The cylinder is not part of the cart
Close the cylinder valve and disconnect the tank from the regulator before you move the grill. Do not vent the cylinder to empty it, and do not leave it in the truck while you figure out the cart. Propane cylinders follow the return or exchange path your retailer or local program already uses, and they are a separate item from the grill body. If the hose and regulator are damaged, leave them on the cart until you ask the site whether they want them attached. Solid grease in the trap can be bagged and put with household trash if your hauler accepts greasy food waste. Do not pour grease into a storm drain. Liquid lighter fluid or a can of old solvent is household hazardous waste. Do not burn it off in the driveway and do not evaporate it in an open tray.
Steel cart, porcelain grates, and a cover
Call a scrap yard and ask whether grill bodies are accepted with the grates, the igniter, and the aluminum lid still attached. Some yards want the gas hose removed. Some refuse porcelain-coated grates. A disposal site may take the whole cart as bulky trash once the cylinder is gone. Say that plainly. The vinyl cover is trash or textiles, not metal. Lava rocks and ceramic briquettes should be cooled, bagged, and described. They are not clean fill. Ash from a charcoal basket, if you have a combo grill, must be cold dead ash, bagged, and kept out of the brush pile. A hot coal in a truck bed is an emergency, not a disposal method.
Latch the lid before the truck moves
Latch the lid, tape it if the latch is broken, and strap the cart so it cannot tip and spill ash. The wheels roll, so chock them in the bed or strap across the frame, not only across the lid. Take the warming rack and the grates out if they rattle loose, and box them. At the site, leave the cylinder out of the scrap pile. Unload the cart where metal or bulky waste is assigned. If the attendant sees a tank still hooked to the regulator, expect a refusal. Sweep ash out of the bed into a bag. Do not rinse greasy ash into the storm drain at the site or at home.
Before you go
- Close the valve, disconnect the propane cylinder, and take the cylinder on its own return path.
- Bag cold grease and ash, and take solvents or lighter fluid to household hazardous waste.
- Ask a scrap yard or the disposal site whether the cart is accepted without the tank.
- Latch the lid, strap the frame, and unload the cart in the assigned bay.
Leaving the propane cylinder connected and venting it so the grill is easier to tip.
Questions people ask
Can I scrap the grill with a full cylinder tied to the leg?
No. Disconnect the cylinder and return it through a cylinder program. Yards and disposal sites treat tanks as a separate, regulated item.
What should I do with the rubber hose?
Leave it attached until the yard or the site tells you to cut it off. If you remove it at home, bag it so it does not smear grease through the bed.
Search Dumpmapper by ZIP code or city, then call the site before you load the truck. Hours and accepted materials change.