Whether you’re looking to move, downsize, make room for new hobbies, family, or yourself, a good place to start is those household products you can’t dispose of at home. Old TVs, containers of caustic chemicals, and even paint can all be difficult to dispose of—but you have options. If you’ve made a resolution to deal with household hazardous waste in 2025, learn how to identify and deal with these products, all while keeping your home and family safe.
Common Hazardous Products at Home
While you probably know some of the products you’ve got at home that can’t be disposed of easily, it’s essential to learn how to find and identify them before you start cleaning out. Below are the most common kinds of household hazardous waste by type:
- Electronics: Also known as eWaste, this covers many electronics that contain hazardous heavy metals and other threats found in TVs and batteries.
- Hobbies and Crafts: Specialty supplies like photography products, pool chemicals, automotive products, and glues and adhesives are considered hazardous.
- Heavy-Duty Cleaners: Everything from furniture polish to carpet cleaner can have toxic ingredients and corrosive cleaners like muriatic acid.
- Home Improvement: This includes everything from paint (challenging to dispose of in bulk) to gardening chemicals like fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides.
- Old Household Chemicals: During a move, you may find old chemical products, especially from bygone hobbies. Make sure to identify and dispose of them
- Flammables: You might have some old gasoline (which does go bad) or old campaign or grilling flammable gasses such as propane or butane.
Improving Home Safety for Your Family
The risks posed by hazardous waste vary from product to product, but many can pose a risk to your family and home. Small children and pets are especially at risk from various chemical and liquid products, such as cleaning chemicals or glycol-based products (such as antifreeze or coolant). Other products can pose risks of damaging your home, especially causing house fires, if improperly stored. Making sure these products are stored safely in your home and removed when no longer needed is vital to home safety.
Ways to Remove Household Hazardous Waste
So, once you’ve collected your hazardous waste and you want to get rid of it, what are your options?
- Use Up or Dispose at Home: If you don’t have a lot of the product at home and it’s still useable, why not finish using it on one last project? Also, some products can be dried out or otherwise rendered safe for home disposal. Learn more on our Fact Sheets.
- Give Away or Donate Products: If you don’t have a use for it, maybe someone else does. This could be your friend or neighbor, but also local organizations or businesses. Learn more about MA-based donation options here: https://www.mass.gov/lists/donation-reuse.
- Municipal & Commercial Disposal: If your product cannot be disposed of at home or given away (especially if it is no longer usable), it’s time to find an option for disposal. Your city may have a household hazardous waste disposal event, but it also may not.
NEDT’s Household Hazardous Products Collection Centers came out of the desire to provide alternatives to the often complex and rare opportunities for residents to get hazardous products out of their homes. Our tagline is “Because Household Hazardous Waste Shouldn’t Be Difficult,” and we stand behind it. Look through all the things we accept and plan your trip today. Can’t make it in? We can come to you as part of our home pick-up service. Contact us today with any questions.
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