Hazardous household wastes

Hazardous household wastes are any solid or liquid material that may cause harm to people or the environment if not disposed of correctly.

Hazardous wastes are any solid or liquid material that may cause harm to people or the environment if not disposed of correctly.

The following items of hazardous household waste can be taken to any of Norfolk’s 20 Main Recycling Centres and placed in the designated container during normal opening hours all year round:

• Aerosols (empty)
• Batteries (household and car)
• Electrical goods (including those container cathode ray tubes – televisions and computer monitors
• Fluorescent light tubes / lamps
• Fridges and freezers
• Gas bottles (empty only)
• Light bulbs (including energy saving bulbs)
• Used cooking oil
• Used engine oil

Norfolk County Council also run Hazardous Waste Amnesty events in the autumn months at their recycling sites to enable the public to dispose of hazardous waste for free. Please visit Norfolk County Council’s waste and recycling pages to find out more about any future events.

• Please be aware that from April 2014, Norfolk County Council Recycling Centres will no longer be accepting paint at their sites. If you have some unwanted paint please consider offering it to friends or community groups or advertise it on community notice boards like Freegle or Gumtree to enable someone else to use it. Alternatively, small amounts of left over paint can be left to dry in the tin or turned out onto an old cloth to dry before being placed in your grey household rubbish bin.

If you have difficulty disposing of your hazardous waste items we may be able to provide a hazardous waste collection from homes in the district. Please be aware that this collection service is limited to hazardous household waste which cannot be easily and appropriately disposed of elsewhere.

To discuss the possibility of a collection of your household hazardous waste please contact us using the details in the sidebar. Collections will only take place when we have sufficient requests to make the service cost effective.

Please note that we do not collect hazardous waste from businesses. We can provide information about firms authorised to collect this type of waste. For further advice please contact us using the details in the sidebar.

Keep asbestos waste separate from other waste and only use a licensed contractor to dispose of the waste. Asbestos is not accepted at any County Council recycling centres, even during our hazardous waste events. Our advice is that you should have asbestos removed by a specialist asbestos removal and disposal contractor. You can find specialist contractors in your local telephone directory or online.

When contacting a specialist contractor, we recommend discussing the following:

• current charges
• opening times 
• correct disposal procedure

Also, what material needs disposing of, for example, corrugated roofing, gutter, downpipe, etc. Staff may advise you on whether they can accept the material.

Find more information about identifying and handling asbestos safely on the HSE: Asbestos - health and safety in the workplace.

Gas cylinders belong to the company branded on the gas cylinder and they have a legal duty to ensure their safe disposal. Gas Cylinders belong to the company branded on the gas cylinder and they have a legal duty to ensure their safe disposal. The companies operate a cylinder retrieval scheme and can be contacted on the following telephone numbers.

• BOC 0800 111333
• Calor 01926 318616
• CPS Gas 01508 530520
• LP Gas Association 01425 461612
• Shell Gas 0845 0500056
• Wastecare (GB) Ltd 01438 759850

Reduced price home compost bins are available from our nominated supplier.