Finish Disposal


Mark J

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Any suggestions on how to dispose of old cans of finish (stain, varnish, paint)?   

Here, you're not supposed to put it out with the trash unless it is dried out.  But the local gov, in it's infinite benevolence (or is that malevolence) doesn't give any other guidance nor provide another disposal method.  I can take the stuff to the hardware store and pay per quart for disposal.   

Local requirements will no doubt vary, but I'm looking for an idea better than leaving the lids off and waiting 6 months for them to harden.  

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A number of municipalities have drop-off locations where household hazardous waste can be dropped off free of charge for residents. Others will often run a day once or twice a year where you can drop things off.

If it takes too long for the can to dry out you can always pour it out onto cardboard or something and let that dry. That's what I do for excess paint if I don't want to run the cans to the drop-off location.

The one in my town (Omaha) let's folks come in and pick through what was dropped off for free prior to eventual disposal.

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8 minutes ago, Immortan D said:

Thanks for that tip.  I wonder if they will give me any crap 'cause I'm from the suburbs.  But worth a try, not too far from where I work.

And what is it about latex paint?  you'd think the stuff was made from spent plutonium.  

 

7 minutes ago, wdwerker said:

Get some large cardboard boxes, put a layer of sawdust in each and pour the paint in. Let it dry and the throw away. Spray thinners to evaporate them quickly or pour in a shallow pan to evaporate.

..and it gets rid of some saw dust, too.  

 

17 minutes ago, drzaius said:

Our local landfills have drop-offs for old paint etc

OK, I admit it.  Canada is better, and your money is more fun, too!

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4 minutes ago, Mark J said:

And what is it about latex paint?  you'd think the stuff was made from spent plutonium.

LOL they have a page for that and it's somehow hilarious (https://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/cdph/supp_info/how_to_dispose_oflatexpaint.html):

How to Dispose of Latex Paint

 

There’s an easier way to dispose of leftover latex paint. The Household Chemicals & Computer Recycling Facility is no longer accepting latex paint because of its high disposal cost and very low environmental impact. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency encourages residents to safely dispose of old or unwanted latex paint on their own.

Here’s what you can do with your leftover latex paint:

Keep painting: Save leftover paint for a new project or paint scrap lumber or cardboard.
Let the empty paint can dry, then throw it away.

Dry it up: Add kitty litter, shredded paper or sawdust to absorb the remaining paint in the can, or pour the paint into a bag. After it dries, throw the bag or absorbant material and paint can away.

Donate it: Ask friends and neighbors if they need paint for a small project. Local schools or theater groups sometimes look for free paint for sets and art projects.

Store it: Save the leftover paint for touch-ups in the future. To prevent the paint from drying out, wrap the can’s lid with plastic wrap, making sure the lid fits on securely and doesn’t leak

 

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I use the kitty litter method for unusable leftover paints/stains.

I pour "soiled" solvents on my burn pile and let them evaporate. Then I burn the pile at a later date.

Alternatively, many community recycling centers have a hazardous chemical drop-off program.

There are also commercial products intended to dry up latex paint so you can quickly be done with it (like this.)

 

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In the UK we are heavily into recycling. It's illegal to dump engine oil, paint, finishes and varnishes etc but the local household dump/recycling centre lets you leave it for free.

The oil is recovered, cleaned and returned to its original use, or recycled as a fuel oil for industrial use.

Paint/varnish that can still be used is recycled by adding a few additives and maybe colours, fine filtered and repackaged. The hardened paint is apparently used in cement manufacturing. Not sure about hardened varnish though but somebody may have come up with a use for it. 

The vast majority of chemical waste like this no longer goes into landfill in the UK.

 

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55 minutes ago, TerryMcK said:

In the UK we are heavily into recycling. It's illegal to dump engine oil, paint, finishes and varnishes etc but the local household dump/recycling centre lets you leave it for free.

The oil is recovered, cleaned and returned to its original use, or recycled as a fuel oil for industrial use.

Paint/varnish that can still be used is recycled by adding a few additives and maybe colours, fine filtered and repackaged. The hardened paint is apparently used in cement manufacturing. Not sure about hardened varnish though but somebody may have come up with a use for it. 

The vast majority of chemical waste like this no longer goes into landfill in the UK.

 

FWIW we're not that far behind here. Most municipalities have clauses for household quantities anything beyond that is considered commercial and is recycled in the manner you described. The only reason that the household quantities exists is because it would be an unjust financial burden for rural areas to have to ship most things to an urban recycling center. Recycling isn't self sufficient yet most operations operate at a loss and are subsidized in one way or another.

I also live in rural McHicksville and I'm sure more urban areas are more sophisticated then we are.

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3 hours ago, TerryMcK said:

In the UK we are heavily into recycling. It's illegal to dump engine oil, paint, finishes and varnishes etc but the local household dump/recycling centre lets you leave it for free.

The oil is recovered, cleaned and returned to its original use, or recycled as a fuel oil for industrial use.

Paint/varnish that can still be used is recycled by adding a few additives and maybe colours, fine filtered and repackaged. The hardened paint is apparently used in cement manufacturing. Not sure about hardened varnish though but somebody may have come up with a use for it. 

The vast majority of chemical waste like this no longer goes into landfill in the UK.

 

That's pretty cool Terry.  I don't know, Shane, Dr.Z., the British may have something on Canada here.  

I'm looking at the open can solution for small amounts and cat liter for bigger quantities. I'll see how that works before looking for a dump, but it's interesting to see how other regions manage this problem.

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Here's a footnote or two.

Left a can of urethane varnish that is about 4/5 empty, open for the last 3 or 4 days.  Still not dry.  (NOW you know if I was in between coats on a project and had forgotten to close that can, it would have been rock solid the next day).

Found some cardboard box lids perfect to spill out old finish to dry.  Had this half pint can of ancient shellac I had never opened. It was at least 25 years old.  Figured this was a good place to start.  I barely touched the thing with the paint can opener when the lid exploded off spewing shellac all over me.  

That was fun. I guess the take home there is be careful with old cans containing any kind of volatile solvent.  

Fortunately I was able to get the shellac off me with rubbing alcohol (emphasis on a lot of rubbing), but I did loose a favorite T-shirt.

 

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6 hours ago, Mark J said:

The can had been in the basement, but for 25 years.  I took it outside to open, but it wasn't out there but a few minutes.  I wonder if after a couple of decades the shellac, which is after all organic material, had just decayed.  

I have trouble with four year old shellac even wanting to cure. At 25 years the alcohol has likely converted all of the shellac into new material. 

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  • 1 month later...
On 9/23/2016 at 7:14 AM, TerryMcK said:

In the UK we are heavily into recycling. It's illegal to dump engine oil, paint, finishes and varnishes etc but the local household dump/recycling centre lets you leave it for free.

The oil is recovered, cleaned and returned to its original use, or recycled as a fuel oil for industrial use.

Paint/varnish that can still be used is recycled by adding a few additives and maybe colours, fine filtered and repackaged. The hardened paint is apparently used in cement manufacturing. Not sure about hardened varnish though but somebody may have come up with a use for it. 

The vast majority of chemical waste like this no longer goes into landfill in the UK.

 

Are you sure they aren't just telling you all that while they really just send it all to the Embassy of Ecuador?

Remember, Soylent Green is People.

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On 9/22/2016 at 5:12 PM, Chestnut said:

They get paid poorly and i feel like are generally looked down upon. They should be included in the group "American heroes" in my opinion.

I totally agree about respecting them.  Our local driver (weekly curbside pickup) is the nicest guy.  fwiw, according to the interweb in 2015 Chicago sanitation laborers (I assume this includes the drivers) made over $73K/yr.  This is more than a lot of the teachers and cops make where I live.

The point about fires and safety is a good one - I never thought of that.  I've seen fires in trash compactors, and they seem to just burn forever.  I would imagine a garbage truck would be similar.

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