Ever wonder what to do with that left-over paint sitting around your garage? If you’re creative with some extra time on your hands, you could re-use it for any number of DIY projects. Or you could check that off your “Spring Cleaning” list pronto and take it to your nearest PaintCare Drop-Off Location for recycling.
PaintCare is non-profit paint stewardship program that makes recycling your leftover paint easy and convenient. Simply find a PaintCare site near you and drop it into the collection bin. Done and done!
As part of our commitment to sustainability, Colorhouse is a designated PaintCare Drop-Off Location. Our team recently took a field trip to our local Metro Paint Recycling Center to see how the PaintCare program is helping to keep thousands of gallons of paint out of the landfills.
According to PaintCare, more than 700 million gallons of architectural paint is sold in the US each year. About 10% of that is leftover and available for recycling. That’s 70,000,000 gallons a year!
TIP: Use our handy Paint Calculator to estimate more accurately for less waste on your next project.
The first paint stewardship program in the United States started in Oregon in July 2010. Since then, seven more states have passed paint stewardship laws. California, Connecticut, Minnesota, Rhode Island, and Vermont have adopted PaintCare programs. Colorado and Maine are planning programs in 2015. We hope to see more states adopting this amazing program in the years ahead!
PaintCare locations accept all brands of latex and oil based paint, primer, stains and sealers. Water-based paint is separated from oil-based products, and is sent to recycling centers like Metro Paint Recycling Center for re-processing and turned into new paint. Most oil-based paint is re-used and burned as fuel at cement plants to recover the energy value.
Even the empty cans are dried and recycled. How cool is that?!
Dropping off paint at a PaintCare site is FREE! PaintCare is funded by a small fee which is added to price of paint at the time of purchase. When you buy paint, you’ll see a line item on your receipt for the fee. $.35 per quart, $.75 per gallon and $1.60 for a 5 gallon pail. There’s no fee for half pints or smaller containers, like our Colorspot samples.
The fees pay for the entire stewardship program including paint collection, transportation, recycling, public outreach, administration, as well as managing all the paint that was bought before the program began.
We believe in sustainability and are passionate about finding a greener way. PaintCare is helping us (and you) do just that. Not to mention clearing a path in the garage!
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