Keep the liquid in its labeled can
Solvents are household hazardous waste. Leave them in the original container if the can is sound and the label is readable. If the can leaks, set it upright inside a larger plastic bin with a lid and keep it away from flames, drains, and children. Do not pour thinner on the ground, into a sink, into a street drain, or into a trash bag. Do not leave a tray of solvent in the sun to evaporate, and do not burn rags or liquid to get rid of them. Those shortcuts start fires and pollute soil and water. Close the cap.
Use an HHW collection
Find the household hazardous waste program for your area and ask whether they accept paint thinner, mineral spirits, lacquer thinner, and similar solvents from residents. Ask about a limit on container size. Some events want the product in the trunk or truck bed, not in the passenger seat, and they unload it for you. A regular trash bay at a transfer station is the wrong place. Do not hide a solvent can inside a box of ordinary garbage. If the program also takes oil-based coatings, they will say so. Follow their list rather than treating every can in the garage as the same item.
Rags are part of the problem
Shop rags wet with solvent can heat up and ignite in a closed pile. Do not leave them in a heap, do not hang them out to evaporate the solvent, and do not burn them. Many HHW programs want solvent rags bagged in a way they specify. Call and ask. Do not toss a fist of wet rags into the construction dumpster on a hot day. Store them in a metal can with a lid until you know the local instruction. Keep the can outside a living space and away from heaters and flames.
Before you go
- Keep leftover solvent sealed in a labeled, upright container.
- Do not dump, burn, or evaporate it.
- Schedule a household hazardous waste drop and ask about can size and rags.
- Transport the cans upright and let staff unload them if that is their rule.
Leaving a pie tin of paint thinner on the driveway to evaporate.
Questions people ask
What if the label has fallen off?
Tell the HHW staff you do not know the exact product and describe the smell and the job you used it for. Do not guess and pour it into another chemical to combine trips.
Can a little leftover thinner go in the trash if the can is almost empty?
No. Take the can to the hazardous waste collection. An almost empty can of solvent is still solvent.
Search Dumpmapper by ZIP code or city, then call the site before you load the truck. Hours and accepted materials change.