Most recycling programs only accept plastics #1 and #2, so being able to quickly identify them can be a time saver when sorting your recycling. In the future, we should be able to recycle plastics #3 through #7 — but for now these outcasts must be banished to the landfill (that’s too bad, because a lot of stuff is made from plastic #5).

Last summer, I set aside a sampling of the plastic items that came through our family of four’s home. Below is a photo guide to what I found — click each image to learn more about that plastic.