I know they’re supposed to be good for the environment. But… Holy smokes they drive me up the wall. They really do!
I had no trouble adapting when aluminum can pull-tabs got replaced by push-tabs, because it was pretty much the same movement, and I could see the immediate advantage of not getting cut by a pull-tab.
But the tethered cap is fighting decades of muscle memory in me: I’m used to taking the cap off with one hand and keeping it there while taking a swig with the other. Now I unscrew the cap with one hand, but I still have to hold the cap so it’s out of the way. It feels like drinking in handcuffs each and every time…
So unlike the pull-tab, the tethered plastic bottle cap is one of those compulsory eco solutions that constantly make you feel ever-so-slightly more miserable all the time, and I hate that because ecology only works when it brings something of value both to people and to the environment.
You must log in or register to comment.
To all companies
just stop using plastic
To governments:
Plastic tax.
My city is awesome and recently decided to just stop recycling glass. You know, because we love plastic and why would we want to reward companies who use glass, the much easier thing to reuse and recycle.
Plastic needs to die. There’s no point in designing a cap that goes into recycling reliably when we know recycling plastic just gets dumped in third world countries.
PET bottles are actually the most recycled or their plastic upcycled. But yeah, needs to die.
Easy solution: only buy drinks in aluminum cans or glass bottles. World is already drowning in microplastic pollution.
Microplastic is mostly tires and fishing nets so tax those first I think.
Um, aren’t tires like 99.9% rubber?
Surely making aluminum and glass cans isn’t good for the environment either is it?
Making brand new ones from raw sand/ore isn’t great when you consider the need to mine and refine those into something useable. Lots of energy and effort goes into that part. The difference is that glass and aluminum are essentially infinitely recyclable, while plastic is often not. It takes way less effort and minimal input of new resources to recycle a glass bottle. Hell, with a robust bottle return system you can skip over the recycling part entirely - just send them back to the bottling facility to be cleaned and refilled.
deleted by creator
The plastic liners in and on tins and cans - referred to as lacquer in the industry - don’t impact recycling. When the tins are heated to thousands of degrees for recycling, what is left of the plastic liner, the inks and UV materials; is separated and basically skimmed off, leaving the metal.
https://ekko.world/plastic-lining-on-beverage-food-cans/226751
deleted by creator
Yeah because reducing the plastic used by 99% should be scoffed at because AlUmInUm Is NoT rEcYcLAbLe
deleted by creator
Aluminium cans have a thin plastic liner inside them that’s almost impossible to recycle
Confidently incorrect as a motherfucker.
You’re saying without hesitation that one of the most recycled and recyclable materials ever created is flat out not recyclable. What the fuck?
deleted by creator
But He is right… Most cans have a layer
That doesn’t make them non-recyclable does it?
It makes it Hard to recycle… Because splitting aluminium from Plastik isnt easy
Yes, it is actually. You melt the aluminum and skim off any remaining plastic and contaminants from the top of the molten aluminum. It’s a standard, millenniums old process for any metal working.
It does shit for the environment, no one throws caps away separately while recycling the bottle. Most coloured plastics aren’t recycled anyways. Like 80% of all microplastic is from car tires.
It was a very common plastic to be found on beaches. So they wanted to tether it to prevent garbage shit in the ocean.
Just twist it the fuck off
This isn’t possible. Every time I tried that it leaves behind 2 nasty & sharp plastic prongs. I’ve found no way to avoid that. And they can’t even be removed, I tried with pliers and a lighter and some sharp plastic spikes will inevitably remain.
jesus christ
this is what you think about: the little plastic points on your plastic soda bottle from where you tore the plastic cap off
I know, right? Talk about first world issues
deleted by creator
Oh, that’s intentional? I just assumed it was a manufacturing defect where the perforation doesn’t quite detach the cap from the ring.
I saw it for the first time last summer. Did a little reading, and according to the news articles, it was a EU directive, but it had been heavily lobbied for by Coca Cola. If I remember right, all EU countries should have implemented the necessary legislature by June this year.
I personally just tear the caps off. Can’t get used to them.
I have never seen one of these. Can you not just like, rip it off?
When they first introduced these, my brother thought it was a defect and ripped it off. It leaves a pretty sharp bit of plastic behind and he cut his hand when he screwed the lid back on. I get the idea behind them (it’s so you have to recycle the cap along with the bottle) but there’s got to be a better way than this. It makes it a pain to pour a drink or drink directly from the bottle.
I’m so fucking tired.
It’s estimated the fishing industry is losing around 400 metric tonnes of fishing gear into Norwegian waters every year.
Now we are punished for this by attaching the stupid caps to the bottles. Why are we not able to fix problems in this society hellbent for self destruction?
Why are every problem pushed down on the working class just wanting to enjoy a soda in this capitalistic hellscape.
Attaching the caps to the bottles fixes a problem.
The lost fishing gear is another problem.
Fixing one will not fix the other. Fixing one helps. Fixing both helps more.
So. In Norway we have this great system for returning used bottles for cash. We get 0.2$ for a 0.5 liter bottle. People are returning the bottle with the cap on. Seeing bottle caps laying around isn’t a thing.
Instead of attaching the cap to the bottle. Make a return system for the bottles. People are not systematically seperating the bottle and the cap as the cap keeps the sugary residue left inside the bottle in place instead of in the bag you carry them with to the store for returning them for that sweet cash.
Attaching the cap is a solution looking for a problem.
Having travelled a lot around in Europe I have never seen bottle caps laying the street alone. People throw them together or not at all.
This is bureaucracy time spent on caps instead of actual problems. So they could focus on actual issues instead of this shit. It’s a testament to how they blame every issue on random people instead of the industries inventing new ways to fuck up any ecosystem.
We also have that in Michigan. You still see bottles and cans places. Historically, there have a lot of ‘reward programs’ that incentivised keeping bottle caps separate (either from the company or occasionally locally for reasons). I also distinctly remember it being advertised that bottle needed to be capless for recycling, so we always removed the caps and tossed them. Only recently have I seen verbiage on bottles requesting them to be recycled with caps on, which I usually forget to do because it’s habit to toss the caps.
Cool. The more you know.
Funny how there are such different practices.
I haven’t experienced these bottles since I’m in the US, but by that picture; are they not easy to just rip off so it’s normal again?
Fairly easy to rip off. But they sometimes leave some sharp pieces of plastic poking your lips. Also it’s annoying.
Would probably be better if the tether was longer.
Its the same with the paper straws while disposable electronic cigarettes are still allowed, which not only contain plastics, but also electronics and a rechargeable lithium cell.
All the while a reusable vape works just as well, while paper straws just suck and they even contain plastic as well.
I mean you can also get reusable metal straws the same as a reusable vape.
I think that little piece of plastic doesnt really make a huge impact, its not a lot of plastic and we have so many other places where we could guide manufacturers to include less plastic in packaging.
Its much more energy intensive to produce a disposable vape, they contain more plastic, the battery has to be produced and its unlikely they end up in electronics recycling, where they belong.
In what way are they better for the environment? I’m confused
Bottle caps stay tethered to the bottles when bottles are taken in for recycling. They don’t end up on the ground.
Which is weird, since I have never seen anyone dispose of a screw-on lid improperly. It‘s always just the caps to glass bottles you see lying around.
Here is what makes no sense to me - if someone throws the caps on the ground, wouldn’t they be less likely to put the bottle in a recycling bin as well?
Now I unscrew the cap with one hand, but I still have to hold the cap so it’s out of the way.
That shouldn’t be the case. Companies have done some design work and came up with proper solutions, such as the cap snapping into open position, it’ll be completely out of the way provided you turn the bottle the right way. Which actually should work with the one in the picture you posted. Maybe some bottling line somewhere didn’t get the memo, or they’re using up old stock, or whatnot, those that are simply attached but don’t latch are indeed awkward, but that kind of thing should vanish from the market quite quickly especially once tethered caps actually do become mandatory in July.
It’s still a change of habit but you get used to latching very quickly.
Or one could just rip that shit off because one thought it was a shitty manufacturing error.
I wouldn’t even call this mildly … Anything
How are people having problems with these? They’re better in every way, you gotta be dumb as a brick to have any issues with using them.
Never noticed, cut top off the bottle with my limited edition Tenchu katana. I show no mercy
