Skip to content Skip to navigation menu

Aerosol cans: Is the pressure giving you a haz waste headache?

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says US manufacturing and automotive industries alone use more than 1.6 billion aerosol cans annually. That's a whole lotta cans! What you may not know is, even if they're empty, those cans are still pressurized - which means they're hazardous waste. Toss 'em into a landfill and you're risking big fines.

There's a better way. The EPA says if you take the pressure out of the cans they'll be exempt from hazardous waste regs. And then you can make money by sending them for scrap metal recycling [40 CFR 261.6(a)(3)(ii)].

So how do you get the pressure out of a can? The PIG Aerosol Can Recycler safely punctures the can, collects the residual contents, filters out volatile emissions - and you just toss it in the scrap metal recycling bin. It's a win for you and a win for the environment.

Learn how to properly dispose of aerosol cans

Aerosol Can Recycling

Puncture aerosol cans safely with PIG and AEROSOLV systems that can help you avoid hassle, haz waste regs and expense. EPA aerosol can disposal regulations say that pressurized cans are hazardous waste and must be treated properly – which is a huge hassle. But using an aerosol can puncture device can render them exempt from haz waste regs – and allow you to recycle them easily and legally as scrap steel. Easy.