Why are home trash compactors no longer popular?
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1. They’re expensive to purchase, install, and the plastic bags they require are usually expensive too.
2. They broke all the time and often did an insufficient job of compacting or broke the bag when doing so (especially if you put something sharp in there, even something like the corner of the base of a cardboard bag would be enough.
3. You had to clean them, which is just another thing that sucks to have to do.
4. We recycle more things these days (hopefully) so a lot of compressible items end up in recycling bins instead.
5. Hand operated trash compacting bins solve all of those problems with no issue.
6. Kerbside rubbish collection is much more common nowadays, you still find people out in the boonies using them because they have to haul their own trash, but for the average household it’s unnecessary to compact things to prevent the bins from overfilling.
Basically there’s no point to it. As a non American I even find the idea of those sink blenders to be completely odd, like why have a random spinning blade in the sink you have to clean and maintain just so you can shove things down the sink that you’d otherwise just put into a bag or collect by hand, like is peeling potatoes over a paper bag or a compost bin that difficult?
I’ve had one for 30 years. Works great. Saves time by only taking out trash 3 times a month. Saves space in kitchen. If and when mine ever breaks, it will be replaced immediately.
Take the trash can. Fold bag over the trash inside. Use your hands and push down. You have compacted your trash. Is it worth $1,000+ to buy a machine to do that for you?
In general, they are not necessary. Areas with more irregular trash service has a greater need for them and you see them more, but with weekly trash pickup, having it compacted or not generally doesn’t matter.
Also, if you designate a compactor, it takes up more space in a kitchen then a regular trash can and is a dedicated, locked in space, rather than a more flexible space.
Finally, compact the trash a bunch and then it gets real heavy and is harder for some people to lift. Then they have to move the trash into another bag just to be able to take it out.
Aside from all of the above, the one thing I’d like to add is that trash compactors could make a brick of garbage that was extremely heavy to lift out of the machine, making it very difficult to deal with. If you have a compactor that can compress trash 6x, your normal 10 lbs (5 kg) of trash can now be up to 60 lbs (30 kg). That can be hard for people to lift and move to their other trash container for pick up.
I’m an older guy and I recall:
They broke down often.
My Dad would just make me stomp on anything in need of compacting (I was also the remote control for the TV…all 4 channels!! !)
They were loud.
My sister would always smash my toys in it ( in retrospect this is probably why it broke down so much)
They were expensive. But then I even remember when only rich people had microwaves
You have all the answers already but I had one in a rental. I hated it because my roommate would never empty it so it would get extremely heavy. Carrying a 50+ lb bag of trash fearing it will rip is not fun
It’s official… We live in a simulation.
I just had this thought earlier this evening as I smashed the trash with my hands like a loser.
I haven’t thought about trash compactors for 10 years.
I have a trash compactor, and it works great. A weeks worth of kitchen and household trash squeeze into a 2 x 2 bag that gets tossed in the trashcan and wheeled out to the street.
It just squishes everything into a nice, neat package that’s easy to handle.
I will never be without a trash compactor again.
I completely disagree with all the criticisms here. My condo was built in ‘83 and so is my trash compactor. I’ve owned my place since 2007 and it’s never failed me once. I’m on the 3rd floor and our garbage collection in down in the garage so having a compactor is a life saver. Usually have to empty it out about every 2-3 months. Bought a couple new of bulk 50 pk compactor bags for $12/ea from Costco about a decade ago and haven’t finished it yet.
For any food waste I use a compost so my place doesn’t smell.
Trash compactors are great.
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