Where does it go? Latex paint edition
If you’re looking for information about how to get rid of latex paint responsibly, you’re likely to come across this common advice: mix it with kitty litter, let it dry out, and throw it in the garbage.
This method isn’t wrong, exactly. If you’re going to throw away paint, it needs to be completely dry.
But why send it to the landfill when you don’t have to? (You never have to!)
Any paint that’s still liquid is still useful.
We work with partners in two ways to avoid sending leftover paint to the landfill.
Habitat for Humanity makes use of extra paint in their own housing projects and they offer it for sale in their ReStore shops—perfect for folks who need just enough paint for a small project!
Instead of reusing extra paint, GreenSheen and MetroPaint essentially make new paint. They combine leftovers into big batches, filter out contaminants and dried bits, and re-color the whole batch—perfect for environmentally minded commercial builders and people working on larger home projects.
A visit to GreenSheen
We visited GreenSheen’s facility in Sumner, Washington, to learn more about how they rescue paint from landfills.
First, the paint is consolidated by color family—light blue with dark blue, and so on. Then, it’s filtered into 275 gallon totes, mixed and re-filtered back into shipping containers. From there, paint at the Kent facility is sent to their processing facility in Denver to be made into recycled paint through a proprietary process.
GreenSheen then sells their recycled paint for a fraction of the cost of regular paint in 18 pre-tinted colors.
What if Ridwell doesn’t pick up paint where you live?
You’re likely to find a local drop-off point! PaintCare operates drop-off points across a dozen states, many of the 1,000 Habitat ReStore locations take paint, and many hardware stores collect paint for reuse or recycling—search Earth911 to find one near you.
Note that oil-based paints are considered hazardous waste in most jurisdictions, unlike latex and water-based paint, so it goes to your local hazardous waste facility.