It's tough to always know what things to recycle and what items to toss into the trash. But according to Darby Hoover, senior resource specialist for the Natural Resources Defense Council, you'd be surprised to learn that a lot of items that end up in a landfill are actually made of recyclable materials. "People are always interested in knowing how to recycle at home. First step: Look in your own community and see if there are local schools, hospitals, or shelters that will take your old stuff. For example, a pet shelter could make use of your beat-up towels," Hoover says. But when it comes to recyclable products that you can't easily donate, check out our round-up of innovative recycling programs as well as online directories that help you find drop-off locations. Going green has never been this easy.

Make your recycling efforts go further – and make a difference for our planet – with our easy tips.

A lot of us already set aside plastic milk jugs, glass bottles and old newspapers for the recycling bin. But with Earth Day approaching, it doesn’t hurt to ask: Could we all be doing more? A lot of times, our good intentions to help the planet are thwarted by recycling incorrectly or simply not knowing what can be recycled. If you’re looking to pitch in more – or even to just get started! – check out our easy-to-follow tips. Start at the Supermarket Assess your shopping habits and think about the items you buy that produce the most waste. Look at foods packaged in unnecessary plastic wrap or products in needlessly excessive packaging. Be more mindful and decide if there’s an eco-friendlier way to purchase what you need. For example, you can buy loose fruit and vegetables instead of pre-packaged ones. If you’re stumped about how to recycle certain essential items like empty detergent containers or used air fresheners, check out TerraCycle, an innovative recycling company that specializes in recycling hard-to-recycle waste and offers a number of programs and initiatives to make the process easier. For instance, Tide laundry detergent bottles and caps and Febreze FABRIC, ONE, PLUG and CAR products are all fully recyclable through TerraCycle drop-off locations around the country, and they also offer an at-home recycling program for these products. Know How to Recycle Plastic Bags Shoppers worldwide use 500 billion single-use plastic bags each year, which often become part of the estimated 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic debris floating in our oceans today. Because they take so long to break down, they repeatedly contribute to the more than 100,000 marine creatures that die each year after getting tangled in plastic. You might already know the impact that discarded plastic bags have on the environment, but did you know that they usually can’t be processed by regular recycling plants? Instead, separate plastic bags from the rest of your recycling and drop them off at a special plastic bag collection point – most grocery stores have them. Make Your Morning Coffee You’re probably conscious of everyday recycling at home, but sometimes that mindset gets pushed aside when you’re out and about. Most disposable coffee cups, for example, are lined with polyethylene, which makes them nonrecyclable. It is estimated that every minute more than 1 million disposable cups are tossed in the trash. Invest in a reusable coffee cup instead, and use a drop of Dawn Dish Soap to wash it after every use so it’s ready whenever you need it. Repair, Share and Reuse Sweden is leading the way in recycling – it has sent only 1 percent of its waste to landfill since 2011. Much of their success comes from the Swedish ethos of miljönär-vänlig – a play on the Swedish words for environment and millionaire that suggests people can save cash as well as the environment by making, borrowing and recycling. Internalize this idea and repair any damaged clothes, or have a dress swap party with your friends so your unwanted garments can find a new wearer. You can also extend the life of your clothing by washing it with Downy Fabric Conditioner, which helps prevent pilling, stretching and fading in fabrics. And think of crafty ways to use items you’d otherwise toss: Jam jars can be turned into candle holders, and old tights can be used to store onions. Wash and Squash By cleaning your recycling before it goes in the bin, you reduce contamination and improve recycling efficiency. First, scrape off or remove any food leftovers or liquid. Then add a drop of Dawn Dish Soap and a small amount of water to containers and jugs, and swish vigorously for a few seconds before rinsing. Crush metal cans and squash plastic bottles to squeeze out any excess air, and flatten cardboard boxes. Think Beyond Paper, Tin and Glass Before throwing out an item, consider whether it can be recycled. Mattresses are full of valuable materials and can be dropped off at your local recycling center, along with many small electrical appliances. Look for battery recycling boxes in your area, and ask your local optician’s office about recycling old reading glasses. Wrapping paper can be recycled as long as you remove the sticky tape and it doesn’t have foil or glitter on it. Unfortunately, broken drinking glasses can’t be processed with your empty jars because the glass melts at a different temperature, and mixing in broken glass with recyclable glass can cause the whole container to be rejected. Instead, check with your local recycling center if you’re unsure. Are you a recycling superhero saving the planet one recycled item at a time? Let us know your best recycling tip in the comments section below!

As convenient as monthly and daily-use contact lenses can be for those who aren't blessed with 20/20 vision, they can also be harmfulto the environment and contribute to microplastic pollution when they’re flushed down the drain. The good news is that the blister packs your contact lenses come in can be recycled in a way that requires very little time and effort. If you're a contact lens wearer and want to do your part to reduce plastic waste, there’s a simple solution: Just place the empty blister packs inside a plastic bottle and drop it into the plastic recycling bin once it’s full. (Just make sure you're discarding the foil covering the blister pack first.) Of course, it’s always better to use as few plastic bottles as possible, so only do this if you were already using those bottles anyway. If your household is fairly anti-plastic, there’s another option. Contact lens manufacturer Bausch + Lomb offers its own recycling program, called One by One. The company collaborated with TerraCycle to reduce waste by recycling all parts of the product, including the used blister pack, top foil, and contact lenses themselves. The company accepts all brands of contact lens products and estimates that it has recycled more than 25,000 pounds of packaging to date. “Once received, the contact lenses and blister packs are separated and cleaned,” Bausch + Lomb explains on its website. “The metal layers of the blister packs are recycled separately, while the contact lenses and plastic blister pack components are melted into plastic that can be remolded to make recycled products.” The reason why so many plastic blister packs end up in landfills is because the pieces are too small to be sorted properly at recycling plants. It’s the same problem that affects plastic bottle caps, which is why it’s recommended to leave the caps on, as long as your recycling program allows it. Optometry offices across the country are participating in Bausch + Lomb's recycling program, and you can visit the company’s website to find out if there are any drop-off points near you. If it's more convenient, you can also place the items in a cardboard box and mail them in, using a free shipping label that’s available online.