How to Do a Bottle Drive

A bottle/can drive is one of the easiest things to do as a fundraiser. Follow these steps, and the money will roll in!

Steps

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    Find out how much bottles/cans/other recyclables are worth in your area.
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    If you have the funds:
    • Hand out flyers a week or two before the drive to all your neighbours, friends, coworkers, and family.
    • Find/rent an area for the drive e.g., (school gym, driveway, parking lot, etc.).
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    If you don't have a large budget: Pick up the bottles/cans door-to-door, without delivering flyers first.
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    Hand out flyers and give your neighbors a date you will return to get the saved bottles and cans. You and your parents can then go around and pick them up.
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    Make sure to sort and separate the bottles/cans and other refundable items.
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    Enlist someone to drive you to the depot, or rent a dump truck in return.
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    Have a general idea of how many bottles/cans you have, so you can estimate how much money you'll receive.
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Community Q&A

  • Question
    Can I recycle glass jars?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    Yes.
  • Question
    Can I do a bottle drive anywhere?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    Yes. Just make sure if there are anti-soliciting rules in your area to acquire the proper permits.
  • Question
    What is a bottle drive?
    C Grace
    C Grace
    Community Answer
    A bottle drive is a way of making money. Before curbside recycling became common in municipalities, many stores offered refunds for soft drink/beer bottles and some recycling plants would pay you to bring in bottles and cans. Kids collect these refundable items from people who can't be bothered to take them back.
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Warnings

  • Never go inside someone's house to retrieve bottles. Say "no thanks" and walk away quickly.
    ⧼thumbs_response⧽
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Things You'll Need

  • Clear/blue/green bags
  • A driver (unless you can drive)
  • People to help you with this fundraiser.
  • A nearby depot
  • A refundable recyclable program near you

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About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 9 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 48,222 times.
45 votes - 87%
Co-authors: 9
Updated: January 20, 2022
Views: 48,222
Categories: Waste Reduction | Fundraising and Charity
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