Compacting trash reduces solid waste by up to 80 percent, according to the people who sell trash compactors. Even the skeptics among us have to acknowledge that compacting — and composting — are surefire ways of reducing what ends up in landfills. We learned a lot about trash at the Kitchen and Bath show earlier this month while visiting the Broan booth. Who knew that chlorine dioxide is more effective than carbon at absorbing odor, and that trash has memory? Yes, memory.

Broan's new Elite series compactor can be programmed to compact trash and hold it down for two hours, giving trash a "new memory," or lower height to spring back to. If you do this once a day, you can compact six large trash bags into one. If only it came with someone to carry the six bags down from a third floor walk-up.