Mattress Disposal

You can recycle a mattress. Most of the materials used to make a mattress are recyclable, so it’s simply a case of specialists removing and segregating them to recycle in their separate waste streams. Mattress recycling is much better for the environment as they otherwise take up lots of landfill space.

To dispose of an old mattress from your home there are a few options:

• Get it collected by the company delivering your new mattress (if they offer this service).
• Arrange collection by your local council (they may charge for this service).
• Take your old mattress to your local household waste recycling centre (HWRC) accepts mattresses.
• Sell your old mattress online or donate it to a charity shop nearby.
• Organise collection by a specialist waste management company.

Businesses should treat old mattresses like any other commercial waste and arrange collection by licensed waste carriers. Use a reputable firm that recycles the mattress and disposes of it away from landfill and ensure you receive a waste transfer note as proof. Alternatively, donate mattresses in decent condition to charities or community programmes.

You should never dispose of a mattress in a skip or cut it up and put it in a household bin, as this can be environmentally damaging.

It depends on your local recycling centre. Always check first to see if they accept mattresses and whether they recycle them or not by calling ahead or looking online. Some recycling centres take old mattresses and will send them for recycling by specialists. This is normally only possible for domestic mattress waste.

In certain areas, recycling centres won’t accept an old mattress though, and will instead direct you towards the council’s bulky waste collection service. Normally, businesses can’t take mattresses to a HWRC as it classes as a type of commercial waste.

If you need to transport an old mattress for recycling yourself then you might be tempted to cut it in half. You can cut a mattress up to dispose of it but it’s best to leave it in one piece where possible. This ensures the specialists separate the materials and recycle as much as possible.

When you recycle a mattress, it’s broken down into its recyclable components:

• First, the top layer (or cover) is cut and taken off, separating from the interior.
• The interior materials are removed and separated by type.
• Any soft materials such as foam are compressed and baled to save space when transported to another recycling centre or factory for reuse.

Recycling a mattress means other components are also reused. Any metal springs are melted down so they can be remade into new parts, while synthetic materials that are used to create the mattress are stripped and can either be recycled into new carpet underlay, or be sent to an energy plant.

Mattresses are made up of three sections. Each of these can be made from different materials such as:

• Support layer – normally made from metal springs or/and foam (polyurethane, latex, or viscoelastic in most cases).
• Comfort layer – the first few inches of the mattress, normally made from memory foam, latex foam, gel foam, cotton, wool, or silk, depending on the mattress type.
• Cover – often made from a soft touch fabric or woven material.

There are many ways to make a mattress. For example, you can use a fastened or quilted sheet and fill it with cotton, foam rubber, straw, hair, air, or water.

Recycling an old mattress is possible, but problems arise with improper disposal. Mattress waste can harm the environment if it ends up in landfill. This is because some of the materials they’re made from – such as plastics, foams, and synthetics – can take centuries to decompose.

When they decompose, if mixed with certain types of rubbish, chemical and anaerobic reactions can take place and emit dangerous greenhouse gases. Old mattresses can also damage the environment as dyes, flame retardant chemicals, and fungicides can seep into the ground.

As such large items, they take up a lot of landfill space too, which recycling a mattress in the UK can avoid.

There are lots of alternatives to purchasing a brand-new mattress. You could buy one second-hand, which can help the environment and cut down on costs – as brand-new mattresses can be rather expensive. You can do this online or in various charity shops.

A few facts about mattress waste are that:

• In the UK, around 7.5 million mattresses that we throw away each year end up in landfill.
• Between 15 and 20 million new mattresses are bought in the UK every year.
• Only an estimated 19% of mattresses are recycled in the UK.

Explore more textile waste facts.

In many locations you can recycle a mattress from your home for free at your nearest HWRC. If they refuse to take it, you could contact your council and arrange collection as bulky waste (but check they recycle the mattress and don’t throw it in landfill). Some offer this service for free, but others charge a small fee.

Another alternative that’s free is to donate your old mattress to charity or offer it for nothing online.

The earliest form of mattress was first invented approximately 77,000 years ago in Sibudu, South Africa. Found more recently by archaeologists, it was comprised of earthly materials such as grass and leaves. However, in more modern history the first innerspring mattress was created in 1871 by the German inventor Heinrich Westphal.