The Exclusive OC Green Guide Interview with Rent-A-Green-Box

with Spencer Brown | Saturday, June 21, 2008

OCGG: Rent-a-Green-Box (Formerly, EarthFriendly Moving) is a brilliant idea. It’s almost impossible to think you could move using those cardboard fall-apart boxes that cost an arm and a leg. Where on earth did you get the idea? (No pun intended)

Spencer Brown: I had to pack and move my own home office- spent over 800 bucks on cardboard and other disposable packing materials… I unpacked a mess… gave about half away online with the help of craig’s list and free recycle and the others- well I drove them over the local landfill and saw these 40 foot high piles of used cardboard… just sitting there. It was really sad and a bit overwhelming. I noticed a pile of colorful plastic bottles- pretty much everything that you find under your kitchen sink and laundry room. I picked up a few and was like… hey this is hdpe #2 plastic… this stuff is really strong… it will never break down in a landfill is stronger than the chemistry that it holds and wow- there sure is a lot of it… hmmm. My “Ah-ha” moment was simply- why are we cutting down our trees to make a cardboard boxes that are used once, maybe twice and then just thrown away, when we can be using our trash to reinvent the cardboard box. So I took a few back to the office and 9 months later I had the first grey Recopack [recycled ecological packing solution]. We now make the Recopack in three sizes, in electric lime green and it’s the replacement for cardboard boxes.

OCGG: One can only think, “Spencer Brown has to be an engineer of some sort.” What’s your background?

SB: I get this question a lot and it’s pretty simple. I was in college at 15 and have a very high IQ ( super strong math and processing skills). My mom has always said that I’m the compendium of worthless knowledge… which is so true… basically if it’s a fact, trivia or some random archaic information that you don’t need to know… I probably know it or something about it… to me it’s a curse and blessing at the same time.

Basically, I’m an inventor and a product designer. I think a lot of people know the first type of profession and have a pre-conceived romantic idea or notion of what an inventor should be. Scruffy hair, messy office, the guy who tinkers with stuff and occasionally blows up part of the lab. I just got my hair cut- so number one is off the list. I cleaned my office last week so we’re nice and tidy for now… and I love playing with fire and stuff that explodes.. so two out of three isn’t too bad. As a product designer, my main role is to really solve the problem and to make a product that is simple to understand.

Take the cardboard box as an example… think about it for a moment. It’s not very durable. No handles. When stacked wit more than 3 boxes, the bottom box gets crushed. Stuff breaks in cardboard boxes. Where do you mark the box to identify the contents? You need to fuss with messy tape to build it. You have to build it. You have to use a super sharp knife to cut the tape to break it down which can be dangerous. What do you do with all of that trash when your done. Posting an online free add to pick up the boxes is no guarantee that someone will grab them to reuse or recycle in a timely manner. To me, using a cardboard box is a huge time waster. It’s not efficient and it’s real wasteful.The entire product basically sucks.

My solution is the Recopack. I re-invented the cardboard box made from 100% recycled trash. We make it in three sizes. It’s made in a very visual color- electric lime green so they are impossible to loose when moving. They stacks and nest- so they don’t take up a lot of room before or after the move. No more building boxes- hurray! All you do is lift one Recopack out of the stack, place contents inside and close the lid. Zip tie it for extra security. Stack in groups of 5 and dolly them out to the truck. Super comfortable handles. Label location, so you know where to look as you unpack. No crushing or breaking problems in transport. When you unpack, simply stack them, call us and we’ll come and pick them up. It’s just that simple. It’s moving made simple.

OCGG: You offer boxes in all shapes and sizes. Where does Rent-a-Green-Box get its recycled materials from?

SB: We currently offer the Recopack in 3 sizes. We have an extra large, a large and medium size. Recopacks are made from 100% recycled plastic trash. Think of all of those colorful plastic bottles that you find under your kitchen sink and laundry room. I buy this trash from local landfills, municipal recovery facilities, regional recycling centers, and occasionally from national plastic brokers. We buy HDPE#2 which is one of the many plastics that will never breakdown in a landfill. Each Recopack needs between 74 and 125 plastic bottles. It will last 400 round trip applications and when it wears out, we regrind them to make more Recopacks. So it’s a closed loop, cradle to cradle, 100% sustainable product that will never end up back in a landfill.

We also convert used baby diapers into plastic moving pallets called poopy pallets, massive quantities of paper sludge is converted into a suite of compost-able packing materials that replace bubble wrap and Styra-foam packing peanuts. I also invented a label that is made from e-85 waste fuel starches and calcium bi-carbonate. This label after removed from the Recopack is tossed into the toilet- fizzes- cleans the bowl and then you flush it away…. another zero waste solution made from 100% trash.

SB: We remove massive quantities of trash from the landfill. The EPA has recognized Rent-a-green box ( formerly called Earth Friendly Moving) as a 2008 waste wise partner and the Governor of California, requested our participation in the 2008 environmental leadership award for sustainable business practices. These are two very well known awards and we’re being recognized for detoxing the landfills and providing a new way of rethinking how we use our trash as a new untapped resource. As a green company… everything we do has a green print from the start. We built and operate the largest fleet of bio diesel- waste vegetable oil powered delivery trucks in the nation. All of our marketing is on the web and when we do print- it’s so green that you can eat the brochure! We wear organic clothing- no sweat shop labor shirts for the team of eco-agents. We buy local and support local businesses that are green or going green. And after delivering environmental consciousness in a box, we spend our extra time educating local school kids and teachers about what we do and why we do it.

OCGG: As a father, one can’t help but think of future generations. How do you think Rent-a-Green Box is guaranteeing their future? What suggestions do you have for local families and businesses in Orange County?

SB: The first thing that we all need to think about is…. without trees we’re all fish out of water. We have an obligation to educate, at an early age, that our eco system is directly related and is the foundation for the health and long term viability of our environment and planet. Simply put, we need to take every opportunity to educate and change our thinking to make sure that we are making positive and sensible changes that will help our current generation, as well as future generations live in a cleaner and healthier world. My main suggestion is to educate yourself about your choices. We all have choice to make and we make them everyday. I think that educating is the spark of long lasting change. I know that a lot of people want a top ten list or a check off list for green things that they can do and these can be found all over the web and are very helpful. If you can learn about the issues, make an informed choice, make an impact and know that you are making a difference. To me, educate yourself about your choices is the start of real change.

OCGG: You’ve planted over 900 trees in Seal Beach. What cities are on your list in the near future?

SB: We want to really focus on dense urban areas that are lacking green in the streets. Santa Ana is very high on our list as well as parts of Downtown Los Angeles. We are learning more about urban tree programs and we’re partnering with various tree organizations that are planting seedlings to re-establish over forested lands in America. Our goal is to plant over 1 million trees as well as change the way America packs and moves with the Recopack.

OCGG: When you’re done with this interview, what will you do next?

SB:I’m going to buy more trash to make more boxes. Then we’re working on our web 2.0 new website for Rent-a-green box and then lunch time!

Thanks a ton for taking the time to learn about rent-a-green box and if you’re planning on packing and moving, we’re here to help you go green!

Contact: Spencer Brown
www.rentagreenbox.com