Everything you need to get rid of leftover paint responsibly in Gloucester.
28 Poplar Street, Gloucester, MA 01930
Book through the Recycling Department at 978-325-5600. The city’s page says appointments open March 19 (it gives no year). The city’s drop-off recycling page also mentions a hazardous waste day on “the last Saturday in September,” while the same page calls April 18 the 2026 date; no fall 2026 date is posted, so call before counting on one. The HHW page names the DPW yard but not its street address; 28 Poplar Street is the DPW’s listed address, and PaintCare’s listing uses it too.
83 Gilmore Drive, Sutton, MA 01590
A private, paid site, not a town program. Prices are from Veolia’s posted list; call before loading up. Veolia also quotes paid home pickups anywhere in Massachusetts.
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.
28 Poplar St., Gloucester, MA 01930
180 Town Farm Rd, Ipswich, MA 01938
60 Cabot Rd, Danvers, MA 01923
20 Endicott Rd, Boxford, MA 01921
505 Main St, Lynnfield, MA 01940
From PaintCare’s drop-off map ↗, updated October 6, 2026. Hours and limits are PaintCare’s. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
No drop-off needed. Leave the cans open until the paint dries hard, then put them in your trash cart. Don’t leave extra bags beside the cart.
Hold it for April 17, 2027. The DPW won’t take it at any other time. Call to book once scheduling opens on March 19.
Veolia’s Sutton center takes oil-based paint for $3.00 a pound, card only, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Or ask Veolia for a paid home pickup quote.
Don’t. Gloucester says no early drop-offs: the yard on Poplar Street takes materials only while Clean Harbors is on site during your booked time on April 17, 2027.
Motor oil can go to the DPW yard on the last Saturday of the month, 9 a.m.–noon, if it’s clean; the city burns it to heat the DPW building. Gasoline, antifreeze and contaminated oil can’t go then. Save the gas, pool chemicals and oil paint for the April 17, 2027 hazardous waste day, packed separately.
Gloucester’s day refuses commercial waste. Very small businesses registered with MassDEP can call Veolia about its business program, or hire a licensed hazardous waste firm.
Pop the lid off latex paint, let it dry, and put it in your Gloucester trash cart. Oil-based paint, stain and varnish go only to the city’s Household Hazardous Waste Day at the DPW yard; the next one is Saturday, April 17, 2027, by appointment (978-325-5600). Up to 25 pounds or gallons is free for Gloucester residents.
In Gloucester, Massachusetts, on Cape Ann in Essex County, dried latex paint goes in your household trash. Oil-based paint, stain and varnish can only go to the city’s once-a-year Household Hazardous Waste Day at the DPW yard. The 2026 day was April 18 and has passed. The next listed date is April 17, 2027. Massachusetts has no PaintCare program, so stores don’t take paint back.
That’s the city’s own instruction. Leave the lid off until the paint is solid. Gloucester’s trash moved to Casella carts on October 1, 2026, and everything must fit in your city cart with the lid closed. Extra bags beside the cart won’t be picked up.
The DPW won’t take oil-based or marine paint, varnish or stain at any other time. The 2027 day runs 9 a.m.–noon, rain or shine, by appointment. The city says the Recycling Department starts booking on March 19; call 978-325-5600.
Anything over 25 pounds or gallons is charged by Clean Harbors, the city’s contractor, and you pay by check only. Bring a checkbook if you’re clearing a big stash.
On the last Saturday of each month, 9 a.m.–noon, the DPW yard takes scrap metal, motor oil, oil filters, car batteries, tires (two a month, off the rims) and fluorescent bulbs. The motor oil heats the DPW building, so it must be clean. The city says oil-based and marine paint, varnish and stain are not taken there except on hazardous waste day.
Gloucester dropped its purple city trash bags on September 30, 2026 and switched from Republic Services to Casella carts. The standard cart costs $300 a year on your utility bill, and a 35-gallon cart $200. A 65-gallon cart holds about five tall kitchen bags, so spread a big batch of dried cans over a few weeks. Bulky items are booked separately with Casella at 978-278-3122. Trash questions: trash-information@gloucester.gov.
Rockport (July 11, transfer station, 7 Bluegate Lane) and Manchester-by-the-Sea (June 20, DPW yard, 85 Pleasant Street) hosted 2026 events in the Northeast District 2 reciprocal program, and both have passed. The schedule says its events are open only to residents of member towns, and it doesn’t list the members. Gloucester doesn’t host an event on it. Later 2026 dates include Ipswich Transfer Station, 180 Town Farm Road (set for November 14, 978-356-6612) and Danvers High School (set for November 21, 978-777-0001 x3011). Call the host town first to ask whether Gloucester residents can come. Outside visitors pay by check only.
If you can’t hold oil-based paint until April 2027, Veolia runs a paid drop-off center in Sutton, in Worcester County. It also quotes paid home pickups anywhere in Massachusetts (866-769-1621). The North Shore reciprocal schedule names Clean Harbors in Braintree (781-380-7100) as a paid option too. Usable paint can go to a neighbor or a community group.
Read each label: “clean up with soap and water” means latex. For latex, take the lid off and let it dry in a sheltered spot away from kids and pets. For oil-based products, keep them in their original cans with caps tight, and pack them apart from pesticides and cleaners. Never mix chemicals.
Full preparation checklist →Yes, once it’s dry. The city says to pop the lid, let it dry, and throw it in the trash. It must fit in your Casella cart with the lid closed.
Saturday, April 17, 2027, 9 a.m.–noon, at the DPW yard. Appointments are required. The April 18, 2026 day has passed.
No. The city says oil-based and marine paint, varnish and stain are taken only on hazardous waste day.
Empty containers, no; the city lists them with trash as things not to bring. Propane is the one gas cylinder the city doesn’t rule out. Fire extinguishers, ammunition and smoke detectors are not taken.
No. Gloucester’s day is for Gloucester residents only. Check with your own town.
Gloucester DPW and Recycling, 978-325-5600.
Yes, on the last Saturday of each month, 9 a.m.–noon, at the DPW yard. Mercury thermometers, thermostats and button batteries can also go to the Board of Health during business hours. Gasoline, antifreeze and dirty oil wait for hazardous waste day.
October 16, 2026: read Gloucester’s Household Hazardous Waste Day page (next date April 17, 2027), Special Collections page (2026 day was April 18), Drop-Off Recycling Programs page, DPW page (28 Poplar Street), the new trash program, trash and FAQ pages (Casella carts from October 1, 2026), the CY26 Northeast District 2 reciprocal HHW schedule (Saugus PDF, version 4-24-2026, read with pdftotext), and Veolia’s hours, price, accepted-items and home pickup pages. PaintCare’s locator data lists Gloucester’s April 17, 2027 event at 28 Poplar St. Peer review the same day: the HHW page says appointments open “March 19th” with no year, so the guide no longer adds one. Conflicts: the drop-off page mentions a hazardous waste day on the last Saturday in September but also calls April 18 the 2026 date, and no fall 2026 date is posted anywhere. The Special Collections page still tells residents to call Republic Services about missed pickups, though the FAQ says that contract ended September 30. Not found: whether Gloucester is a member of the Northeast District 2 reciprocal arrangement (the schedule lists hosts, not members); what proof of residency the HHW day asks for; and any paint reuse or swap program on Cape Ann.
Checked October 16, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
