A bin man has revealed that one mistake when chucking an item away that can lead to property damage and higher council tax.
Refuse collector Ashley regularly shares his top tips and insider secrets with his 153,000 followers on TikTok.
In a recent clip, the self-described “bin-fluencer” offered advice on the one item you should never put in the bin due to the danger attached.
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According to the 37-year-old, people should avoid putting their disposable vapes, batteries, lighters or any electrical items in household and wheelie bins.
“Don’t put vapes or batteries, or anything like that, lighters, in your bin because it can make an explosion,” Ashley, from south-east England, told What’s The Jam.
“You could kill somebody.”

He added: “Make sure if you’re gonna vape, you’re gonna go back to a vape shop, take it back with you.
“Or if you’re going to B&Q, you can put them, the batteries and stuff in the bin there, or supermarkets also do it.
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“Just don’t put them in, it’s not worth it.
“Stop doing it.
“Don’t put them in the bin.”
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In one video, Ashley discussed a comment that mentioned the idea of someone paying £100 per month for council tax so they are allowed to put whatever they’d like into their bins.
He said: “That will go up – so much more money when you set a bin lorry on fire, or go to a recycling plant and that gets set on fire.”
The bin man also mentioned his personal experience with a similar, high-risk situation.
Ashley added: “I’ve had this before.
“I’m not sure if it was a battery or a vape or something.
“And then the back of the lorry started smoking.
“You hear a big explosion and then it starts smoking.
“And then all I had to do is put a fire out and then get followed back to our tip by one of our supervisors, who then told us to tip it out in a separate area in the tip and then they extinguished it.”
However, he added, this isn’t always the case and sometimes “the whole bin lorry goes up”.
Ashley implored viewers: “Do not put them in the bin for any reason, please.
“Because it’s gonna put your council tax up, you know, if a lorry goes up in flames.
“Guess who’s paying for it? Council tax.”
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