Disposing of Unusual Items

What Do I Do With My Old Couch Or Mattress?
What About Recycling Those Large Broken Plastic Toys?
What Do I Do With My Old Books And Magazines?
What Do I Do With Old Metal Crutches, Walkers, Wheel Chairs Or Other Handicapped Equipment?
Where Can I Take My Used Motor Oil?
What Can I Do with My Leftover Paint?
What Should I Do with My Old Car Battery?
Are There Alternative Cleaning Products Available?
We Have Old Road Flares Are They Hazardous?
I Have A Smoke Detector What Do I Do With It?
I Have An Old Fire Extinguisher What Do I Do With It?
What Is Mercury?
What Do I Do With My Old Record Player, Telephone And Scanner?
What About Styrofoam?
What Do I Do If I Can’t Find What I Am Looking For On The Recycling Brochure?
What about old trophies? 
What About Bottle Caps?

What Do I Do With My Old Couch Or Mattress?
Leicester’s Recycling Center accepts “bulky waste”. They collect couches, chairs, mattresses and box springs for a fee. All that is collected is 100% recycled. Stuffing is baled and sent abroad, wood is ground and put in barrels for heating greenhouses, metal is recycled and the cloth is made into automobile insulation.

What About Recycling Those Large Broken Plastic Toys?
We now accept Large Bulky Rigid Plastic at Leicester’s Recycling Center.  If it is not rigid you can contact Conigliaro Industries, Inc.701 Waverly Street, Framingham, Massachusetts 01702 (508) 872-9668 | (888) CONIG-25 | (508) 653-6672 fax. They recycle all plastic.

What Do I Do With My Old Books And Magazines?
Books are collected and made available to anyone. The book recycling truck is cleaned out by putting books into the “Africa” book truck. Leicester ships a 45 yard overseas shipping container full of books to Africa every 5 months. Magazines cannot be shipped overseas. They are recycled with your paper. Why not bring your magazines to your doctor or dentists office? Click here for more details.

What Do I Do With Old Metal Crutches, Walkers, Wheel Chairs Or Other Handicapped Equipment?
Leicester has partnered with Wheelchairs Around The World and all handicapped equipment is collected regionally and sent to 3rd world countries.

Where Can I Take My Used Motor Oil?
The business that sold you motor oil is required to accept your used motor oil at no cost (save your receipts). Also, Leicester Highway Department, Peter Salem Road, accepts used motor oil which they burn for heat.

What Can I Do with My Leftover Paint?
First, try to donate the unused portion to a non-profit organization or neighbor. Otherwise, oil-based paint should be brought to the Recycling Center on open Saturdays during June, July, August and September. Latex paint, if dried out, can be disposed of with your regular trash. Pour kitty litter into the paint can and keep the lid off until the paint dries out. Make sure children and/or animals cannot get into the paint can. There is a fee to drop off paint. Click here for more details.

What Should I Do with My Old Car Battery?
Battery acid, the liquid in car batteries, is a very dangerous and highly corrosive liquid. If you are buying a new battery, most businesses will take the old battery. If not, your Recycling Center accepts them at no charge. It is illegal to toss a battery in your trash.

Are There Alternative Cleaning Products Available?
Yes, many non-toxic cleaning products are available in local stores. Also, recipes using baking soda, vinegar, water and lemon juice can create cleansers for bathrooms, kitchens, floors and more and cost less. Your Recycling Center has a handy brochure on the subject.

We Have Old Road Flares Are They Hazardous?
The answer is no. Soak then in water then toss in your trash.

I Have A Smoke Detector What Do I Do With It?
Smoke detectors containing the isotope Americium are not hazardous and you can dispose with trash. All others should be brought to your Recycling Center to be handled properly as hazardous.

I Have An Old Fire Extinguisher What Do I Do With It?
There are several types of fire extinguishers. If you have a RED tank containing CO2 (carbon dioxide) you may discharge tanks outdoors, unscrew and remove the head or drill a hole in the cylinder and recycle with scrap metal.

If you have a RED tank containing dry chemical (sodium bicarbonate or monoammonium phosphate) put on goggles and a dust mask. Discharge contents outdoors, away from people, pets, and grass, aiming low, sweeping from side to side. Unscrew and remove the head and recycle with scrap metal. Any other type of tank, consult your local fire department. It is likely hazardous.

What Is Mercury?

MERCURY IS A NATURALLY OCCURRING ELEMENT. Found in cinnabar, which is mined from the Earth's crust, mercury is refined and used in the manufacture of many products. In the home it may be found in thermometers, thermostats, fluorescent light bulbs, appliances, dental fillings and pharmaceuticals. It is also present in coal, oil and natural gas. Even though it has many useful qualities, mercury is extremely toxic to our health and environment.

MERCURY CAN CAUSE DAMAGE to the human brain, spinal cord, kidneys and liver. It affects the ability to learn, speak, feel, see, taste and move. Mercury in the diets of wildlife can cause early death and inability to reproduce. When items that contain mercury break, breathing the toxic vapors or touching the mercury can cause serious health problems. The largest release of mercury into the environment occurs when fossil fuels (primarily coal) are burned for energy or when products containing mercury are incinerated or buried in landfills that may leak. Mercury becomes airborne, enters our waterways and is consumed by fish.

Bring all mercury containing items to your Leicester Recycling Center immediately for proper recycling!

What Do I Do With My Old Record Player, Telephone And Scanner?
These are considered electronics. The record player and scanner are recycled in the Computer and Technology area at the Recycling Center. The telephone also can be recycled in this area but if it is a cell phone it is placed in a box in the Plastic Shed where it is a fund raising effort for veterans.
 
What About Styrofoam?
Bulk Styrofoam is recycled separately from Styrofoam peanuts. The reason for this is that they go to 2 different end markets. Bulk is made into packing peanuts and packing peanuts are brought to a shipping company in Auburn. There are some bulk like packing materials out there that appear to be Styrofoam but are not. If it does not look like it could be made into those packing peanuts generally it cannot be recycled.
 
What Do I Do If I Can’t Find What I Am Looking For On The Recycling Brochure?
That’s easy. Just ask a Recycling Volunteer when you visit the Center. There are 40 of them! Or use the telephone numbers or email address to find out your answer. NEVER assume that we do not take something unless it is specifically written on the brochures. We have countless outlets for all kinds of thing having been in the recycling business for 25 years! Ask before you throw it away please?

What about old trophies? 
These are refurbished and made into new trophies for not for profit agencies throughout the Northeastern United States.

What about Bottle Caps?
Click here for details