Drop it off
1 paint drop-off site within 12 miles.
- Flathead County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Program · Flathead County LandfillHazardous waste site6.5 mi
Kalispell, MT Paint Disposal
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All drop-off locations in and near Kalispell2
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Flathead County Household Hazardous Waste Collection (monthly, at the county landfill)
4098 Highway 93 North, Kalispell, MT 59901
- Accepts
- Oil-based paint, stain, thinner, solvents, adhesives, furniture stripper, turpentine, cleaners, ammonia, fuel and carburetor cleaner, pesticides, herbicides, poisons, fertilizers and lye. Not taken: latex paint, motor oil, radioactive items, explosives and anything containing PCBs.
- Who can use it
- Flathead County residents only, households only. Businesses use a separate Commercial Hazardous Waste Collection held at the landfill each May. Pre-registration is required; call 406-758-5910 for the event company’s contact and to register. PaintCare’s listing says to call in April.
- Hours
- Third Saturday of every month, morning appointments only. You must register first; slots can fill several months ahead. The landfill itself is open daily 8 a.m.–5 p.m. and closed New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas, but hazardous waste is taken only at your appointment.
- Load limits
- No more than 25 gallons per appointment. Original, clearly marked containers only. Don’t mix wastes. No barrels.
- Fees
- Free.
To register, fill out the county’s sign-up form (it asks what you’re bringing, how much, and which month) and return it by mail, fax (406-758-5918) or email (trash@flatheadcounty.gov), or call 406-758-5911. Montana DEQ’s page says to book by the second week of the month. The county mails back a postcard with your time. At the landfill, show the card and stay in your vehicle; staff unload. The county’s Solid Waste and Household Hazardous Waste pages list 406-758-5910; the sign-up form and calendar use 406-758-5911.
Flathead County Solid Waste: Household Hazardous Waste ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: HHW sign-up form (PDF) ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: Disposal Guide (latex and oil-based paint) ↗Flathead County calendar: Household Hazardous Waste Event ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: department page (landfill hours, holidays) ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: FAQ ↗PaintCare drop-off site locator ↗
1 paint drop-off site within 12 miles of Kalispell.
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.
Flathead County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Program · Flathead County Landfill
6.5 mi4098 Highway 93 North, Kalispell, MT 59901
- Who
- Households Only (No Businesses) in Flathead County
- Hours
- Third Saturday of each month by appointment only. Only morning appointments are available. Just fill out the registration form online and mail or fax it back to us. We will make your appointment and send you a reminder.
- Limits
- Maximum of 25 gallons. Do not mix wastes. Original clearly marked containers, When you arrive at the Landfill present your appointment card. Stay in your vehicle, staff will do the unloading.
- Products
- This site does not accept empty, dry or leaking paint containers or latex paint.
- Notes
- The Flathead County Landfill offers an annual Business Hazardous Waste Disposal event, typically in May every year, call in April for Vendor information.
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 Kalispell cleanout?4
You have a few cans of leftover wall paint
If it’s latex, pop the lids and let it dry, or stir in kitty litter or sand. Double-bag the hardened paint and put it in your regular trash.
You found oil-based stain in a Kalispell garage
Fill out the county sign-up form with the type and amount, pick a month, and send it in. Bring the stain in its labeled can on your third-Saturday appointment.
You’re cleaning out a cabin near Bigfork
The Bigfork container site takes household garbage only. Book the monthly collection at the county landfill, and keep the total to 25 gallons per appointment.
You need to clear things out this month
Slots can fill several months ahead, so you may not get this month’s date. Call 406-758-5911 or send the form right away, and keep the cans tightly closed until your appointment.
Kalispell rules and tips5
THE LOCAL ANSWER
Dry out latex paint and put it in your trash, double-bagged; don’t bring it to the hazardous waste collection. For oil-based paint, stain and thinner, book a free third-Saturday morning appointment at the Flathead County Landfill, 4098 Highway 93 N. (406-758-5911), up to 25 gallons. It’s for Flathead County residents only.
In Kalispell, Montana, latex paint goes in your trash once it’s hard, and oil-based paint goes to Flathead County’s free hazardous waste collection at the county landfill on Highway 93 North. That collection runs only on the third Saturday of each month, by appointment, for Flathead County residents. Montana has no PaintCare program.
Don’t bring latex to the collection
The county’s sign-up form says not to bring latex paint. Kalispell’s own FAQ says to air-dry latex or mix it with sand or kitty litter, then double-bag it for the trash.
Sign up early
Appointments are mornings only, one Saturday a month, and can fill several months ahead. Send in the form or call 406-758-5911, and the county mails you a postcard with your time.
Up to 25 gallons, free
Each appointment takes up to 25 gallons of oil-based paint, stain, thinner and other chemicals, in original labeled containers. Compare Missoula, where PaintCare’s listing shows a $20 registration fee and a limit under 10 gallons.
Container sites won’t take it
The county says its container sites in Bigfork, Columbia Falls, Coram, Creston, Kila, Lakeside, Olney, Somers and Essex are for household garbage only. Its sign-up form says hazardous waste doesn’t belong in the green boxes; book the landfill collection instead.
Stay in the car
At the landfill, show your postcard and stay in your vehicle. Staff unload everything.
Free pickup programs and other options
No store take-back exists in Montana. Latex is the easy part: Flathead County says hardened latex goes in regular trash, and liquid latex can be soaked up with cat litter, sand or sawdust first. Kalispell’s Residential Services page says hazardous waste must not go in city garbage containers. Montana DEQ suggests giving good paint to family, friends, neighbors or a paint contractor before you throw it out.
Getting your paint ready
For oil-based products: keep them in original, labeled containers, don’t combine them, and stay under 25 gallons. List what you’re bringing on the sign-up form. For latex: leave the lid off or stir in litter, let it harden all the way, and double-bag it.
Full preparation checklist →Kalispell questions5
Can I put latex paint in the trash in Kalispell?
Yes, once it’s hard. Air-dry it or mix in sand or kitty litter, then double-bag it, as the city’s FAQ says.
When is the Flathead County hazardous waste day?
The third Saturday of every month, morning appointments only, at the county landfill, 4098 Highway 93 North.
Does it cost anything?
No. The county calls it a free collection for Flathead County residents.
I live in Columbia Falls or Bigfork. Can I go?
Yes, if you live in Flathead County; the sign-up form says the collection is for Flathead County residents only. The county container sites in Columbia Falls and Bigfork take household garbage only, so hazardous waste still goes to the landfill appointment.
What about my business’s paint?
Businesses can’t use the monthly household collection. The county holds a commercial hazardous waste collection at the landfill each May. You must pre-register; call 406-758-5910.
Sources and how we checked13
October 13, 2026: read Flathead County Solid Waste’s department page, Household Hazardous Waste page (updated July 14, 2026), sign-up form PDF, Disposal Guide (the old FAQ link now redirects to it), drop-off locations and calendar event page; the City of Kalispell’s hazardous waste FAQ, Residential Services and cleanup events pages; Montana DEQ’s recycling page and used paint guide; and PaintCare’s locator data. Phone numbers differ: the Solid Waste and HHW pages list 406-758-5910, while the sign-up form and calendar list 758-5911. We give 758-5911 for booking because the form and calendar use it, and 758-5910 for the business event because the Disposal Guide gives it. The 25-gallon limit, the latex ban and the residency rule come from the sign-up form (PaintCare repeats the first two). The Missoula comparison rests on PaintCare’s listing only. Kalispell’s cleanup events page doesn’t mention hazardous waste, so that claim was removed. The county calendar lists the next collection on Oct. 17, 2026; the guide gives only the third-Saturday rule. No 2027 business collection date is posted. We found no current paint donation program in the Kalispell area.
Checked October 13, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
Flathead County Solid Waste: Household Hazardous Waste ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: HHW sign-up form (PDF) ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: Disposal Guide (latex and oil-based paint) ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: FAQ ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: department page (landfill hours, holidays) ↗Flathead County Solid Waste: drop-off (container site) locations ↗Flathead County calendar: Household Hazardous Waste Event ↗City of Kalispell: FAQ on hazardous waste and latex paint ↗City of Kalispell: Residential Services (solid waste) ↗Montana DEQ: recycling resources and household hazardous waste ↗Montana DEQ: What should I do with used paint? ↗PaintCare program states ↗PaintCare drop-off site locator ↗
