Hazardous Products: Convenient Recycling and Used Products for Free!

Did you have flooding in your home? Reduce potential harm and avoid contamination

Flooding can put our health and the environment at risk. Floodwater may contain raw sewage, animal waste, toxic substances, chemical compounds, fungus, bacteria, and other harmful materials. If floodwaters come in contact with hazardous products in the home, such as batteries, paint, paint thinner, pesticides, fertilizers, and cleaners, the products may become household hazardous waste (HHW). Visit smchealth.org/hhw-appt to make an appointment to safely dispose of HHW. Events take place every weekend around the County!

Recent heavy rains tend to increase mold growth so check out 3 Steps to a Healthy Home for mold control guidance.

Spotlight: Neighborhood Retail Partners increase HHW recycling!

Neighborhood retail partners increase HHW drop-off opportunities and make it easy to clear our homes of hazardous waste. The San Mateo County Household Hazardous Waste Program partners with retail stores around the County to increase easy drop-off options for safe HHW recycling, right in your neighborhood! If you have paint*, household batteries, or fluorescent lights only, it’s not necessary to make an appointment at an HHW collection event. The County partners with local retail stores to provide you with convenient neighborhood drop-off sites.

Paint only? Visit paintcare.org.

*Visit Paintcare.org for neighborhood drop-off sites. PaintCare accepts latex, acrylic, water-based, alkyd, oil-based, enamel, primers, sealers, stains, and varnishes. They do not accept paint thinner, mineral spirits, solvents, or aerosol paints (spray cans). For these products, make a collection event appointment at smchealth.org/hhw-appt. Check paintcare.org for a complete list of accepted products.

Interested in Second Chances? Our Give Away Program makes it happen!

Many items collected at San Mateo County’s Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility are in good, usable condition. Products may include home and heavy-duty cleaners, solvents, auto supplies, pesticides, fertilizers, adhesives, paint, and stains. The Product Give Away Program redistributes these products for free each Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 2-3 p.m. at the San Mateo County HHW Facility.

Three Easy and Free Ways to Recycle Used Motor Oil and Filters

Do you or someone you know change their vehicle’s motor oil? If you’re in the DIY oil change club, read on to find out about your recycling options. Already went electric? This high five is for you ✋.

1. Recycle at a collection center – Over 50 drop-off options to choose from.
🏪 No appointment needed.
🏪 Calling ahead is recommended as storage tanks can get full.
🏪 Always give your used oil and filter to a staff person during business hours, don’t leave the materials outside the building.

2. Recycle at the curb – Never leave home.
🗑 No appointment needed.
🗑 Place your used oil and filter next to your recycling bin on your regular collection day.
🗑 Some haulers provide free recycling containers for your use. Visit the link above to check requirements and limits.
🗑 Not available for Recology San Bruno and Recology of the Coast customers.

3. Recycle through the County’s Household Hazardous Waste Program – Clean out your garage and safely get rid of all your hazardous products that are expired or unwanted at the same time. 
📅 Upcoming appointments are available!

♻ San Mateo | August 27, September 1, 2, 8, 9, 10
♻ Foster City | August 27
♻ Daly City | September 10
♻ Redwood City | September 24  
♻ South San Francisco | October 1
♻ More appointment dates are available on the website.

📅 Bring used motor oil and filters and other household hazardous waste items like paint, batteries, CFL bulbs, antifreeze, etc. Here’s a link to what is and is not accepted through the Program.

⚠ Reminder! Used motor oil mixed with anything else can’t be recycled and must be managed through the County’s Household Hazardous Waste Program. 

⚠ Don’t forget your filter! Both metal and paper/cartridge filters must be managed using one of the three options above. They are hazardous and can’t be trashed.

🔧 Do you need supplies to complete your oil change? Email pollutionprevention@smcgov.org if you need an oil drain pan, oil filter recycling container, oil rag, or funnel to get the job done right. Limit two items per resident, while supplies last. Must pick up from our office in San Mateo during business hours.

Safe Steps for a Successful Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off Experience

If you have a variety of unwanted toxic items at home, the safest way to dispose of them is at a County Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) event.

Before you load up the car and make an appointment, read on for tips to make your experience a safe and successful one.

Reduce Hazardous Waste in Your Life

Each time you make an appointment to drop-off household hazardous waste through San Mateo County’s program you are protecting the environment. However, we all recognize it can be a burden to sort and shuffle all that waste into your car, make an appointment, and then drive to get rid of it! But what if we told you there was a way to reduce the amount of drop-off trips while also protecting the environment? Good news, there is a way!

If you reduce the amount of hazardous materials you purchase, the less waste you accumulate, and the less trips you have to make! Not only does it make your life more convenient, it’s safer, may save some cash, and does even more to save the environment.

Today there are so many less-toxic alternatives to replace products that end up as hazardous waste. Here are some to consider….

Dropping off Your Household Hazardous Waste is as Easy as 1-2-3!

San Mateo County’s Household Hazardous Waste Program is a “full-service” program.

San Mateo County has offered a Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Program for over 24 years for residents to drop-off a variety of HHW such as cleaning chemicals, batteries, paint, fluorescent lights, propane tanks and more.

The program is free to residents and continues to be a popular way to get rid of unwanted toxic waste.

Next time you use the program – whether it is at our permanent facility in San Mateo or one of our temporary events in Daly City, La Honda, Menlo Park, Pacifica, Portola Valley, or South San Francisco – here are some quick tips to help you help us make the program a success for everyone.

1. Make an appointment. You can do so online at smchealth.org/hhw or by calling (650) 363-4718, select option 3.
2. Gather your waste in a sturdy box. Don’t mix waste and make sure they are in their original containers. Check our website for a list of accepted waste. The limit per appointment is 10 gallons or 50 pounds.
3. Arrive at your designated time. The HHW program is “full-service” so stay in your vehicle while we take the waste directly from your car. Just make sure to place it all in an easily accessible location for staff to reach.

And that’s it!

Visit smchealth.org/hhw for more information on how to make an appointment and what wastes are accepted.

Used Motor Oil and Oil Filters – Linked for Life

Crushed oil filters on their way for recycling.

What happens when a used oil filter is not properly disposed of? An oil filter may contain up to 10 ounces of used motor oil trapped inside, just waiting to ooze out and contaminate our streams, neighborhood streets and the local landfill. Once oil contaminates a landfill, over time it can gradually reach underground water sources. The California Department of Resources Recycling & Recovery (CalRecycle) estimates there are at least two million gallons of motor oil lost when filters are not properly recycled at a used motor oil and filter collection center.

How to Recycle Mercury Thermostats

Thermostats with dials, a lever or made before 2006 likely contain mercury.

Do you have an old thermostat at home with a dial or a lever that looks like the one pictured on the left? Then most likely you have a thermostat that contains mercury. Many thermostats manufactured before 2006 contain mercury. This thermostat is perfectly safe to use, as the mercury is usually contained in a glass tube. But if you decide to change your thermostat to a new digital or programmable model, disposing of the old thermostat should be done safely.

How to Dispose of Fluorescent Lights

Fluorescent lights come in all shapes and sizes. Compact fluorescent lights (CFL) are the smallest ones.

Fluorescent lights may save you money on your electric bill, but once they burn out, you can’t toss them in the trash because the mercury contained in them is toxic, making burned-out fluorescent lights hazardous waste!

Fluorescent lights come in a variety of shapes and sizes, the most popular being tube-shaped and the compact “curly” style. The tube-shape lights have been in use for many years, mostly in garages and commercial buildings. Compact fluorescent lights (CFL’s) became a more recently popular product to replace the use of common incandescent lights. Many utility companies offered deep discounts to buy CFL’s because, according to Energy Star, they use about 70-90% less energy than traditional incandescent lights and last 10 to 25 times longer. But now the problems associated with disposal of these bulbs is causing the industry to develop new options.

What is Household Hazardous Waste, and how do I get rid of it safely?

Household Hazardous Waste is any toxic chemical or product you use at home

While cleaning your basement, closets, bathroom and kitchen, you may come across some old and unwanted household chemicals and other things we refer to as “household hazardous waste” or HHW for short. This may include things like paint, weed killer, batteries, fluorescent lights, household cleaners like bleach and floor polish, and many other chemicals. Some bottles or containers may have product still inside that is unused or barely touched. So, what to do with this stuff that you don’t want in your home? Not a good idea to throw it in the garbage or dump it on the ground because that contaminates water and soil. Luckily for San Mateo County residents, there are several options to choose to help you manage your household chemicals safely.