Several homeowners try to declutter their home for several reasons. They want to save extra space by organizing their belongings and making their homes look nice and clean. However, some make the mistake of throwing away objects that aren’t safe in a typical landfill. There are at least three items you shouldn’t throw away at all costs.

Mercury Thermometers

Most people are familiar with the classic thermometer encased by glass. Several parents once carried these to see if their children weren’t unhealthy with a high fever or body chills. Some will store older thermometers away inside a cabinet or drawers people hardly open, not necessarily throwing them out. Older thermometers contain 500 milligrams of mercury, which becomes a powerful neurotoxin when concentrated at high levels. Large amounts of mercury are particularly dangerous to pregnant women and the fetus, permanently affecting their memory, attention and motor skills. It’s better to trade your old thermometer for a newer electronic one.

Older Electronic Devices

E-waste is unsafe to throw away for several reasons. Firstly, most landfills that accept old electronics don’t erase the personal data found in your account. Cybercriminals can create a data breach and steal your information from an obsolete computer system, making it easier for them to break into your bank accounts and transfer your savings to their accounts. Older electronics also contain lead and cadmium, two heavy metals that can cause massive fires to break out in landfills. Rather than relying on a same-day dumpster service Cincinnati or using weekly trash collection to toss out your cell phone or television, you should consider going green and take these items to a recycling facility.

Flammable Motor Oil

Each community relies on a wastewater management plant to filter out toxins and pathogens found in the water supply. Pouring motor oil over into a sink faucet is extremely careless and dangerous, as the flammable liquid can disturb the sewer system if there aren’t interceptor pipes installed in place. Motor oil shouldn’t be taken to landfills but should be taken to an automobile service station, facilities that are willing to accept motor oil poured into a clean, unused container for commercial usage. As a liquid, it shouldn’t be mixed with other related liquids such as gasoline or antifreeze, since that would provide little purpose to recycling facilities.

You have to think about how your actions can affect one entire community. By extension, some household items are too dangerous to simply throw away and must be dealt with in other ways. If disposed carelessly, some garbage can threaten the environment and disturb other wildlife. There are several other factors to also take into account.