You’ve got cans of paint sitting in the garage, attic, or basement gathering dust for years. Whether it’s from a recent project or exterior paint from ’92, you might be wondering how long your home’s paint should be stored for disposal. While this blog won’t go into detail about when paint expires, it will look at the most common circumstances that render paint unusable, as well as practical reasons to finally dispose of it. [Read more…]
What Hazardous Products Freeze in Unheated Parts of Your Home
As temperatures plunge in New England, we’re usually more focused on waterlines and plants than on which household hazardous products freeze in unheated parts of our homes. But there are certain products that many homeowners have sitting at home that can be damaged or pose a risk during use or storage if they drop below freezing. Today, we’re going to look at specific products and general guidelines for storing hazardous products during the winter. [Read more…]
Why is Latex Paint Managed as Hazardous Waste?
Most latex paint is completely safe to store at home for the long term, doesn’t contain any particularly dangerous ingredients, and is safe to handle with no protective equipment; so why is latex paint managed as hazardous waste? In this blog, we’ll cover the primary reasons for hazardous waste disposal, situations where this paint cannot be reused, and your latex paint disposal options, so you’ve everything you need to manage it effectively. [Read more…]
Paint Disposal: Acrylic, Latex & Oil-Based Paints
Paint is essentially three things: a pigment, which gives the paint color; a liquid base (sometimes called a binder) that holds the paint together, and a solvent that creates the paint’s emulsion. The type of liquid is the biggest difference between types of paint, how they need to be stored, and your paint disposal options when it comes to getting rid of unused or damaged products. Today we’re going to cover the three major types: acrylics, latex, and oil-based paints, their pros and cons, and your paint disposal options when using them. [Read more…]
Is Latex Paint Damaged When Frozen?
Alongside accepting other household hazardous products, we also accept latex paint at our collection centers. While not the hazard of oil-based paints, latex paint still cannot typically be thrown in the trash or dumped down the drain. While the best option is to reuse this paint (or give it away), are there situations where that isn’t possible? Is latex paint damaged when frozen, or even destroyed? Let’s look at what happens to this paint when frozen, how you can prevent it, and what to do with useless latex paint. [Read more…]
