Coffee lovers are dedicated to their java, but all that caffeine can take a toll on the environment.
The popularity of single-serve coffeemakers has reduced consumer use of coffee filters. However, it’s tough to beat the convenience of these appliances, so here are some ways you can recycle coffee bags, reduce waste and enjoy your cup o’ joe.
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1. Make a Container Plant Fertilizer
A cup of coffee grounds is all you need to fertilize your container plants each month throughout the growing season. The nitrogen in coffee stimulates plant growth, and acidity helps prevent diseases like blight and mildew. (Be aware: If you harvest rainwater for irrigation, the coffee might affect its pH balance.)
2. Make Your Worm Farms
Bury coffee grounds in the soil of your potted plants to attract worms, which will aerate the soil and eventually become fertilizer themselves. You can also make a worm farm by filling an unused bathtub with moistened coffee grounds and letting them sit for about three weeks.
3. Make a Compost Pile
Even if you’re not a gardener, you can still contribute to a worm farm or compost pile by collecting coffee grounds and vegetable waste at work. Just make sure that the surrounding area has good drainage. Coffee grounds are acidic and shouldn’t be used alone in an alkaline environment like soil.
4. Get a Head start on Next Year’s Garden
If you leave some coffee grounds in your flowerpot or garden, they’ll decompose and add nitrogen to the soil for next year’s flowers. This also works with potted plants that get plenty of light.
5. Keep Frost off Your Windshield
The same ammonia-like compounds that make coffee a good solvent also make it an effective de-icer. Just sprinkle some grounds on your windshield and wipe them off with a towel.
6. Clean you’re Iron
Iron deposits from tap water can leave rust stains on clothes or work surfaces, but this problem is easily solved by sprinkling wet coffee grounds over the affected area and scrubbing gently with a wet sponge. The grounds should absorb the iron and leave your clothes or surfaces clean and stain-free.
7. Clean you’re Grout
Coffee can also be used to clean grout in tile floors when mixed with an equal amount of water to create a paste, then applied to the affected area using a toothbrush. When the paste is dry, rinse it away and repeat if necessary.
8. Heal Your Puffy Eyes
Grind up coffee beans (not grounds) to make a coarse powder, then add enough water to make a paste. Dab this onto your puffy eyes and leave it on for about 10 minutes to reduce swelling and wake you up.
9. Make Homemade Ice Packs
Fill an ordinary sandwich bag with water and freeze it for two hours. Mix in some coffee grounds, seal the bag and place it on sore muscles or swollen areas to relieve pain. Caffeine is a natural analgesic that helps soothe aches and pains while the ice reduces the swelling.
10. Clean you’re Hairbrush
Your hairbrush can get saturated with natural oils, which attract dust and lint. To freshen it up, dip a toothbrush into some coffee grounds and scrub it on your hairbrush to absorb any oils or dirt before rinsing away the grounds.
11. Unclog Drains
Pour half a cup of baking soda down any clogged drain, then follow it with a pot of coffee (grounds and all). The resulting chemical reaction should clear away hair or other gunk causing the clog. If not, you can always try using a plunger.
12. Remove Sticky Residue
Some labels won’t come off of new items, but a little coffee can ease the pain. Put a cup of water in a pan and add a small number of coffee grounds. Bring to a boil for about five minutes, and then allow it to cool before applying it to the label with a paintbrush or sponge. The mixture should easily dissolve the label without damaging the surface underneath.
13. Get Rid of Ants
Ants are mysteriously attracted to moisture, so they can be discouraged by keeping your coffee grounds dry and out of reach. Refrigerating your grounds will also reduce their pungency and, therefore, attractants. If you have an ant problem already, put your dry grounds in a bowl and sprinkle them with talcum powder. The ants will eat the powder, which causes dehydration and eventually death.
14. Get Rid of Weeds
Coffee grounds can also be used as an organic herbicide to eliminate weeds from your garden or driveway. Scatter a layer around the affected area, wet it down with a hose, and wait for the weeds to die.
15. Keep Cats Out of Your Garden
Coffee is like catnip on steroids, so if you sprinkle some grounds around your garden or plants, cats (and other animals) will stay away. It won’t keep them out forever, but it should buy you enough time to enjoy your harvest without any unwanted visitors.
16. Scent Your Home
Coffee can also be used as a fragrance enhancer because it absorbs odors and adds a pleasant, earthy scent to whatever it is mixed with. You could sprinkle some dry grounds around the perimeter of your home or boil about two tablespoons in a pot of water to make your home smell like fresh coffee.
17. Reduce the Gasses Coming from Your Garbage Disposal
If you drop coffee grounds down your garbage disposal, they will help absorb any odious smells coming from it while also helping to sharpen the blades and reduce gasses. You can even do this regularly to help the blades stay sharp, and you can also mix in some lemon peels for an extra boost of freshness.
18. Polish Chrome Fixtures
If your chrome fixtures aren’t looking so shiny anymore, give them a quick polish with used coffee grounds. Dampen the area with water, pour on some coffee grounds, and wipe to a shine.
19. Get Rid of Fleas in Your Home
Coffee grounds can also be used as an organic flea repellent to eliminate any bugs that may be hiding in your home. Sprinkle some dry or wet coffee grounds on your carpets or furniture, let sit for a couple of hours, then vacuum. Repeat every couple of days until the issue is resolved.
20. Get Rid of Static Cling
Mix coffee grounds and cornstarch to make a homemade fabric softener that will keep clothes free from static cling as they come out of the dryer (or help eliminate it if you use liquid softener beforehand).
21. Get Rid of Odors in Your Refrigerator
If your fridge starts to smell funky, you can get rid of the odors by simply wiping everything down with coffee grounds. They will absorb any scents they come in contact with and help eliminate any hidden smells lurking in your fridge.
22. Make Coffee Rub for Meat
Mix some coffee grounds, brown sugar, cumin, chili powder, salt, garlic powder, and onion powder to make a coffee rub for any meat. This can be used on beef or chicken to help enhance the flavor of the meat while also helping it stay moist even if you overcook it.
23. Make Coffee Ice Cubes
If you tend to ruin iced coffee by watering it down, why not make ice cubes that are already pre-flavored instead? You can use coffee cubes to kick your iced coffee up a notch and also keep it from getting watered down before you have a chance to drink it.
24. Use It as a Compost Additive
Coffee grounds are rich in nitrogen, so if you mix them with your kitchen scraps and other composting materials, they will help break it all down faster and keep your garden looking healthy.
25. Get Rid of Fruit Flies
If fruit flies plague your kitchen, you can get rid of them easily by putting some coffee grounds in a bowl. The coffee beans will attract the fruit flies and help trap them, which you can then dispose of when they start to pile up.
26. Repel Mosquitoes
Mosquitoes and other bugs hate the smell of coffee, so if you make a spray out of used coffee grounds mixed with water and spritz it all over exposed skin, you should be able to keep the bugs at bay while also masking your scent and helping prevent bug bites.
27. Stop Cats from Using Your Garden as a Litter Box
Cats have a powerful sense of smell that they use to mark their territory, so if they can smell previous cats in your garden, they may think it is a great place to go potty, whether you want them there or not. Cover your garden with some coffee grounds to help mask the scent of other cats and keep new ones from coming around to use as their litter box.
28. Keep Ants Out of Your Home
Ants tend to avoid the smell of coffee, so you can use grounds in your home to help keep them away. You can create a mixture of water and coffee grounds to spray around the baseboards of your home to prevent any unwanted visitors from coming inside.
29. Get Rid of Wasps Nest
To get rid of wasps’ nests (if they are outside), sprinkle the top of the nest with some coffee grounds to irritate them and get them to leave their nest.
30. Neutralize Stink Bugs
If you have stink bugs in your home, they can be hard to get rid of. One way to help is by putting dryer sheets around the room hanging out since they don’t like the smell either. You can also mix some coffee grounds with water and vanilla extract (in a 2:1 ratio of coffee to water) and spray it around the room to help neutralize their stench.
Conclusion
So there you have it – eleven ways to recycle coffee bags. We hope you’ve found at least one method that works for you. If not, be sure to check out our website for more ideas on how to reduce, reuse and recycle. And as always, remember that reducing consumption starts with each of us making small changes in our everyday lives. With a little effort, we can all make a big difference. How do you reuse your coffee bags?
