How Many Paint Cans Are in Your Basement?

By Mark Phoenix posted August 24, 2023

Does your town, city or village have one or two days a year in which they will collect environmentally hazardous waste products such as left-over paint?  For years, I have made a “mental note” to remember the date and bring my left-over cans of paint and free up some storage space in my basement.  How many cans of left-over paint do I have in my basement?

I scanned any number of cans of left-over paint cans I have in my basement for some exterior paint which I needed for some quick touch up work on the exterior of my home.  All 16 cans of left-over paint in my basement are specifically for the interior.  I visited my local paint retailer and purchased my 17^th paint can.

I researched on the Internet how to properly dispose of 16 plus cans of left-over paint and was pleasantly surprised to learn there is a paint collection system in New York State called “Postconsumer Paint Collection Program” established in May 2022.  This system has a network of 300 drop off sites, including paint retailers, located throughout New York State. 

This program is operated by “PaintCare, Inc"; a non-profit organization which is said to “represent” paint manufacturers.  This organization plans and operates “paint stewardship programs in the nine US states plus the District of Columbia that have passed paint stewardship laws”. 

The paint drop-off program allows for left-over latex and oil based paints, along wood and deck stains, sealers, shellac, varnish and other products.   According to their website, they do not accept spray paint, leaking, unlabeled or empty paint containers (these may simply be put in a recycling bin). 

All PaintCare recycling sites accept up to five gallons of unused paint per visit.

One thing to note is, paint recyclers will only accept paint for recycling if the front of the paint can label is visible so they can easily determine what they are accepting for recycling.  So, if you plan to pour paint out of the can into a roller pan, for example, pour paint from the “small print” side only. 

While there is no fee to drop paint off, per se, there is a fee added to all half-pint, pint, quart, one gallon cans and up to five-gallon buckets when you buy paint ranging from $.45 to $1.95 per can.  That is how this program is funded.  Effectively, the fee to recycle unused paint is paid up front when you buy a new can of paint.

For additional information, the PaintCare website has an inter-active map in which you may simply input your zip code to determine the closest drop off site.