Old timer sighted in Netherlands.

The Dutch bin spotting community breathed a sigh of relief last night when 'Big Red,' formerly the world's biggest bin, put in a timely appearance at an Amsterdam exhibition hall.

Known to Dutch bin spotters as 'Grote Rode,' the much-loved red waste container has been in active service since 1962, once holding a Guinness World Record on account of its mammoth dimensions. The famed receptacle had been missing in action since 2003, when it was last seen serving in a South Korean shipyard. Many feared 'Big Red' had been put out to pasture following the introduction of larger models by its manufacturer, Icova.

This photograph was sent to us by Paul, an exhibition freight coordinator working in Holland. "I'm not a bin spotter, but I noticed quite a commotion when this skip returned to home soil. I know you like bins for some reason so I took a photo." Glad you did, Paul. Here's hoping your close encounter with one of the greatest bins in history might pique your interest in bin spotting.

Good things come in threes.

The 'rule of three' is a rhetorical principal that posits things that come in threes are inherently funnier, more satisfying and more memorable than, say, things that come in pairs. The rule applies to everything from musketeers to blind mice to De La Soul songs. And when it comes to bins, three is indeed the magic number.

Oliver spotted this terrific trash triptych in Pottergate, a community carved down the middle by a giant dividing wall designed to keep leafy pink mansions well clear of 'unsightly' waste receptacles. Having grown up on the 'wrong' side of the barricade, Oliver is an oracle of bin trivia. He was quick to inform us that many bins in the area are marked with three letters – "P.W.S" – the calling card of a notorious East Anglian bin spotting graffiti gang.

Thanks for this holy trinity, Oliver. That's three thumbs-up from us... and, I'd imagine, three bullets in the back from a sniper's rifle should you ever try and climb that wall!

A skip is a big bin. Deal with it.

 This controversial submission comes courtesy of Ed from Stoke Newington and highlights a bone of contention upon which bin spotters have been choking for decades: Is a skip, strictly speaking, a bin?

Well yes, of course it is. And to deny that possibility is to deny ourselves a whole world of exciting, large-format contents like the surplus carpet tiles comfortably accommodated by this bright yellow beauty.

As Ed himself wrote: "Saying a skip is not a bin is as stupid as saying a whale is not a fish." While his analogy may at first sound dubious, the fact it was scrawled in big capital letters on the back of an old Red Stripe box kind of makes it true, right?

With a bit of regret, here's a Swedish bin (Happy Birthday, dad)

Coming from a family of keen bin spotters, my dad has sent me multiple requests to contribute to this blog. Since I’m on a somewhat competitive bin spotting level with my nearest family (my bin spotting cousins are fine), his tired requests have fallen on deaf ears. But then came his birthday and as a sole gift from me to him I decided not to let him write a post but allowed for him to contribute one photo to the blog.

The old man, in a bit of OAP middle finger salute, decided to send me a photo of his own new bin. His previous bin one day got a crack in it, which is of course a holy shame for any bin spotter of range, and thus my father decided to buy a new one as soon as his pension came through. Being a man of simple taste he went for a classic green wheelie bin with the blackest of wheels and lid.

As a nice little personal touch, he has put a sticker of his favourite football team on the lid. A non-bin spotter might look upon this as the wrong place to put such a sticker, but for a true bin spotter this is of course a placement of the highest order. I should add that today's entry has a bit of je ne sais quoi about it since my family lives in Sweden, making the bin in the photo Swedish (the label on the front says "Rubbish collection every 14th day" in Swedish).

Reinventing the wheel(ie bin).

What are the two greatest inventions in the history of mankind? The wheel and the bin, of course! And what do you get if you combine the two? The answer is probably the wheelie bin. But boffins at Tower Hamlets Council have gone even better...

This ragtag contraption features a whopping four bins on one set of wheels!!!! The rear bin even boasts a lock to keep contents safe from the tampering hands of ne'er-do-wells.

But what could those "BB" markings mean? If any readers can shed light on this acronym please write in.

Double sighting of titanic recycling beasts.

This smashing double-whammy was sent in by Gus, a Suffolk-based bin enthusiast who regularly visits London on bin spotting dates with his girlfriend.

Gus had heard rumours via the fixed-gear bike scene of a 1280l recycling container (the largest of the Continental range!!!!) in the Old Compton Street area.

He was staggered to find not one but TWO of the fabled high-capacity recycling stations standing proudly near a discarded box of asparagus, an old worktop and some empty sweet jars. Great find Gus, definitely worth a double thumbs-up!

Rubbish disposal with a typically French flair.

This fine example of continental waste disposal was sent to us by an anonymous bin spotter from the Languedoc-Roussillon region of Southern France.

Here, a utilitarian municipal waste bin is flanked by two domestic 'poubelles' in harmonious racing green and grey. Meanwhile a laissez-faire approach to domestic refuse is typified by the sprawling pile of expired white-goods and electrical appliances.

Remember, while we're pleased to see bins of all stripes, we love to see bin spotters standing next to their finds. Be proud of your bin spotting!!!!

Nocturnal vigil on Brick Lane.

Like owls, foxes and hedgehogs, some bins are best spotted under the cover of darkness. This timid 660-litre trade dumpster, camouflaged black, was one such creature of the night.

The elusive commercial waste receptacle has a deceptively small footprint; its slimline profile allowing it to fit through a standard-width doorway. This makes it ideal for secure, indoor storage by day, only creeping from its hiding place in the small hours, where it was snapped awaiting a rendezvous with refuse collectors.

Eye feast in Honour Oak Park.

What we have here's a new modus operandi when it comes to bins - the oh so simple although quite revolutionary bin and bag color matching. There's of course the classic black bin combined with a regular black bag, but what Lewisham Council have done here is to take this classic setup to a new level by using a bright blue bin bag enveloped by a bright blue bin. How the person trying to throw away their empty Lucozade bottle missed this eye catching waste disposal station is beyond me (NB: the thumbs up refers to the brave bin and bag combo, not the Lucozade bottle).

Functional favourites sighted in Worcestershire.

A stunning pair of Biffa Continental 1100 dumpsters put in an appearance behind a biker pub in Worcestershire recently. Though both bins have seen better days, they still have plenty of spirit, evident in the coquettish flash of contents from the model on the left.

Eagle-eyed bin spotters may notice a standard 80-litre household dustbin lurking in the background, while an old mattress and compost bag complete the scene.

Lucky find at Kew yesterday!

Me and Dan found this nice example of a classic suburban black general waste bin. Looks like its circa 2002 from the markings but hard to be sure. Nice cheeky bonus with the 'visible' contents, four packs of bacon - unsmoked!!!