Household Hazardous Waste

Household hazardous waste (HHW) is the unused or leftover portion of any hazardous chemicals or materials. Any leftover household product that is labeled with DANGER, WARNING, TOXIC, CAUTION, POISON, FLAMMABLE, CORROSIVE, or REACTIVE is considered a household hazardous waste.

Additional information for Universal Waste, Pharmaceutical Waste and Safe Disposal of Home Sharps is available.

Examples of HHW are listed below:

Aerosol Cans
Automotive Fluids
Batteries (auto, household, & rechargeable)
Computer, Monitors and Televisions
Fertilizers
Fluorescent Lamps - including tubes and Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs)
Household Cleaners

Mercury Items (including thermometers & thermostats)
Motor Oil & Oil Filters
Paint & Stains (latex & oil)
Pesticides
Pool Chemicals
Propane
Solvent

HHW Disposal Locations or Contacts:

Unincorporated Area Residents (Such as: Alpine, Fallbrook, Julian, Ramona, etc.)
City Residents (Such as: San Diego, Poway, Escondido, El Cajon, Chula Vista, etc.)

The County's HHW facility in Ramona is currently closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most other facilities are closed as well. Click on the links above for information regarding facilities in your jurisdiction.

Limited door-to-door pick ups of household hazardous waste are currently still available for the elderly and disabled unincorporated residents. Call 1-877-R-1-EARTH for more information.

**** Upcoming One-Day HHW Collection Events ****

Valley Center - May 9, 2020

Valley Center County Road Station

28565 Cole Grade Road, Valley Center

9am - 2pm

Reduce, Reuse & Recycle

Reduce the amount of hazardous products that you purchase. Reuse the materials that you have on hand. Recycle your waste and dispose properly at collection sites.

Read product labels to learn about product uses and dangers before you purchase a product.

Choose safer, less toxic alternative products.
If you must purchase hazardous products, buy only the amount you need for the task and use it all so you can help eliminate HHW.
Always store all your household chemicals in a protected and secure area away from children, pets, and appliance pilot lights to prevent poisonings and home fires.

Safe and Legal Disposal of Household Hazardous Waste

Protects you and your family's health
Keeps our water clean and reduces stormwater pollution
Preserves our environment

NEW!! Paint Stewardship Program: "PaintCare"

Recycle your leftover paint with PaintCare, an industry sponsored paint stewardship non-profit program established to manage the reuse, recycling and proper disposal of unused architectural paint. PaintCare has established hundreds of drop-off sites at paint retail stores, government-run household hazardous waste facilities, and other locations across California. These sites accept program products (primarily latex and oil based paint) in containers of 5 gallons or less from all residents and certain businesses.

Click here to search for participating retail take back centers in San Diego County

For more information on PaintCare: http://www.paintcare.org

For Additional Disposal Information: