Aerosol Spray Cans
- DO put empty cans in curbside recycling
- DON’T include any caps in curbside recycling
- DO consider dropping off or mailing in caps for recycling if they are #5 plastic (see below)
About These Items
Various products from spray paint to hair spray to sunscreen come in these metal aerosol cans. The cans themselves are accepted by the city’s curbside recycling program if empty however any removable caps are NOT accepted. Pittsburgh does not accept any caps, loose or attached, in recycling. If the caps are #5 polypropylene, they can be recycled through a couple of other channels (see below).
What if my can isn’t empty?
Non-empty cans can be taken to PRC’s hard-to-recycle events. The chemicals inside will be collected but PRC has said that containers themselves are not necessarily recycled after they are emptied.
If you have a half-empty spray can for a product you no longer want to use, and it still sprays, you can spray it out into some other piece of landfill-bound trash. Remember, these cans are pressurized and so it is not safe to simply puncture them to empty out the liquid. There are various videos online offering different methods of dealing with cans that have lost too much gas and can no longer spray out the chemicals inside. Please be careful, use good judgement, and remember to dispose of chemicals safely (not down the water drain!)
Drop-off or Mail-in #5 caps.
Often caps for these aerosol cans are made from rigid #5 (polypropylene) plastic and so if can be mailed into Preserve’s Gimme5 program or dropped off locally at Reimagined Recycling (see below for more on these options.) However, often these lids are not stamped with #5. Recycle This Pittsburgh has confirmed that Rustoleum paints use #5. If you have a different brand cap that is unstamped, you can often get a confirmation of what it is made from by contacting the company using their Contact Us form on the brand website (expect to wait several days for a reply).
Drop-off at Reimagined Recycling.
Reimagined Recycling is a local program that collects rigid #2 and #5 plastics to be shredded and turned into raw materials to be made into new plastic items.
They run collections on select Sundays at 1225 Larimer Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206. Currently collection events are announced on their Instagram @reimaginedrecyling or on their facebook page. Please check these links for exact dates and times of collection events.
Items must be cleaned with all labels removed. Please remember to wear a mask and follow Reimagined Recycling on for updates and more exciting news to come!
Mail to Preserve’s Gimme 5 program with other rigid #5 plastics.
Preserve runs a collection program called Gimme 5 that accepts #5 plastics, all plastic caps, prescription bottles, toothbrushes, and dip & dairy containers. You can mail in your #5 plastics to the Gimme 5 program. (To make this mail-in recycling program as environmentally-friendly as possible, Preserve encourages you to reuse a box and pack it densely, and if possible, ship by ground.) Mail to:
Preserve Gimme 5
823 State Route 13
Cortland, NY 13045-6574
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