Everything you need to get rid of leftover paint responsibly in Manhattan.
6245 Tuttle Creek Blvd, Manhattan, KS 66503
The building also houses the Riley County Noxious Weed Department; PaintCare's listing says it's the second driveway when you reach the county facilities. Riley County recycles good latex into free paint (up to 15 gallons) and runs free reuse shelves (5 items a visit).
625 S 10th St, Manhattan, KS 66503
This is a mobile trailer that sets up near Howie's Recycling, not a permanent site. The county says it sits near Howie's Recycling on S. 10th Street.
Your state doesn’t have a PaintCare program, so stores here don’t take paint for free. These are the public drop-off programs PaintCare’s map lists, closest first. Most only serve their own residents and some charge a fee. Call before you go.
625 S Tenth St, Manhattan, KS 66503
6245 Tuttle Creek Blvd, Manhattan, KS 66503
219 Iowa St, Alma, KS 66401
1330 21st Rd, Clay Center, KS 67432
2363 Jeep Rd, Abilene, KS 67410
From PaintCare’s drop-off map ↗, updated October 6, 2026. Hours and limits are PaintCare’s. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Use the Howie's trailer on November 14 or December 12, 8 a.m.-noon. It takes household paint but not truck or trailer loads.
A full truck load goes to Tuttle Creek Blvd., not Howie's. Go Monday-Thursday before 5 or Friday before noon. If you live in Pottawatomie County, call 785-539-3202 first; Riley County asks other counties' residents to use their own program.
Ask for recycled latex at Tuttle Creek. Pick a color from the board; the county calls you when it's ready, and you have 3 business days to pick it up. The free limit is 15 gallons.
Paint that's hard in the can can go in your regular trash. The county won't take empty or dried cans, so don't haul them out to Tuttle Creek.
Take latex or oil-based paint to the Riley County Household Hazardous Waste Facility, 6245 Tuttle Creek Blvd., Monday-Thursday 7:30-5 or Friday 7:30-noon. On the second Saturday of each month (next: November 14 and December 12, 2026), a county trailer collects at Howie's Recycling, 625 S. 10th Street, 8 a.m.-noon. Only latex that has dried hard can go in the trash.
In Manhattan, Kansas, paint goes to the Riley County Household Hazardous Waste Facility at 6245 Tuttle Creek Blvd., north of town. It takes latex and oil-based paint from Riley County households Monday through Friday. On the second Saturday of each month, a county trailer also collects at Howie's Recycling on S. 10th Street. Riley County even turns usable latex into free recycled paint.
The facility is open Monday-Thursday 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. and Friday 7:30 a.m.-noon. The trailer is at 625 S. 10th Street on the second Saturday, 8 a.m.-noon. The remaining 2026 Saturdays are November 14 and December 12; October 10 has passed.
The Saturday trailer won't take truck or trailer loads or business waste. Bring those to 6245 Tuttle Creek Blvd. PaintCare's listing says it's the second driveway at the county facilities, which share the building with the Noxious Weed Department.
Riley County inspects incoming latex, and usable paint goes out free in 1-gallon cans or mixed into 5-gallon buckets. Look at the color board at the facility. Pick up an order within 3 business days of the call, and return the 5-gallon buckets rinsed.
Part of east Manhattan is in Pottawatomie County. Riley County asks people from neighboring Big Lakes counties to use their home county's program. KDHE lists Pottawatomie County's hazardous waste contact in Westmoreland at 785-457-2888.
Riley County says liquid latex can't go in the trash; bring it in so it can be recycled. Latex that's dried hard in the can may go in the trash.
Kansas has no PaintCare program, so stores don't take paint back. The City of Manhattan's trash page sends paint to the Riley County facility, and the April 2026 Spring Cleanup took only yard waste. Riley County's main site is open weekdays only, so the monthly Howie's Saturday is the weekend option. Riley County's Drop or Shop reuse program lists latex and oil-based paint and stain among the items it puts out free (the county FAQ asks you to take no more than 5 items a visit).
Keep paint in its cans with lids on; empty, dried-out or leaking cans aren't taken. Load cans upright. Bring only your own household's paint. If you're picking up recycled paint, bring back any rinsed 5-gallon buckets from an earlier order.
Full preparation checklist →To the Riley County Household Hazardous Waste Facility, 6245 Tuttle Creek Blvd., Monday-Thursday 7:30-5 or Friday 7:30-noon, or to the county trailer at Howie's Recycling on the second Saturday of the month, 8-noon.
November 14, 2026, then December 12, 2026. Both run 8 a.m.-noon at 625 S. 10th Street.
Yes. The county gives out recycled latex in 1-gallon cans or mixed 5-gallon buckets, up to 15 gallons. The county's free reuse shelves can also have paint and stain; take up to 5 items a visit.
Only if it's dried hard in the can. Riley County says liquid latex can't go in the trash.
Riley County businesses that make less than 220 pounds of hazardous waste a month can, for a fee. Call 785-539-3202 to schedule. Business waste isn't taken at the Howie's trailer.
October 13, 2026: read Riley County's Household Hazardous Waste page, Howie's Saturday Collections page (full 2026 date list), Latex Paint Recycling, Types of Waste Accepted, Drop or Shop and the hazardous waste FAQs (opened in a browser). Read the City of Manhattan Trash page and the Spring Cleanup Week 2026 notice (April 6-10, now past; yard waste only). Read KDHE's household hazardous waste page and its program contacts PDF (Pottawatomie County contact in Westmoreland, 785-457-2888). PaintCare's locator lists both Riley County sites as non-program sites. Unresolved: residency rules at the Howie's trailer (PaintCare says all 11 Big Lakes counties; the county FAQ asks non-Riley residents to use their home county); Pottawatomie County's own drop-off hours and location; Riley County doesn't say in words that household drop-off is free, only that business waste has a fee.
Checked October 13, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
