Antony McAulay / Shutterstock.com Aluminum Cans Recycling Antony McAulay / Shutterstock.com DO NOT CRUSH CANS. Place aluminum cans in the recycling container. Please make sure cans are empty of liquid. Do not put any items inside of the can, including trash or cigarette butts. Do Not Crush You do not need to flatten or crush beverage containers. If you’re using an automated reverse vending machine (RVM), keep the containers as they are, so the machine can recognize the container type. If you are weighing them, they can be brought in whole or flattened. Did You Know? The Aluminium Beverage Can Industry How Quickly Are Soda Cans Recycled? It only takes about 60 days for soda cans to make it back onto store shelves after they are recycled. How Much Energy Does Recycling Soda Cans Save? A single new soda can (made with virgin aluminum) uses the same amount of energy as twenty soda cans that are made from recycled material. Also, recycling one soda can saves enough energy to run a television for three hours.