WASTE ORIGIN: Inventory Control and Materials Handling
WASTE TYPES: Adhesives and Glues, Cements, Epoxies, Glazes, Paints, Paint Stripping Compounds, Paint Thinners, Solvents and Cleaners, Stains, and Varnishes

WASTE REDUCTION AND RECYCLING METHODS:

• Use inventory control as a simple waste management tool:
  • Pay attention to product label directions for shelf-life limits and proper storage conditions;
  • Inventory unopened materials and return unwanted but usable materials to the distributor or manufacturer, whenever possible:
    Develop vendor agreements to make this a routine procedure.
    • Identify any material that still may be useful, log it into current inventory for use:
    • Use old paint as a base coat or primer;
    • Mix the same or similar types of paint when mixing different colors;
    • Reuse the clean portion of thinner after it has separated from the contaminants.
  • Donate unwanted but usable material to community or high school theaters, or community fix-up projects willing to accept them;
  • Materials exchange services list sources for unwanted specialty and industrial coatings.
• Arrange painting schedules to reduce wastes from cleaning equipment between tasks, shifts, or color changes.
• Properly maintain painting tools like rollers, brushes, and sprayers to increase paint transfer efficiency.
• Train employees to promote efficient, consistent work habits and efficient materials handling.
• Improve recordkeeping to develop consistent work procedures, reducing guesswork and mistakes.
• Unusable liquid wastes may be considered hazardous or non-hazardous, but each requires special handling:
  • Combustible liquid wastes, like oil-based paints, stains, and other petroleum-based liquids require special attention to determine if they are compatible, and whether they can be consolidated into the same disposal container;
  • Waste waterborne liquids like latex paints and water-based stains should be managed separately from petroleum-based liquids:
    • Older latex paints may contain mercury-based fungicides (typically phenyl mercuric acetate); they should be tested and handled as a separate hazardous waste;
    • Cleanup wastewater from small quantities of latex paints or water-based cleaners may be drained into sewer systems if the local treatment plant allows it; do not dump these wastes into storm sewers or septic tank systems;
    • Large volumes of nonhazardous latex paint still may require disposal management by a permitted hazardous waste facility.
  • Waste chlorinated solvents, thinners, and paint strippers should always be managed separately.
• Unusable non-liquid hazardous wastes (cured hardeners, cements, epoxies, adhesives or glazes) may require disposal of the hardened waste and its container in a larger shipping container called a "lab pack" used by disposal companies.
• Recycle empty plastic or metal containers whenever possible; contact recycling firms and solid waste haulers to see if they accept old paint-related containers.
• Spray paint cans and other aerosol cans, if not empty, may be subject to hazardous waste disposal requirements.
• Reusable aerosol containers may be used to spray a variety of liquids that are available in bulk packages, such as solvents and cleaners (lowers purchase and empty container
• costs).
• Contact state, county, or local solid and hazardous waste management agencies for current regulatory requirements or disposal options for paint-related wastes.

Sources

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