Recycled Tires – What Are They Used For?
Recycling and being more “green” in our day-to-day actions and choices is the “in” thing these days. We, as a society, are slowly realizing that each individual can make a difference in the effect we have on the environment. We practice reuse, reduce, and recycle more than ever and the trend is catching on as we pass these methods down to our children. We are slowly realizing that the footprints we leave behind in this world will have a definite impact on the environment we leave behind for our children.
We know all about recycling glass and paper. We are more aware of the danger to sea life by our plastic bag use. We understand the importance of recycling plastic, such as ink cartridges, so they don’t sit in a dump somewhere and take thousands of years to decompose. We get all that, but now they want our tire swings, too?
Yes, the “green” people are coming for your tire swing.
My neighbors little boy saw a picture of a tire swing in a book and asked his dad to set one up for him in their backyard.
Dad said, “No son, we recycle tires”.
When his son asked why, the answer amused me.
Dad simply said, “Because we are green people”.
Naturally, this was not the end of the discussion. Any of you with young children know the questions that came next.
“Why? What do old tires get used for?”
His Dad looked at me, I looked at him; neither of us were quite sure exactly what old tires were recycled for. We just knew that it was our green duty to recycle tires.
So, where do used, recycled tires go? What happens to them? I thought I heard that the rubber from recycled tires is made into bumpers for barges, but that was all I could think of. Needless to say, that answer did not impress a little boy who wanted a tire swing!
I next did what any other highly educated and world-wise Southern woman would do. I went home and “Google’d” it.
First fascinating fact I learned was that over 4.5 million tires are recycled and the rubber from these recycled tires is turned into many valuable products each year. Now, that is a LOT of tires. Being a bit “old-fashioned”, I also realized that was 4.5 million kids without a tire swing, too! However, the rubber that is recycled from used tires really is turned into some interesting, and very valuable products.
Ever taken your kids to a playground with rubber mats on the ground to protect the kids when they fall or trip? Those mats are made from rubber from recycled tires. How about at your fitness club, those rubber mats that absorb shock to your knees? Yes, those are made from recycled tires, too.
Then we have PVC tile. Industrial strength PVC tile is found as flooring in commercial buildings, laundry-mats, fitness centers, locker rooms, and campgrounds. PVC tile is made from the rubber from recycled tires, too.
Recycled tires are also turned into rolls of rubber. Tire rubber does not compress over a period of time and is an excellent resource for those that need sound and impact reducing materials such as multi-family housing. These rolls of rubber from recycled tires are also cut into liners for horse trailers and pick-up truck beds as well as for cargo shipping to reduce slipping of freight and contents. Commercial companies also use that rubber to increase safety on walkways and when working on flat, commercial roofing.
Since this rubber from recycled tires is so good at noise and impact reduction, it is used in gun rages all over. Not only does this rubber reduce the noise inside a shooting range, but it also reduces ricochets. In my opinion, the less stray bullets, the better!
The rubber from recycled tires is also turned into a landscape cover. Yes, think rubber mulch. This rubber mulch is soft and non-toxic and it actually looks pretty good, too. It it manufactured in different colors and can make a playground a bit more safer, and commercial buildings look “neater” in the grounds that surround their building.
Recycled tires can also be broken down into a substance called “crumb rubber”. This crumb rubber is used to mix in with asphalt and larger chips can be used for a type of fuel called Tire Derived Fuel!
I wasn’t surprised that my new knowledge about recycled tires didn’t impress my neighbors son all that much however, I was fascinated by what I learned. Recycled tires play an important part on our day-to-day life and have many uses that we are not even aware of. Green people know what they’re doing and they’re coming to a tire swing near you!
