How often should you clean your wheelie bin?

The honest answer is that it depends on the bin and the weather, but as a rule of thumb, a monthly clean keeps most household bins fresh, and the general waste bin needs it more often than the recycling or the green bin.

The general waste bin is the problem child. It holds food scraps, nappies, meat trays and pet waste, all of which rot, so it is the one that smells first and breeds the maggots. In the warm months, cleaning it fortnightly rather than monthly is what keeps it under control.

The recycling bin is usually the easiest. If you rinse containers before they go in, it stays fairly clean and a quarterly clean is often enough. If you do not rinse, it climbs closer to the general waste bin in how often it needs doing.

The green or food-and-garden bin sits in between. Grass clippings and food scraps break down and can get slimy and smelly in the heat, so through summer it wants the same attention as the general waste bin.

Heat and humidity move all of these up. A bin in Brisbane or Darwin turns far faster than the same bin in Hobart, so use your nose as the real guide: if it smells when you lift the lid, it is overdue no matter what the calendar says.

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