Recycle Broken Pickleballs

Mar 25, 2016

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What do you do with old, broken pickleballs?

Broken Pickleball

Can I recycle pickleballs?

This is a question that we get asked fairly frequently. Unfortunately, pickleballs themselves cannot be recycled by a recycling center.

In the May 2014 USAPA e-Newsletter, Dennis Dacey, USAPA Rules Chair, states that he believes the answer is "no":

“For now the simple answer appears to be ‘no,’ a pickleball cannot economically be recycled. I'm no expert, but from what I see, because of the type of material with which it is combined and the fact that there is no recycling symbol, the ball is impractical for recycling.”

That being said, you can always get a little creative with these broken, disformed, out-of-round, or otherwise unusable pickleballs! Here's a list of some ideas we gathered from the Internet:

  1. A Hanging Parking Guide via Facebook

A Hanging Parking Guide

2. Googley-Eyed Sunglasses via Facebook

Googley Eye Sunglasses

3. A Hanging Pickleball Mascot via Facebook

A Hanging Pickleball Mascot

4. A Pickleball Christmas Tree via Facebook

A Christmas Tree Made Out of Pickleballs

5. A Tree Decorated with Painted Pickleballs via Facebook

...or a Tree Decorated with Pickleballs!

6. Pickleball Mobiles via Facebook

A Pickleball Mobile

7. Pickleball Friendship Balls via Facebook

Friendship Balls, an idea by Nadine McKay In case you’d like to make some, here’s the supply list: Yarn and darning needle, skein of inexpensive colorful yarn, scissors and broken pickleballs. Each skein will make four to five balls. Wrap the ball about five times to create a form. Use the blanket stitch and fill each section. Or wrap the center of the ball and then do a blanket stitch consistently, each row becoming smaller until the end. Don’t worry if you miss a stitch, this is not rocket science technology! Friendship Balls, an idea by Nadine McKay
In case you’d like to make some, here’s the supply list: Yarn and darning needle, skein of inexpensive colorful yarn, scissors and broken pickleballs. Each skein will make four to five balls. Wrap the ball about five times to create a form. Use the blanket stitch and fill each section. Or wrap the center of the ball and then do a blanket stitch consistently, each row becoming smaller until the end. Don’t worry if you miss a stitch, this is not rocket science technology!

8. Painted Pickleball Trophies for Tournaments via Jennifer Lucore's pickleball blog

Trophies for Pickleball Tournaments (Painted Pickleballs)

9. Costumes denoting Pickleball Royalty via Facebook:

pickleball costumes

10. Golf Cart Decor

There are definitely some very creative pickleball recyclers out there! Do you have any clever uses for broken pickleballs? Let us know!