Spring Cleaning
Overwhelmed by the urge to spring clean, but don’t know where to start? Follow one of these guides or make up your own schedule that works best for you. When you’re all done, check out these locations to donate or dispose of all your unneeded items.
American Cleaning Institute – Cleaning industry professionals provide strategy, guides, checklists, basics and tips for cleaning.
Death Cleaning: A Guide to Local Sites and Resources – One challenge senior citizens and their caregivers face is determining what to do with a loved one’s belongings when it’s time to move to a smaller home, senior living community or assisted-care facility. The prospect of decluttering and downsizing the family home can be daunting. This guide can help make the process feel uplifting rather than overwhelming.
Spring Cleaning from The Oprah Network – All your spring-cleaning tasks broken down into different hour chunks so you can do it all in one day.
Spring Cleaning Guide from Apartment Therapy – This guide is broken down by general times of day rather than hour by hour, but still outlines how to complete a full home clean in one day.
30 Day Spring Cleaning from The Spruce – This guide breaks tasks into manageable chunks to cover a full month. Some days are more labor-intensive, while others are simple and encourage you to keep up with the full month.
Shelf Esteem – Find inspiration and motivation with these books available at the Canton Public Library. Included in this guide are titles that can help when you feel overwhelmed.
Ultimate Spring-Cleaning Checklist – If you're just starting out cleaning your own home or have years of experience, this is a must-read website for all your spring-cleaning needs.
Donating
The library cannot accept your recyclable items directly. However, we are committed to the environment and the future of our planet, and we encourage you to recycle items such as batteries, e-waste, chemicals, light bulbs and paint. Here is a list of local organizations that can collect recyclable items.
Miscellaneous/Household Recycling
Canton Automated Recycling – Check out the full list of items accepted in Canton’s Automated Curbside Recycling program.
Canton Clean Up Schedule – The Canton Clean Up initiative focuses on items not accepted in the automated recycling program. All items listed as acceptable can be dropped off at the Priority Waste yard located at 39000 Van Born Road on the listed dates.
Canton Household Hazardous Waste Round-Up – Canton residents can properly dispose of waste that is considered toxic, flammable or corrosive.
Earth 911 – Find local depositories for a variety of recyclable materials.
Freecycle Network – Offer up usable items to the community that you would like to get rid of, rather than throwing them away.
Furniture Bank of Metro Detroit – Their mission is to provide gently-used furniture to families in need in the Metro Detroit area communities. Please contact them or complete the online form if you have any questions.
Give Back Box – Give Back Box provides an effortless and convenient way to donate your used household items. It also provides a secondary use for corrugated boxes and ensures they are recycled.
Goodwill – This organization accepts clothing, furniture, toys and small homewares. Funds raised from the sale of donations support occupational training and behavioral health programs.
LEGO® – LEGO's Replay program will take your unwanted bricks and donate them to kids in need. They will send you a shipping label, and all you have to do is box up your LEGOs and drop them off at your nearest UPS drop-off location.
Michigan Recycling Coalition – The Michigan Recycling Coalition (MRC) is a nonprofit environmental organization whose mission is to foster effective resource use in Michigan by developing a coalition of business, government, nonprofit and individual members working toward the common goals of waste reduction, recycling, reuse, composting and recycled-content purchasing.
National Crayon Recycling Program – This program accepts your used crayons, regardless of condition, and melts them into recycled crayons.
Recycle Ann Arbor – Accepts donations of reusable household goods, office supplies and building materials that it resells to the general public at affordable prices
Salvation Army – Adult Rehabilitation Centers (ARC) and Family Stores in Michigan accept a variety of items.
Target – Recycle your aluminum, glass and plastic beverage containers, plastic bags, MP3 players, cell phones and ink cartridges at recycling stations located at the entrance of the building. There is also an annual car seat trade-in event.
TerraCycle – This company offers products for collecting those hard-to-recycle items. If you’re serious about recycling, have a big project, or want to work with a group to fill a box they’re a great option.
Clothing
Dress for Success Michigan – Donate women's professional clothing to help promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women and help them thrive in work and in life.
For Days Take Back Bag – This basics-leaning circular clothing brand will send you a Take Back Bag to fill with any textiles, including socks, underwear, sheets, pillowcases, towels, linens, and shoes, in any condition. Even the “oldies” will be sent to a recycling partner to divert them from landfills.
Once Upon a Child – This local store buys and sells gently used kids’ clothing, toys, shoes and baby gear. No appointment is necessary to sell, but please contact the store directly for more information.
Plato’s Closet – This local store accepts gently used, trendy teen clothes and accessories. If you are interested in selling rather than donating your items, please contact the store directly for more information.
Subset – This online underwear store will reward you for recycling your underwear. Follow the online instructions to bag your used undergarments. Get a Trashie Take Back Bag and fill it up with your intimates for donations. Scan the QR code to register for rewards and ship for free. Earn TrashieCash and shop sustainably.
ThredUp – This online thrift store will send you a large, pre-addressed mailer bag, which you can fill with gently used clothing and mail back. Depending on which option you choose, you can earn money that you can spend at ThreadUp, receive cash or donate everything. Items that are not sold can be returned to you or donated.
Electronics
Advanced Computer Recycling – Recycles computers and more.
Best Buy – Accepts most home electronic devices for recycling.
Cartridges for Kids – A recycling program that pays schools and nonprofit organizations cash for empty laser and inkjet cartridges, used cellphones, laptops, PDAs and iPods.
ecoATM – Trade in your used cell phone, tablet, or other devices for cash at these kiosks. The closest is at the Walmart in Canton.
Electronics Donation and Recycling – Learn how to donate or recycle your cellphone, PC or TV from the Environmental Protection Agency.
Greener Gadgets – Type in your zip code to see a list of nationwide manufacturers, retailers and certified e-cycling locations in your area.
National Computer Recovery – Free electronic and computer e-waste recycling. The location in Westland offers free drop-off.
Shredtronics – Located within the Meijer store in Canton, this service can help safely dispose of used hard drives, old phones, tablets and laptops. Please contact the store for more details.
Specialty Items
Beauty Product Recycling – Ulta Beauty in Canton participates in the Pact Collective, a nonprofit dedicated to reducing beauty packaging waste. Just bring in clean, empty beauty product containers of any brand and deposit them in the collection bins located in the store.
Funeral Consumers Alliance – Did you know you can recycle metal implants, donate defibrillators to hospitals in the developing world, and even donate pacemakers to dogs? Learn how to provide instructions to the funeral director or crematory to remove and set aside items to be donated or recycled.
Hearing Aid Project – Donate used hearing aids, batteries, cleaning tools or hearing aid accessories. The donations go to individuals who cannot afford hearing aids.
Lions International – Donate eyeglasses at a local Lions club or at a participating partner.
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