Decluttering: Properly Disposing of Paint, Electronics, and more

In the spirit of de-cluttering, you may be left with items you cannot or should not throw away.  Here is how to properly dispose of some of those items, and in some cases, re-purpose them:

PAINT

The following information is from Lowe's

Paint can be toxic and dangerous to the environment if not disposed of properly. Follow these steps for safely getting rid of that extra paint that you no longer need.

Latex Paints 

Step 1

• Here's how to dispose of latex paint without taking it to a recycling center.

• Add equal parts cat litter to latex paint in the can. If you have more than a half a can, you can also pour the paint into a lined box or trash can. Then pour in cat litter.

Step 2

• Stir the cat litter into the paint until it thickens and will not spill. Allow the mixture to sit for one hour.

Step 3

• Throw the dried paint in the can in the garbage. Make sure to remove the lid.

Good to Know

If you don't have much paint left in the can, you can just remove the lid and let the paint dry out on its own. Make sure that it's in a location where small children or pets can't get to it.
There are also commercial paint hardeners that you can purchase if you prefer not to use cat litter. Just follow the manufacturer's instructions.

Oil-Based Paints

• Oil-based paints are considered hazardous waste and must be taken to a recycling center.

To find a place to safely dispose of your latex and oil-based paints, use our Recycling Center Locator.

Good to Know
Consider donating your paint to a community center, charity, place of worship, local theater or Habitat for Humanity ReStore. They're often working on projects with a limited budget and could use the extra supplies.

Electronics:  Cell Phones, TV's and Similar Items

The following information from the EPA:

Electronic products are made from valuable resources and materials, including metals, plastics, and glass, all of which require energy to mine and manufacture. Donating or recycling consumer electronics conserves our natural resources and avoids air and water pollution, as well as greenhouse gas emissions that are caused by manufacturing virgin materials.

For example:

• Recycling one million laptops saves the energy equivalent to the electricity used by more than 3,500 US homes in a year.
• For every million cell phones we recycle, 35 thousand pounds of copper, 772 pounds of silver, 75 pounds of gold, and 33 pounds of palladium can be recovered.

 Click Here to Find the Closest Place to Donate or Recycle These Items

Motor Oil

The following information is from Dummies

Never dump oil onto the ground, throw it out with your regular garbage, or flush it down a drain. It’s a major toxic pollutant that needs to be treated accordingly. In many locales, putting oil filters into a landfill is against the law, so you may risk a fine.

So what do you do with your old oil? Decant the oil from the garbage bag that was in your collection pan into clean disposable containers with tight-fitting, screw-on lids — the bottles that the new oil came in or old, washed soda bottles work well. Place a funnel in the neck of the container, tie-off the bag, and hold it above the funnel. Then cut a tiny hole in a bottom corner of the bag and let the oil drain out of the bag into the funnel and container. You may want to cover the ground underneath the container with a thick layer of newspapers.

Oil recyclers probably won’t accept oil that’s contaminated with another substance or in a dirty container, so take it to a toxic waste disposal center.

The Steel Recycling Institute says that if all the oil filters sold in the United States each year were recycled, enough material would be recovered to build 16 stadiums the size of Atlanta’s Olympic Stadium! Many auto parts stores and some service stations accept old oil and oil filters for recycling. If you don’t have one close by, look in your local yellow pages for the nearest oil recycling center or toxic waste disposal center, or visit Earth911 or the Filter Council Web sites and enter your zip code.

Batteries

The following information from Wiki How

Millions of batteries of all types and sizes are disposed of in the United States each year. Because they contain various hazardous materials, including heavy metals and acids, they can pose serious environmental risks if not discarded properly. If you want to learn how to dispose of batteries, consider these guidelines.

• Do NOT Dispose of alkaline batteries in the regular trash - they go with household hazardous waste collection for special recycling.
•  Dispose of button batteries at a hazardous waste collection site. 
•  Dispose of lead-acid vehicle batteries at the retailer.

Smoke Detectors

The following information is from NH DES:

Some retailers will take back all brands of smoke alarms/detectors that they sell. Please contact the retail store at which you purchased your smoke detector for more information.

The following brands of smoke alarms/detectors are returnable to their original manufacturers. Mark the box "For Disposal" before mailing. Please contact the manufacturer before mailing your old smoke alarm/detector. Some manufacturers require a fee or have special requirements if the device is no longer under warranty.

Brand Name	Company	Mailing Address	Phone
American Sensors	Dicon Global	20 Steelcase Rd., W., Unit 3, Markham, Ontario L3R 1B2 Canada	(800) 387-4219
BRK	First Alert	Cusomer Service Disposal, 3901 Liberty St. Rd. Aurora, IL 60504	(800) 323-9005
Dicon Global	Dicon Global	20 Steelcase Rd., W., Unit 3, Markham, Ontario L3R 1B2 Canada	(800) 387-4219
Family Safety Products	Family Safety Products	Returns, 2879 Remico St. SW, Grandville, MI 49418	(616) 530-6540
Firex	Invensys Controls	"For Disposal Only", 28C Leigh Fisher Blvd., El Paso, TX 79906	(800) 445-8299
First Alert	First Alert	Cusomer Service Disposal, 3901 Liberty St. Rd. Aurora, IL 60504	(800) 323-9005
Garrison	Dicon Global	20 Steelcase Rd., W., Unit 3, Markham, Ontario L3R 1B2 Canada	(800) 387-4219
Gentex	Gentex	Returns, 600 N. Centennial St., Zeeland, MI 49464	(800) 436-8391
Honeywell	Honeywell	Returns, 1985 Douglas Dr. N., Dock 4 (MN10), Golden Valley, MN 55422	(800) 328-5111
Kidde	Kidde	1394 S. Third St., Mebane, NC 27302	(800) 880-6788
LifeSaver	Kidde	1394 S. Third St. Mebane, NC 27302	(800) 880-6788
Masterguard	Masterguard	801 Hammond St., #200 Coppell, TX 75019	(877) 453-3473
Nighthawk	Kidde	1394 S. Third St. Mebane, NC 27302	(800) 880-6788
North-American	Dicon Global	20 Steelcase Rd., W., Unit 3, Markham, Ontario L3R 1B2 Canada	(800) -800-387-4219
System Sensor	System Sensor	3825 Ohio Ave. St. Charles, IL 60174	(800) 736-7672
Triad Safety Systems	Triad Safety Systems	4595 Airport Rd. Kearney, NE 68847	1-800-240-7681