Recycling wine bottles in Philadelphia? Putting your used glass in the right places? Here’s everything you need to know.

Hey Philly, let’s recycle wine bottles!

Wait, that doesn’t mean we’re telling you to start drinking more wine (though that wouldn’t be a bad idea). Let’s see how the midterms turn out.

We’re talking about recycling glass containers to turn them into new products. Here in the City of Brotherly Love, we’ve got a few options for recycling wine bottles.

This guide contains everything you need to know about how to do it properly and what options are available to you. Let’s explore them now!

Where to recycle wine bottles in Philadelphia

Using the City Recycling Programs

When it comes to recycling, you’ll always start with the programs and initiatives laid out by the City of Philly’s Streets Departments itself. All glass bottles can be recycled as long as they’re clean and have been washed beforehand.

You can get yourself a recycling bin for your property by applying through the Department of Streets. They’re free, although you can only have two per address per year. You can pick one up from the following sanitation convenience centers here:

• Port Richmond: 3901 Delaware Ave., 215-685-1358
• West Philadelphia: 5100 Grays Ave., 215-685-2600
• Strawberry Mansion: 2601 W. Glenwood Ave., 215-685-3955
• Southwest Philadelphia: 3303 S. 63rd St., 215-685-4290
• Northwest Philadelphia: Domino Lane & Umbria St., 215-685-2502
• Northeast Philadelphia: State Rd. & Ashburner St., 215-685-8072

However, Philadelphia is far more progressive than most cities regarding recycling glass, and this recycling program is not your only option.

What about recycling the corks? 

Well, there are plenty of options for that too, as laid out by our guide, which you can read here!

ReMark Glass

Remark Glass is a fantastic business that takes glass and transforms it into resold and reused products. This is proper recycling and how it’s meant to be carried out.

This woman-owned business prides itself on its zero waste policy, taking your old glass, melting it down, and reforming it into beautiful and functional products. Over 140,000lbs of glass has been recycled through the business. Not convince? Just peep their website as a great way to see the stunning creations they can produce with your waste material.

Bottle Underground

Remark Glass’s sister organization, Bottle Underground, takes the waste glass from households and businesses and transforms it into products. You can look at their website to see the kinds of glass they seek at any time. Currently, they are seeking:

• 1.5 L wine bottles (flat bottoms preferred)
• Yogurt and baby food jars
• Uniquely textured bottles
• Clear champagne/rosé bottles
• Cobalt bottles or any other unique colors

The process is founded on the fact that around 70% of the glass recycled by households doesn’t get recycled but goes to landfills instead. Programs like Bottle Underground and Renark are proactive in ensuring this isn’t the case.

All you have to do is schedule a drop-off or a pick-up, and you’re good to go. And, if you ever want to be more proactive, the program is always looking for volunteers to help out!

Fun Ways to Reuse a Wine Bottle

Sure, recycling is great, and using any of these recycling programs can help a lot and is undoubtedly better than your bottles ending up in landfill. However, there are plenty of ways you can recycle your wine bottles (or any glass, for that matter) from the comfort of your own home. 

Here are a few ideas:

• Use them as vases for flowers
• Use them as candle holders
• Make a chandelier out of them
• Make a wind chime out of them
• Paint them and use them as decoration

These are just a few ideas. Be creative and come up with your own!

Recycling wine bottles is a great way to help the environment and reduce the amount of glass that ends up in landfill sites. So recycle your wine bottles and be a part of the solution to the waste problem of this fantastic city.

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Julie Hancher is Editor-in-Chief of Green Philly, sharing her expertise of all things sustainable in the city of brotherly love. She enjoys long walks in the park with local beer and greening her travels, cooking & cat, Sir Floofus Drake. View all posts by Julie Hancher