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Whether you are decluttering your home or decluttering your storage unit, chances are good that at some point you are going to find yourself with some recyclables. In some cases, you may be able to have them picked up from the curb, but in other situations, it makes more sense to head to your local drop-off point. Here are a few tips for recycling at drop-off facilities.

• Certain types of items cannot be recycled. Sometimes this can come as a surprise. For example, in a lot of areas, nobody will consider taking a box-spring mattress. If you bring these items all the way to the drop-off point, you will waste a lot of time and energy.

• A lot of items are free to recycle. In fact, it may surprise you just how many things you can unload without any fees if you are willing to drive them to the facility yourself. A lot of recycling drop-off points maintain lists of these items online.

• Some items may carry high recycling fees. While you may be pleasantly surprised that you can drop off a lot of items for free, there may be some unpleasant surprises in store for you as well. Some items are ridiculously expensive to drop off. You might expect this with large appliances (i.e. refrigerators or washing machines), but it can be a shock with smaller appliances like space heaters or heated mattress pads (anything containing heating elements tends to be pricey to part with).

• Plastics are complicated. Every recycling center has different rules concerning plastics. There may be size restrictions, or you may only be able to drop off certain types of plastics. You might also be expected to remove caps from plastic bottles before dumping them off (some regions offer paid programs for recycling plastic bottles, so be on the lookout for those opportunities).

• Some items simply shouldn’t be recycled. Thinking about recycling old clothes, toys, books, and so on? Think again. A lot of facilities will not accept these items—which is entirely appropriate. These possessions can be used by someone else, and should be donated, not thrown away.

• You may be at the drop-off site for a while if they are going to bill you. Billing for each specific item can take some time, so plan to be hanging around in the drop-off center office for at least 15-20 minutes—and that is assuming no line ahead of you.

If you put off recycling your clutter, you are not alone. A lot of people feel it is a major hassle to go to a drop-off point. But there are ways around that. Have a plastic storage bin in your car, and simply add items to recycle to it from your home or storage unit when it is convenient. That way you can drop off your stuff when you happen to be near the recycling center. This prevents you from having to plan a whole trip around it. Turn it into a habit, and you can keep your space clean and clutter-free!