A to Z of reusing, recycling and waste disposal

Bricks and other building materials can be cleaned and used for a wide variety of projects around the house or garden for example paths, edging, raised beds, compost heaps or barbeques. Bricks* and rubble* can be taken to your nearest recycling centre and put in the skips marked Bricks and Rubble. These items will be used for roads and surface cover on landfill sites. *Restrictions apply for disposing of some types of rubbish at our household recycling sites including bricks and rubble. To find out more please see our guide to DIY waste disposal.

Please consider donating large furniture items that are in reasonable condition and working electrical appliances to local re-use organisations (please note mattresses and three piece suites will need a fire label). Many of these organisations will come and collect them from your home. Freecycle is also another way to pass your unwanted items to others who may need them. If your unwanted items are not suitable to be used again, you can take them to your nearest recycling centre. If you are unable to do this, you can book a bulky waste collection online. These items will be recycled where possible.

Donate cameras in good working condition to your local charity shop or drop off at your local household waste recycling centre's reuse container. Broken cameras can be recycled at your local recycling centre's small electrical items bank.

You can take your diesel and petrol car batteries to your nearest recycling centre. Contact your car manufacturer or dealer for advice on recycling electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

Why not hire an industrial steam cleaner or use a local carpet cleaning firm to clean and spruce up your carpet so you can continue to use it? If you have a homemade compost heap, pieces of carpet are ideal as an insulating material to place on the top of the heap to keep the heat in. Unwanted carpets and rugs can be sold or given to charity shops. As a last resort unwanted carpets should be taken to your nearest recycling centre and placed in the general waste skips. These will be sent to landfill for disposal.

If your car is beyond repair, you should take it to a local scrap metal merchant for disposal. Please note that scrap has a value so shop around for the best offer.

If your unwanted CDs are pre-recorded and still work, you can donate them to your local charity shop. There are also many online companies that offer a CD recycling service.

Large supermarkets usually provide collection containers at the front of the store for a wide range of plastic packaging that can't go in your green bin, for example, the tearable (not stretchy) plastic wrappers, bags, and film from cereal, pasta, dried fruit, crisps, chocolate and biscuits, paper products, salad, fruit and vegetable products.

They will be recycled into new plastic products. Alternatively, tearable plastic wrappers, bags and film can be placed in your black bin. As a general rule, if plastic wrap is stretchy (rather than tearable), then it can be recycled in your green bin.

If your unwanted chair is good enough to be used by others, donate it to a local re-use organisation. Armchairs must have a fire label to be re-used. You can also take it to the Revive Leeds re-use shop at the Kirkstall or Seacroft recycling centres or to your nearest recycling centre where you can put it in the re-use container. If it is not good enough to re-use you can take it to your nearest recycling centre for disposal. Wooden furniture can be recycled in the timber container. If you are unable to do this, you can book a bulky item collection online

There are many chemicals used in the home that are hazardous substances, for example paint, white spirit, bleach, antifreeze, brake fluid, engine oil, household and garden chemicals, and pesticides. Please try to use non-toxic alternatives instead. Never dispose of chemicals down your sink or drain. Please take household chemicals to your nearest recycling centre so that they can be disposed of correctly. There is a household chemical container on all the sites. These chemicals will be re-used within the chemical industry wherever possible, incinerated or turned to a solid material for disposal at landfill. If you are unable to get to a recycling centre, please phone 0113 222 4406 (Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm) to see if we can help.

See 'Crisp packets'.

Re-useable artificial trees can be donated to charity shops.

Real Christmas trees should be taken to your nearest recycling centre and put in the green/garden waste skips. They will be composted and made into soil conditioner for use in land restoration projects.

Please ensure that all decorations are removed before putting your tree in the skip.

Reduce your Christmas waste by buying cards made from recycled card and reusing good quality wrapping paper. Recycle your Christmas cards and paper in your green recycling bin or in the paper bank at your nearest bring site or recycling centre. These are recycled back into cardboard products such as packaging materials and cat litter. Remove any glittery or metallic parts from cards and recycle the rest in your green bin. You could reuse glittery or metallic parts by making them into gift tags.

Donate clean clothing that is good enough to be re-used to your local charity shop where they will be resold. Alternatively, you could organise a jumble sale or local swap shop event to pass on items that you no longer want. All textiles, even if they are ripped and paired shoes can be recycled by putting in the textile bank at your nearest bring site or recycling centre. These items will be used as second hand clothes if good enough quality, or shredded and used as filling material for example mattresses, to make recycled products or to become wiping cloths for industry.

Hot drinks paper cups are used in high street coffee shops, fast food outlets and supermarkets. These cups are lined with several layers of polyethylene (plastic). Because of this they are not suitable for recycling along with normal cardboard. Why not try a reusable cup? You can recycle your paper coffee cups in the recycling on the go bins for coffee cup in the city centre.