View Full Version : Disposing of latex paint
In my big clean-out, we're getting rid of about 8 old cans of latex paint. I think it's acceptable to mix kitty litter into it and then put it in your trash, once it's fairly solid.
Any other suggestions? I know there is a substance I can buy to make it harden, but I'm thinking it might have undesirable stuff in it too........so maybe the kitty litter is the best?
I think I'm also supposed to leave the lids off.
Dang........a big clean-out is a whole lot more work when you actually try to do things right.......like recycling just about everything, donating the right stuff to the right places, etc., etc.
Thanks.
iris lilies
9-28-14, 2:45pm
DH deals with this constantly. He opens cans and lets them dry out. We always have cans of paint sitting around, drying.
DH is the alley Nazi and he keeps it neat and tidy but sometimes people are just pigs. A couple of months ago a neighbor moved and put a dozen cans of paint in the alley. He set them along the edge, and the paint was liquid. DH was livid! He reported it to cops and city officials just as an incident report. We know from which house the paint originated because it had a past owner's name written on some of the cans. The past owner was our friends and the moment we saw the name on the cans, we knew where the paint had been. She hasn't lived there for a dozen years and there has been two owners since.
The funny thing is that she came back to town a few weeks ago to visit, and we kidded her for being brave to come back to the 'hood when there is a warrant out for her arrest for all of those paint cans with her name on them. haha.
Paint can be recycled. It can be offered for free on craigslist/freecycle/kijiji to people who want to seal/decorate doghouses or doll houses or even cabins. They may not need a lot of paint and they may not be really picky about the color. Some paint stores and recycling facilities will take it back, too. The paint is then conditioned and (sometimes) tinted and sold to people who would rather not commit the environmental "debt" of using virgin paint. About the only things which will KO that idea is if the paint has frozen and/or something else has already been put in the cans.
rodeosweetheart
9-28-14, 4:58pm
Habitat for Humanity will usually take it, and they retint it and we have bought paint there, too.
mschrisgo2
9-28-14, 7:59pm
Here in California the toxic waste collection places separate good latex paint by color, and offer it for sale for a very nominal fee, just a couple of dollars, that helps offset the cost of running the facility AND keeps it out of the landfill.
I've bought paint there when I needed just a small amount, not anywhere near a gallon- the paint stores charge the same gallon price for any amount that is less than a gallon (they said because those smaller containers themselves are more expensive.)
We also bought "beige" there to paint the insides of closets for rental units. The closets always get dirty, and look much nicer painted- doesn't matter that the closet colors are slightly different apartment to apartment.
Well, these cans of paint are truly past their "prime". (haha.......get it?)
Some of them are already hardened, since the cans rusted and have holes. I guess I'll do the kitty litter thing on the ones that still are a bit liquid.
SteveinMN and rodeosweetheard give great solutions I can use. I've had this same question as CathyA for decades--now I know things I can actually do that I believe in!
ToomuchStuff
9-29-14, 10:23am
Habitat ReStore takes some old paint here (if it can be reused/blended etc). My city and a few others have a contract with a hazardous waste facility, to take things by appointment. If there isn't a lot of paint the local recommended method is to pour it on a tarp and let it dry, or leave the can open in a covered area (in case of rain) to harden, and then to throw it away.
DH deals with this constantly. He opens cans and lets them dry out. We always have cans of paint sitting around, drying.
DH is the alley Nazi and he keeps it neat and tidy but sometimes people are just pigs. A couple of months ago a neighbor moved and put a dozen cans of paint in the alley. He set them along the edge, and the paint was liquid. DH was livid! He reported it to cops and city officials just as an incident report. We know from which house the paint originated because it had a past owner's name written on some of the cans. The past owner was our friends and the moment we saw the name on the cans, we knew where the paint had been. She hasn't lived there for a dozen years and there has been two owners since.
The funny thing is that she came back to town a few weeks ago to visit, and we kidded her for being brave to come back to the 'hood when there is a warrant out for her arrest for all of those paint cans with her name on them. haha. This post is really golden. When I have more time I will deal with it. Thanks. Calling the cops about paint.....that is funny. Did they send out a SWAT Team? You know what happens in da hood ta snitches, doncha? Ha. :laff: Later.
What do you do to dispose of leftover Pizza? I mean, you want to dispose of it in an environmentally-friendly way, don't you? Suppose it's been in the fridge maybe 3+ days, and you don't have a dog to take care of it.....what do you do?
In my town we have a place (a big trash and recycle company) that accepts old paint and then recycles or re-uses it. I also think they have a store where you can go in and buy some of the recycled paint really cheap (guess they mix it together). They have a drive-thru drop off so it's easy to get rid of paint - as well as solvents since they accept them also.
In my town we have a place (a big trash and recycle company) that accepts old paint and then recycles or re-uses it. I also think they have a store where you can go in and buy some of the recycled paint really cheap (guess they mix it together). They have a drive-thru drop off so it's easy to get rid of paint - as well as solvents since they accept them also.Where is it Spartana? Where do you live? Could you post a photo of yourself, here? Not trying to make you uncomfortable; I am just one of those people who is very curious. Thanks.
http://www.rainbowes.com/hhw.php
Sigh... I knew you really weren't asking for real info Packy - just wanting to make snarky comments. Well hopefully the link will help the OP and other's see that there are alternatives to disposing waste products in the trash that may be available to them.
Well.......it's all down at the end of the lane for garbage pickup. I couldn't even get the lids off to add kitty litter, but thankfully, most were already solid.
I have spent the past 2 weeks (cleaning the house out), and really, the past 40 years trying to recycle the right thing to the right place. Makes me realize the answer is to use less to begin with! We usually keep used paint for so long (in case we need to do touch-ups), that it finally solidifies. But I cringe when I think of all those containers in the dump. But I am really running out of steam. In the past 2 weeks, I've gone to the metal recycling place, glass/plastics/cans/cardboard recycling, the paper recycling, ink cartridge recycling, battery recycling, 2 different donation sites, the local Boys and Girls club with old art supplies from my kids' childhoods, and now I'm going back there with a grocery sack full of plastic cutlery and straws......which they said they would be happy to take. What bums me out even more, is thinking that probably 99% of the population just throws most of this stuff out into the trash.
Sometimes, I will send stuff to recycling, instead of giving it away, if I know that chances are 99.9% that the recipient will throw it eventually into the trash. Maybe if you live in an environmentally progressive area, you don't have to worry about that.......but where I live, well, it's very NOT progressive.
Anyhow......thanks a bunch for all your suggestions about the paint. I am considering sending some unused oak trim to the Habitat for Humanity Restore. That's where I sent tons of stuff from our old condo. It's a great feeling to find places that take things, either to sell or to recycle. But......as I said, we all need to cut waaaaaay back on what we buy and consume. But then our economy would collapse, right?
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