad.

Source: Boing Boing

In all our time providing dumpster rental service to the North Shore, we can’t say we’ve ever seen anything like this. Hal Bergman was driving around Los Angeles looking to shoot some photo and video when he came across dumpsters in a dead-end alley filled to the top with fortune cookies! Check out the rest of the photos on his flickr photoset. Maybe we should start documenting weird finds in our dumpsters and roll-off containers.

Source: Boing Boing

It looks like an old Sylvania building is being converted into a “Green Dorm” for the students of Salem State College. 525 students will live within the building, said to be one the more eco-friendly dormitories in Massachusetts. Students will also be excited to know they can eat in their own dining hall - Salem State’s first in a dorm. So what makes this new student dorm “green”?

• Roofs will either have soil and ground covers to absorb rain or white thermoplastic membranes to reflect the heat
• Carpets made of recycled fibers
• Furniture made of recycled plastic and steel
• They hope to erect solar panels soon! An alternate Salem State building is slated to receive solar panels this summer.

Good job to the buildings’ designers - Dimella Shaffer

We recently wrote about how to keep junk removal costs low. One point we made had to do with donating or giving away items on Craigslist. Sometimes junk isn’t “junk” at all…take a look at how some people have creatively taken out both the “junk” and “removal” out of junk removal.

Reusing speakers to hold records

Seeing old speakers on the side of the road is a constant. It seems like every week when we drive on the north shore, speakers are getting tossed. Check out this article on converting Technics SB-2560 into media holders for records. Excellent idea. These speakers are far from junk now.

Quench your Christmas Tree with a plastic cup

Another one from the the Good Rubbish blog - use a plastic cup to water your Holiday trees and branches. Check out more rubbish projects at The Good Rubbish blog.

Fuse grocery plastic bags to create handbags, wallets, and more

Using plastic bags, an iron, and parchment paper, plastic bags can be used to create all sorts of cool things. About 6-7 plastic layers fused together can make waterproof lining for a beach bag among other things. Sometimes you can even leverage the plastic bag’s design into patterns.

Some places gather junk together for your reuse

In Pittsburgh PA, Construction Junction is a non-profit building that houses reusable building materials. They’ve got recycling services for freon appliances, non-freon appliances, scrap metal, e-waste, and bicycles for you to reuse. You can drop off your junk and pick up some more for personal or commercial use. It’s similar to a junk yard for car parts, but for building materials.

Do you have any good “trash to treasure” stories?