Where do Fire extinguishers go?

A stored-pressure extinguisher holds its propellant at around 12 to 15 bar, and the body only becomes ordinary scrap steel once that has been released under control. Fire protection companies discharge and decommission them as routine work, and many household waste centres accept them at the hazardous or gas point. The powder itself is not especially dangerous but is an irritant and makes a spectacular mess indoors. Check the manufacture date while you are at it — most disposable units are life-expired at around ten to twelve years. Acceptance varies sharply between sites, so your local household waste centre is the one to ask.

How to prepare it

1. Ring ahead: not every site accepts extinguishers, and some want them empty.
2. A fire equipment servicing company will decommission one for a small fee.

What not to do

• Never put a charged extinguisher in a bin or a skip; it is a pressure vessel.
• Never discharge one indoors to empty it — the powder gets into everything and is an inhalation irritant.
• Never cut into the body.

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 household waste recycling centre

• Leftover wet paint Household waste centre or a community paint reuse scheme. Liquid paint is not accepted in any household bin.
• Car batteries (lead-acid) Garage, scrap yard or household waste centre. Lead-acid is the most successfully recycled consumer product there is.
• Used motor oil Household waste centre oil bank, or a garage that accepts it. One container of it contaminates an enormous volume of water.
• Small electricals (kettles, toasters, hair dryers) Electrical waste. Household waste centre, a shop take-back point, or a kerbside small-electricals sack if your council runs one.
• Pyrex and heat-resistant glassware Never the glass bin. Ovenware is formulated not to melt like bottle glass, and one fragment can ruin a whole batch.
• Televisions and monitors WEEE recycling. Old CRT sets contain several kilograms of leaded glass.
• CFL energy-saving bulbs Household waste centre or a shop take-back point. They contain mercury and must not be binned.
• LED bulbs Small electricals recycling. No mercury, but they are electronics, not glass.
• Drinking glasses and wine glasses Not the glass bin. Tableware glass has a different composition from bottle glass.
• Smoke alarms Household waste centre or manufacturer return. Ionisation alarms contain a tiny sealed radioactive source.
• Crockery, mugs and ceramics Not glass and not recyclable at the kerb. Donate what is whole; broken pieces go to the household waste centre or general waste.
• Fluorescent tubes Household waste centre, intact. Mercury inside, and a tube that breaks in transit is a spill.
• Camping gas canisters and butane cartridges Household waste centre, as gas cylinders — not the metal skip and never a bin, whether or not they feel empty.
• Mirrors Household waste centre. The reflective backing means it is not recyclable glass.