Colchester bin lids and contents frozen shut this morning

Bin lids were clamped together by ice and some garden waste contents were said to be frozen solid during this morning’s bin run in Colchester.

Residents have been advised to report it as a ‘missed bin’ on the council website if their bins have not been collected, and crews will return on Monday to retry.

In a message to residents, the council has recommended “leaving your bin lids open on collection day to prevent them from freezing shut”.

Prevention: Martin Goss with a wheelie bin (Image: Newsquest)

To prevent the freezing of garden waste, the council has advised residents to use a small amount of water to release the lid and dry them to prevent re-freezing, use a spade to loosen garden waste on the morning of collection, make sure your bin is not overfilled and to consider leaving the bin in a warmer place such as direct sunlight or in a shed or garage.

Martin Goss, Colchester City Council portfolio holder for neighbourhoods and waste, said: “We have asked residents to help our collection crews during the cold weather by ensuring wheeled bin lids have not frozen shut and, for brown bins which contain garden waste, to ensure the contents of the bin has not frozen into a compacted lump, which will not fall out of the bin into the truck when tipped.

“It is simply not practical for our bin collection crews to dislodge frozen, compacted garden waste from brown bins due to the time restriction on completing each daily collection round.

“Anything people can do to help is very much appreciated by our crews.”