Drop it off free
4 free paint drop-off sites within 12 miles.
- Sherwin-WilliamsPaint store0.4 mi
- Aubuchon Ace HardwarePaint store2.4 mi
- Searsport Transfer StationPaint store3.8 mi
Belfast, ME Paint Disposal
Everything you need to get rid of leftover paint responsibly in Belfast.
NOW AVAILABLE IN BELFAST
Paint recycling pickup. Book online.
Book a pickup $89 minimum · No next-day surcharge
All drop-off locations in and near Belfast6
Start with these
Sherwin-Williams, Starrett Drive, Belfast (PaintCare site)
15 Starrett Drive, Belfast, ME 04915
- Accepts
- Latex and oil-based house paint, primer, stain and varnish in original labeled containers up to 5 gallons.
- Who can use it
- Maine households and businesses, per PaintCare. You don't need a Belfast transfer station sticker.
- Hours
- Store hours, per PaintCare. Call ahead to check hours and room for your load.
- Load limits
- 5 gallons per visit.
- Fees
- Free for paint PaintCare covers.
No spray cans, thinner, or unlabeled, leaking or empty containers.
Aubuchon Ace Hardware, Northport Avenue, Belfast (PaintCare site)
231 Northport Avenue, Belfast, ME 04915
- Accepts
- Latex and oil-based house paint, primer, stain and varnish in original labeled containers up to 5 gallons.
- Who can use it
- Maine households and businesses, per PaintCare.
- Hours
- Store hours, per PaintCare. Call ahead to check hours and room for your load.
- Load limits
- 5 gallons per visit.
- Fees
- Free for paint PaintCare covers.
No spray cans, thinner, or unlabeled, leaking or empty containers.
4 PaintCare drop-off sites within 12 miles of Belfast.
5 paint stores and 0 hazardous waste sites, closest first. Paint stores take house paint, stain and varnish, usually up to a set amount per visit. Hazardous waste sites also take chemicals like thinner, but some only serve local residents. Call before you go.
Rules most stores here share
Who: Households and Businesses in Maine
Hours: Paint is accepted during regular business hours. Call ahead for hours and to make sure the store can accept the amount and type of paint you would like to recycle.
Products: This site accepts latex and oil-based house paint, stains and varnish in containers up to 5 gallons in size. This site does not accept aerosols (spray paint or other spray products), containers without original labels, or containers that are leaking or empty.
Each listing below shows only what’s different, plus its limit.
Sherwin-Williams
0.4 mi15 Starrett Dr, Belfast, ME 04915
- Limits
- Limit: 5 gallons per visit.
Aubuchon Ace Hardware
2.4 mi231 Northport Ave, Belfast, ME 04915
- Limits
- Limit: 5 gallons per visit.
Searsport Transfer Station
3.8 miDump Rd, Searsport, ME 04974
- Who
- Households Only (No Businesses) in Searsport
- Hours
- Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays 9am-5pm
- Limits
- Limit: 5 gallons per visit.
- Products
- This site accepts latex and oil-based house paint, stains and varnish in containers up to 5 gallons in size. This site does not accept aerosols (spray paint or other spray products), containers without original labels, or containers that are leaking. This site will accept empty containers.
Islesboro Transfer Station
7.7 mi1299 Meadow Rd, Islesboro, ME 04848
- Who
- Households Only (No Businesses) in Islesboro
- Hours
- Sunday, Monday & Wednesday 7:30am-4:30pm.
- Limits
- Limit: 5 gallons per visit.
- Products
- This site accepts latex and oil-based house paint, stains and varnish in containers up to 5 gallons in size. This site does not accept aerosols (spray paint or other spray products), containers without original labels, or containers that are leaking. This site will accept empty containers.
Sherwin-Williams
22.8 mi96 Park St, Rockland, ME 04841
- Limits
- Limit: 5 gallons per visit.
From PaintCare’s drop-off map ↗, updated October 6, 2026. Hours and limits are PaintCare’s. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Which option fits your Belfast cleanout?4
You're repainting a house in Belfast
Take labeled cans to Sherwin-Williams or Aubuchon, 5 gallons a visit. Contractors can use the same stores; with 100 gallons or more, ask PaintCare for a pickup.
You have old oil stain and a can of thinner
The stain goes to either Belfast store. Thinner doesn't: save it for Riverside in Portland's first-Saturday days or the Lewiston depot, both open to any Maine household.
You're already at the transfer station with a load
The station's lists cover motor oil, bulbs and electronics, not paint. Ask the attendant, or plan a store stop on the way home.
You live in Searsport
Use your own transfer station on Dump Road with your town decal, 5 gallons per visit.
Belfast rules and tips4
THE LOCAL ANSWER
Take up to 5 gallons of house paint, stain or varnish to Sherwin-Williams, 15 Starrett Drive, or Aubuchon Ace, 231 Northport Avenue, during store hours. Call first. Don't plan on the Belfast transfer station: its price list and brochure don't include paint. For thinner and other chemicals, Riverside in Portland and the Lewiston depot take waste from any Maine household.
Belfast is the Waldo County seat on Penobscot Bay. The city transfer station on Little River Drive doesn't list paint, so in Belfast, Maine, paint goes to one of two PaintCare stores: Sherwin-Williams on Starrett Drive or Aubuchon Ace on Northport Avenue. We found no 2026 hazardous waste day for Belfast or Waldo County. The nearest places for thinner and chemicals are the Lewiston depot and Riverside Recycling in Portland.
The transfer station's lists leave paint out
Belfast's 2026 price list covers trash bags, demo, appliances, electronics, tires and free recyclables. The 2023 brochure adds free used motor oil and fluorescent bulbs. Neither mentions paint, and PaintCare doesn't list the station. Call 207-338-1817 before bringing paint there.
Two stores, no sticker needed
Sherwin-Williams is on Starrett Drive and Aubuchon Ace is on Northport Avenue. Both take paint from any Maine household or business, and neither needs a city sticker.
Searsport and Islesboro residents have their own drop-off
PaintCare lists the Searsport transfer station at 19 Dump Road for Searsport households and the Islesboro transfer station for Islesboro households. Searsport's page says its station serves Searsport residents only and requires a $1 decal from the Town Office.
No 2026 hazardous waste day turned up
We found no 2026 collection for Belfast or Waldo County. Maine DEP says to ask your town office about one-day events, and names the Lewiston depot and Riverside Recycling in Portland as open to all Maine residents.
Free pickup programs and other options
Riverside Recycling, 910 Riverside Street in Portland, holds hazardous waste days on the first Saturday of each month, April through November, 7:30 a.m.–1 p.m. Paint is free there under PaintCare; other liquids cost $6.50 a gallon without a Portland E-Card. The Lewiston Environmental Depot, 424 River Road, takes chemicals from any Maine resident on set Saturdays, 8–11:45 a.m.; Belfast is outside AVCOG's region, so it's $50 per 5-gallon unit. Rockland's Sherwin-Williams and E.L. Spear are the next PaintCare stores down Route 1. With 100 gallons or more, ask PaintCare about a free pickup.
Getting your paint ready
Keep paint in its original labeled cans with tight lids. Split loads bigger than 5 gallons between the two stores or across visits. Spray cans, thinner and unlabeled cans won't be taken, so keep them aside for a hazardous waste day.
Full preparation checklist →Belfast questions4
Where can I get rid of paint in Belfast, Maine?
At Sherwin-Williams on Starrett Drive or Aubuchon Ace on Northport Avenue, free, up to 5 gallons a visit. Both are PaintCare drop-off sites.
Does the Belfast transfer station take paint cans?
Its 2026 price list and 2023 brochure don't list paint. Ask the station at 207-338-1817 or transferstation@cityofbelfast.org before you go.
Is there a hazardous waste day in Belfast this year?
We couldn't find one for 2026. For thinner and chemicals, Riverside in Portland and AVCOG's Lewiston depot take household waste from anyone in Maine, for a fee.
I live in Searsport. Do I have to drive into Belfast?
No. PaintCare lists the Searsport transfer station for Searsport households, 5 gallons per visit. It's open Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday; the town says 8 a.m.–5 p.m., PaintCare says 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
Sources and how we checked12
On October 16, 2026 we read Belfast's transfer station page, its 2026 price list and 2023 brochure, its recycling page, Searsport's transfer station page, Maine DEP's household hazardous waste page, AVCOG's and Riverside's hazardous waste pages, and PaintCare's Maine page and locator data. We didn't find a Belfast or Waldo County hazardous waste day for 2026 or any city statement on paint. Searsport's hours differ between the town and PaintCare. We didn't check store capacity.
Checked October 16, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
City of Belfast: Transfer Station (hours, stickers, residency) ↗City of Belfast: Transfer Station 2026 price list ↗City of Belfast: Transfer Station brochure, May 2023 (PDF) ↗Town of Searsport: Transfer Station (residents only) ↗Maine DEP: household hazardous waste ↗Maine DEP: paint stewardship program ↗AVCOG household hazardous waste (Lewiston Environmental Depot, 2026 dates and fees) ↗Riverside Recycling hazardous waste days (any Maine household) ↗PaintCare Maine ↗PaintCare drop-off site locator ↗PaintCare accepted and excluded products ↗PaintCare large-volume pickup ↗
