r/PlasticFreeLiving

I'm an environmental engineer who dedicated his research into all things microplastics, from developing inexpensive fluorescence based methods to science education curriculum (Plastic Panic!). And I want to hear what you're genuinely curious about.

Is there something you've always wondered, but never found a clear answer to? Maybe it's about:

Drinking water

Human health

Food and seafood

Recycling and plastics

Clothing and laundry

Oceans and wildlife

Scientific studies you've seen in the news

Whether a claim you've heard is actually true

Leave your question in the comments. Over the next few weeks, I'll research the evidence, dig into the scientific literature, and answer as many questions as I can in future posts.

No question is too basic or too technical. If you're wondering about it, chances are someone else is too.

What do guys wear when swimming in a pool/at the beach?

I get it that skinny dipping is plastic-free, but it’s often not possible.

I know this isn’t very political, but it kind of is, because some of the liberal fucking people want this for some reason… like how are you gonna serve me a cup, that’s plastic lined and with a plastic lid, but give me a fucking paper straw… you got me fucked up💀💀 when was the fucking straw a problem??? fuck them stupid fucking turtles anyways Jesus Christ what the hell are we doing here…

After dealing with warped plastic lids and leftover stains for years, I finally upgraded to food grade stainless steel containers. Here’s what I’ve noticed so far:

Flavor Preservation: Food tastes like actual food. No lingering dish soap or leftover curry odors from last week.

Temperature Control: Keeping them in the fridge overnight cools the metal down faster, keeping sandwiches crisp till noon.

Leak Integrity: I picked up an Ecozoi leak proof lunch box with latch locks, and it handles dressings surprisingly well.

That being said, metal obviously isn't microwaveable, so it’s a tradeoff depending on what you pack.

Are stainless steel containers actually better at keeping meals fresh long term, or is it mostly about non-toxic materials and durability? How do you guys pack meals when reheating isn't an option?

anyone know of a site that sells costumes not made of polyester? 😭

i have a feeling there aren't any

Hello, I am a student currently working on home based solution for detection and filtration of microplastics in drinking water. We as a team are collecting information for possible product intervention that does NOT add more plastics back to water and is sustainable in long term while maintaining and filtering out microplastics. We are also targeting detection so all results are verified then and there.
If you have 10 mins you can help us and get a personalized score for your risks and what you would like in a product. Thank you for your contribution !

https://apratimpanwar.github.io/mpx-microplastics-quiz/

Hi guys!! I have an iPhone 17 Pro Max and my phone case that I have at the moment is one of those clear plastic phone cases and it is yellow and literally falling apart… but i don’t want to buy another plastic one and was just wondering if anyone had any alternatives that was still protective but more eco friendly! Let me know ^^

Hi everyone,

Maybe this is just me, but does anyone else wish there was a compost bin that was plastic-free, didn't smell, didn't attract rats, and didn't need constant attention, composted relatively quick?

I like the idea of composting, but every option I look at seems to involve some trade-off.

Curious if others are looking for the same thing, or if most people are happy with what's already available. What would your ideal setup be? FYI I rent a small unit with minimal/no yard space

https://preview.redd.it/83hkfnzyi2kh1.png?width=507&format=png&auto=webp&s=5f7073ee478239b25b65c97ef15003a67dc28d53

I came across these olive wood handle toothbrushes with agave fiber bristles from a small Greek brand called Olon, based in Chania, Crete, Greece. The bristles come from a specific African agave variety and they're stitched into the handle with thread instead of glued in, which was the main thing that caught my attention.

From what I can tell they were developed with input from a periodontist and a research team, so it's not just another "eco" product slapped together. There's apparently some actual dental science behind the bristle softness and how it's supposed to be used (they even have a whole guide on brushing pressure and technique on the site).

I still use an electric brush sometimes so I'm not going to fully eliminate nylon microplastics from my routine, but swapping my daily manual brush for this one should cut down a good chunk of what I'm putting in my mouth twice a day. Given how much contact time toothbrushes actually get, feels like one of the higher-impact swaps compared to a lot of other "zero waste" changes.

Has anyone tried Olon or know how the agave bristles hold up over a few weeks of use? Also curious if anyone's compared them to boar/horse hair bristle brushes in terms of feel and durability.

https://olon.care/en/product/natural-toothbrush/

I can't spend hundreds of dollars on a blender.

I ordered the Oster Pro 1200 from Amazon to replace my Nutribullet for making smoothies for my family. My main concern is eliminating microplastics and chemical leaching as much as possible.

According to the company, the gasket is made of food grade rubber.

I've used it twice now. The only things that come into contact with the food are stainless steel, borosilica glass, and a tiny edge of that rubber gasket.

After market gasket replacements are silicone.

Now the blender has plastic components, unfortunately. The lid is plastic, but if you use the blender correctly and don't overfill it, the food doesn't abrade the plastic lid parts. Parts of the base are also plastic like the buttons and the machine housing.

This is the most affordable blender I've found that has the necessary power to actually blend a smoothie and has no microplastic or leaching concerns.

I hope this helps people. I spent days searching for one with enough watts that I could afford.

The glass blending cup is only 48oz. If they ever make a 64oz replacement, I'll buy it.

hello! I’ve been looking for a plastic free blender and food processor for AGES in the UK and can’t find anything that suits my needs… I currently have the two in one ninja with the blender cup and food processor attachment but of course it’s all plastic. happy with stainless steel or glass but haven’t found either of those! especially the food processor… I’ve seen glass soup makers but I need for things like nut butters, energy balls and general food prep.

water machines… we have a reverse osmosis water machine but all of the tanks are plastic, we can’t use the hot water feature as it runs through plastic - we just heat in a stainless steel kettle in the stove, I’d be happy to forego the hot water feature and continue to do as we are but would love to find one where the water doesn’t sit in plastic tanks. couldn’t find one anywhere!

has anybody had any success! I’m more than happy to order from abroad as I want this to last me for years and years to come.

Hi there, I am a Mod here and I just wanted to share some of my thoughts recently. I am someone with lots of opinions and thoughts on plastic use. Often my comments get downvoted on this sub, which I am only mentioning to demonstrate that my views are not representative of the majority of users here. I believe this is beneficial as it makes our mod team a bit more varied and diverse. I always moderate fairly and am only concerned with the rules we require everyone to follow. Some have said I am too heavy-handed on moderating folks violating rule #4, which disallows self-promotion, especially when it is disingenuous. Today I am arguing that “Plastic Free Living,” as a philosophy, does not align with any marketing of online shopping sites, which is why I prefer to moderate these posters strongly.

Our subreddit represents more than a collection of product offerings. In fact, the assumption that plastic-free living is primarily a shopping problem is exactly why we don’t want an endless stream of shopping links here.
There is something deeply backwards about responding to a culture of disposable consumption by creating yet another culture of consumption—just with different products.

Plastic-free living requires changing habits associated with modern consumerism, not simply recreating every modern convenience in a different material and providing an affiliate link for it.

Take something as mundane as coffee. For centuries, people managed to make coffee without plastic coffee makers, plastic pods, plastic accessories, or a curated storefront of “plastic-free coffee essentials.” You can put coffee and water in a pot and boil it over a fire. The point isn’t that everyone should literally start making cowboy coffee. The point is that we already knew how to live without most of this stuff.

We have forgotten that not buying something is an option.
And there’s another disconnect here: not everyone interested in plastic-free living is participating for the same reason. Some care about waste. Some care about microplastics and potential chemical exposure. Some want to reduce their dependence on disposable goods. Some are simply exhausted by a culture in which the proposed solution to every problem is to buy another product.
Those people do not necessarily need another shopping aggregator.

Plastic-free living should be a philosophy before it is a marketplace: use less, reuse what already exists, repair things, rediscover older methods, simplify systems, and question whether a product needs to exist in the first place.

If the answer to plastic pollution is just “shop more, but shop plastic-free,” then we haven’t actually challenged the culture that created the problem. We’ve just rebranded it.
That philosophy does not represent what we want this subreddit to become. This community is about far more than shopping.

I was excited to find the Primals Boar Bristle Electric Toothbrush - an electric toothbrush with no plastic exposure! I used it once and so far no complaints. Other than the fact it was preorder and shipped 3 weeks past the expected shipping date. But they sweeten the deal with throwing in some products for a discount, so I got the body wash and lotion. Ah consumerism :/ Haven't opened the lotion yet because I have some other mositurizers to finish off.

But the body wash... supposedly the only scent is from honey suckle essential oil but let me tell you this smells like axe body wash lol. I am so confused. I work a lot with herbs/essential oils and am pretty sensitive to fragrance. This has me scratching my head. Is this a straight up scam? Does anyone know anything about this company? Any advice on what to ask them to maybe get more info/transparency about their products / ingredients? 3rd party testing on ingredients or something?