Have you ever gone to the pool and left with a wet towel and swimsuit marinating in your bag, only to forget to take them out of your bag once you arrive home, leaving them to marinate even longer?
TikToker BennettMinute (@bennettminute11) shared a video that showed solving at least one of these issues couldn't be easier.
@bennettminute11 See it worked a treat 😂
♬ original sound - BennettMinute
The scoop
The idea is simple: Rather than put your wet clothes straight into your backpack for them to soak it, reuse a plastic bag to build a barrier between your wet items and your dry bag. It's especially convenient because everyone has a plastic bag lying around somewhere that would be better off repurposed than thrown away.
"Reuse. Recycle. No waste. Love it," the narrator says as they proudly show their wet belongings in the plastic bag, which they point out can be dried and used again and again.
How it's helping
Not only will you no longer worry about your wet clothes getting mixed up with your dry ones, but you will also save money on buying a specialty bag for this purpose and give another life to that piece of plastic you were resolved not to throw away, knowing too well where it might end up.
According to the United Nations, the world produces around 430 million tonnes (474 million tons) of plastic each year, two-thirds of which is single-use items, such as candy wrappers, packets for chips, or forks. As a result, the equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic is dumped into our oceans and rivers and lakes every day, threatening entire marine ecosystems.
British charity Surfers Against Sewage estimates that one in three fish caught for human consumption now contains plastic.
Considering, as the Plastic Soup Foundation reminds us, that just 9% of all the plastic produced since the 1950s has been recycled, taking an old plastic bag to your next pool outing seems like an easy way to reduce plastic waste.
From repurposing cheese container lids to making use of empty jugs of soap, solutions to repurpose, upcycle, or recycle your otherwise disposable items are practically endless.
What everyone's saying
Viewers took to the post's comment section with praise for the helpful hack.
"Love how resourceful you are!! I've learnt heaps of hacks from you guys," one user said.
"And no one wants to steal your wet towel bag," another pointed out.
"Saving the planet," someone else added.
Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
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