How do I get rid of old paint in New York?

Liquid paint can't go in a dumpster or the trash, but you have two legal exits. New York's paint stewardship program has participating retailers accepting leftover paint for recycling at no charge, so check for a drop-off site near you. Or dry it out: leave the lid off for small amounts, or stir in kitty litter or paint hardener until it's fully solid, and then the dried can is ordinary trash and fine in a dumpster.

How do I dispose of old tires in the Capital Region?

Tire retailers typically take your old tires when installing new ones for a small per-tire fee, which is the easiest route at replacement time. Outside of that, we take tires with our dumpster rentals at $31 each: no rims, left next to the dumpster's door rather than inside the load. Tires can't just be buried in the load because disposal facilities must handle them separately.

Can electronics and TVs go in a dumpster in New York?

No. New York's electronics recycling law bans TVs, computers, monitors, and similar covered electronics from regular disposal. The good news is the same law makes manufacturers fund free recycling: many electronics retailers run take-back programs, and counties hold collection events. For a working device, donation is even easier.

Where do batteries, propane tanks, and chemicals go?

Household hazardous waste collection, never the dumpster. Capital Region counties run HHW collection days and sites for chemicals, solvents, oil, and pesticides; check your county's schedule. Propane tanks go back through tank exchange programs or the supplier. Rechargeable batteries and car batteries have retailer take-back, and auto parts stores accept used motor oil and car batteries, usually free.

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Paint, Tires & Electronics: What to Do With What a Dumpster Can't Take

By John R., partner at Capital Region Dumpsters
Published August 15, 2026. We serve Albany, Saratoga, Schenectady and Rensselaer counties.

Every cleanout ends the same way: a nearly empty garage and a sad little island of stuff the dumpster can't take. Paint cans, a TV, some tires, the mystery chemicals. Here's the exit route for each one, because "can't go in the dumpster" was never the end of the story, just the end of our part of it.

The short version: Paint: drop it at a paint-stewardship retailer site free, or dry it solid (kitty litter works) and then it's regular trash. Tires: easiest at the tire shop when you buy new ones; with our dumpsters they're $31 each, no rims, left next to the door. Electronics: banned from regular disposal by NY law, but that same law gives you free retailer take-back and county collection events. Chemicals, propane, batteries: county household-hazardous-waste days, tank exchanges, and retailer take-back. Every one of these has a legal exit that costs little or nothing.

Paint: the Easiest Fix on This List

Drop it off free, or dry it out and it's just trash.

Liquid paint is prohibited from dumpsters and regular trash across New York, but the fixes are genuinely easy. Fix one: New York runs a paint stewardship program, so participating paint and hardware retailers accept leftover paint for recycling at no charge; search for a drop-off site near you and bring the cans. Fix two, for the almost-empty cans: dry it out. Lids off for the dregs, or stir in kitty litter or a couple bucks of paint hardener until it's completely solid. Fully dried paint is ordinary trash, and a dried can is welcome in our containers. What's never fine is pooled liquid paint in a can with the lid hammered on; that one bounces loads.

Tires: Two Doors, Both Simple

The tire shop at replacement time, or $31 each with our rentals.

Tires can't hide in a dumpster load because disposal facilities must process them separately, so they always travel as their own category. Easiest door: when you buy new tires, the shop takes the old ones for a small per-tire fee, and it's worth saying yes right there. Second door, for the tires that surface mid-cleanout: we take them with our rentals at $31 each, no rims, left next to the dumpster's door rather than buried in the load, so the driver can handle them properly. A stack of tires and no dumpster planned? Some scrap and tire shops take walk-ins for a fee; call around before loading the trunk.

Electronics: Banned, but the Ban Comes with Free Exits

NY law keeps them out of the trash and makes recycling free.

New York's electronics recycling law bans TVs, computers, monitors, laptops, and similar covered electronics from regular disposal, dumpsters included. The same law is why getting rid of them is easier than people think: manufacturers must fund recycling, so major electronics retailers run free take-back programs, counties hold collection events (check your county's solid waste page for dates), and working devices can just be donated. The one that trips people up is the ancient tube TV in the basement; it's still covered, still takeable at collection events, and much happier leaving through that door than bouncing a dumpster load.

The Hazardous Leftovers

Chemicals to HHW days, propane to the exchange, batteries and oil to the parts store.

Chemicals, solvents, pesticides, oil-based products: county household hazardous waste (HHW) collection, which Capital Region counties run on scheduled days and sites. Check your county's schedule and gather it all for one trip.
Propane tanks: never the dumpster, even "empty." Tank exchange programs take the standard grill size, and propane suppliers handle the odd ones.
Batteries: rechargeables and button cells have retailer take-back bins; car batteries go to any auto parts store, usually with money back. Regular alkalines are the one battery that's ordinary trash.
Motor oil: auto parts stores and many service stations accept used oil free.

Where to Find Your Next HHW Day — schedules move around, so go straight to the source:

NYSDEC statewide HHW event list — every registered collection event in New York, any county
City of Albany — multiple HHW evenings a year at the Rapp Road landfill, plus a permanent weekday drop-off
Schenectady County — spring and summer events at SUNY Schenectady, registration required
Rensselaer County / Troy — joint county program, several dates a year; eastern Rensselaer towns here
Saratoga County — runs through your town or city; the county recycle page points the way

The full list of what can and can't ride in the container is in the what-can-go-in guide, and the fee items with their exact numbers are on the fees page. When in doubt about one weird item, just ask us before it goes in; a two-second text beats a bounced load every time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do I do with old paint?

Free drop-off at paint-stewardship retailer sites, or dry it fully solid (kitty litter works) and it's regular trash, dumpster-safe.

Where do tires go?

The tire shop when replacing, or $31 each with our rentals: no rims, left next to the dumpster's door.

Can a TV go in the dumpster?

No, NY law bans covered electronics from disposal, but retailer take-back and county collection events are free.

Chemicals and propane?

County HHW collection days for chemicals; tank exchange or the supplier for propane. Never the dumpster.

Cleanout with a weird-items pile?

Book the box for everything else, and text us about the oddballs. We'll route every one of them somewhere legal.

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Written by John R., partner at Capital Region Dumpsters, a locally owned and operated roll-off dumpster company serving the Capital Region of New York. Last updated August 15, 2026.