Where do Aerosol cans go?

An empty aerosol is a steel or aluminium can and recycles as one, which is why most kerbside schemes accept them. A part-full can is a pressure vessel holding a flammable propellant — usually butane or propane — and puncturing or crushing it releases that propellant all at once, next to the hydraulic ram of a bin lorry. The EPA moved aerosol cans into the universal waste rules in 2019 precisely to get non-empty cans out of general waste and into managed collection. If a can still hisses, still sprays, or you cannot tell, it goes to household hazardous waste rather than any bin. A minority of councils still exclude aerosols entirely, so the local list beats the general rule.

How to prepare it

1. Spray until nothing comes out, then recycle the can.
2. Leave the plastic cap on or off according to your local scheme — most want it off and in with plastics.
3. Take part-full and blocked cans to a hazardous waste collection.

What not to do

• Never pierce an aerosol to "make it safe" — it releases the remaining propellant as a flammable cloud.
• Never crush or flatten one; the same applies inside the truck.
• Never burn one or leave it in a car in the sun.

Kerbside collection rules genuinely vary by council and county, and local rules always win over general guidance. The reasoning above is what transfers — if your service differs, it will usually be for a reason described here.

Other things that go to kerbside recycling bin

• Pizza boxes Recyclable if the card is only greasy; not if it is soaked or has food stuck to it. Tear off the clean lid if in doubt.
• Wrapping paper Plain paper: recycle. Foil, plastic-coated or glittery: general waste. The scrunch test settles it.
• Drinks cartons (Tetra Pak) Recyclable, but only where your scheme says so — they need a mill that separates the card from the plastic and foil.
• Aluminium foil and foil trays Recyclable if it is clean. Scrunch it into a ball the size of a fist so the sorters can see it.
• Shredded paper Depends entirely on your council. Loose shreds jam sorting lines; where they are accepted it is usually bagged or in food waste.
• Plastic bottle caps Leave the cap on the empty bottle. That is now the standard advice in most places.
• Envelopes with plastic windows Kerbside paper recycling in most areas — modern pulping screens the window out.
• Black plastic food trays Historically rejected because the optical sorter could not see them. Increasingly accepted now — check your council.