Bamboo toothbrushes are a wonderful environmentally friendly alternative for people who don’t want to contribute to the plastic pollution problem that is wreaking havoc on the planet. If you choose a more ecologically friendly toothbrush, make sure to properly dispose of it.

Yes, if you toss a bamboo toothbrush in the yard, it will eventually disintegrate. However, not all of it is true.

The bristles on most bamboo toothbrushes are made of non-biodegradable plastic. The toothbrush’s bamboo portion will decay away, leaving the bristles to continue damaging the environment.

There are better and more environmentally friendly methods to dispose of a bamboo toothbrush.

How Long Does A Bamboo Toothbrush Take To Degrade?

It might take hundreds of years for a plastic toothbrush to degrade organically. It’s simple to understand why plastic toothbrushes are such a blight on the environment, given that billions of them are discarded every year.

If you simply toss away a bamboo toothbrush, it will take around 5-10 years to decay naturally.

Obviously, this is preferable to a plastic toothbrush. However, by properly disposing of the toothbrush, you may reduce this time even further.

Composting the toothbrush will destroy it in a matter of months, however burning it will take only a few minutes.

Also Read: Why Are Wooden Toothbrushes Better Than Plastic Toothbrushes?!

Steps To dispose Bamboo toothbrush.

Composting, burning, and upcycling are three environmentally friendly methods to dispose of your bamboo toothbrush.

1. Get Rid of the Bristles

Remove the nylon bristles from the toothbrush and place them in your plastic recyclables before utilizing any of these disposal options.

Biodegradable animal hair bristles can be found in some all-natural bamboo toothbrushes. However, they are often excessively hard and abrasive.

When it comes to cleaning teeth and gums, nylon bristles are still the most effective. They are also the most sanitary since they do not absorb moisture, making them bacteria-resistant.

But they’ll be around long after the toothbrush’s bamboo portion has disintegrated. Remove the bristles using pliers or tweezers and add them to your recyclable plastics to guarantee they don’t wind up in the ocean in some unfortunate dolphin’s gut.

2. Go the Easiest way (Burning)

Use your bamboo toothbrush as kindling for a quick and painless method to get rid of it.

Burning items like wood produces carbon dioxide, which contributes to global warming. When bamboo is burned, however, it produces less pollutants.

As a result, burning your old bamboo toothbrush will not have a significant environmental impact.

A toothbrush may be thrown into a wood fireplace or a fire pit.

3. Make a Compost

Another option for getting rid of a bamboo toothbrush is to compost it. It’s comparable to tossing it in the garden, but it dissolves considerably more quickly.

Instead of taking many years to disintegrate, it only takes approximately six months (though it can take longer depending on moisture level, temperature and type of compost).

You may toss the toothbrush in with your organic trash in a compost heap or container together.

You can just stick it in the soil if you don’t have compost. It will degrade more quickly in the soil than on the surface.

OR

Repurposing

Another alternative is to upcycle your old toothbrush and give it a new lease of life.

You may use it to remove stains and grime off the bathroom floor or your gardening shoes, for example. However, when the toothbrush is no longer usable, make sure you properly dispose of it.

Another option is to identify potted plants, flowers, or vegetables with the toothbrush. Stick the toothbrush in the soil with the name written on the handle.