Everything you need to get rid of leftover paint responsibly in Newark.
99 W Bradford Ave, Cedar Grove, NJ 07009
Load everything in your trunk. You stay in your car while workers unload it. The site is in Cedar Grove, north of Newark. Check ecuanj.com or call ECUA before you go, since event dates change every year.
25 paint stores and 5 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.
Who: Households and Businesses in New York
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.
13-15 Linden Ave E, Jersey City, NJ 07305
1440 Forest Ave, Staten Island, NY 10302
1500 Madison St, Hoboken, NJ 07030
11 Millridge Rd, Secaucus, NJ 07094
150 Varick St, New York, NY 10013
, Staten Island, NY 10314
125 W 21st St, New York, NY 10011
619 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036
19 E 21st St, New York, NY 10010
470 Court St, Brooklyn, NY 11231
4606 3rd Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11220
562 W 52nd St, New York, NY 10019
211 Smith St, Brooklyn, NY 11201
1 12th St, Brooklyn, NY 11215
7722 3rd Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11209
141 First St., Passaic, NJ 07055
1462 Hylan Blvd, Staten Island, NY 10305
593 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
555 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
98 Empire Blvd, Moonachie, NJ 07074
901 65th St, Brooklyn, NY 11219
476 Bergen St, Brooklyn, NY 11217
60 Broadway, Brooklyn, NY 11249
155 E 55th St, New York, NY 10022
452 Myrtle Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11205
4601 New Utrecht Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11219
210 Roebling St, Brooklyn, NY 11211
148 Classon Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11205
7419 13th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11228
600 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10024
From PaintCare’s drop-off map ↗, updated October 6, 2026. Hours and limits are PaintCare’s. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
It’s almost always latex. Mix in cat litter or a hardener, let it dry with the lid off, and put it in your lidded trash can on your Zone A or Zone B trash day. Don’t wait for the county day; ECUA won’t take latex.
The October 3, 2026 Essex County day just passed, and there isn’t another one this year. Keep the cans sealed, upright and away from the furnace or water heater. Call ECUA at 973-792-9060 or check ecuanj.com in early 2027 for the next date.
Set the furniture and mattresses out for bulk pickup, but keep the paint off the curb. Newark won’t remove paint, drywall or construction debris and says to hire a private hauler. As a landlord, you can’t use the county’s free day for oil-based paint from a rental business.
ECUA’s days are for households only. New Jersey lets a business handle its oil-based paint, lacquer, stain and spray paint as “universal waste.” Keep it in the original or a labeled container, mark it “Universal Waste – Oil-based Finish,” don’t open or mix it, and send it within a year to a company or site allowed to take it. Latex isn’t hazardous, but a big load still shouldn’t go out wet.
Dry latex paint with cat litter or a hardener and put it in your Newark trash can with the lid off. Oil-based paint, stain and spray paint go to Essex County’s free hazardous waste day in Cedar Grove, but both 2026 days (May 2 and October 3) are over, so store them until ECUA posts 2027 dates. Newark’s bulk pickup won’t take paint.
Newark, New Jersey, has no place to drop off paint inside the city. The city’s DPW won’t take paint with bulk pickup. Oil-based paint goes to Essex County’s free hazardous waste days in Cedar Grove, and both 2026 days are over. New Jersey DEP says latex paint isn’t household hazardous waste, and the county won’t take it, so you dry it out for the trash.
The Essex County Utilities Authority (ECUA) held its 2026 hazardous waste days on May 2 and October 3 at 99 W. Bradford Avenue in Cedar Grove. There is no other Essex County paint day listed for 2026. Store oil-based paint safely until ECUA posts its 2027 dates, or call 973-792-9060.
ECUA lists latex paint as not accepted. New Jersey DEP says latex paint is not household hazardous waste. Dry it until it’s solid and put it out with your regular trash.
Newark’s bulk pickup (first Wednesday for Zone A, second Wednesday for Zone B) does not take paint, drywall or construction debris. The city tells you to hire a private hauler for those. Don’t leave cans next to your bulk items.
The Essex County electronics recycling depot at 62 Frelinghuysen Ave (also the DPW’s address) takes electronics, and car batteries on weekdays. The city’s four service centers take trash, bulk and recycling, Monday–Saturday, 8 a.m.–3 p.m. None of the city pages list paint at any of them. Call 973-733-3644 before you bring paint.
Nearby counties still have fall 2026 events, but not for Newark. HCIA says Hudson County’s days are free to Hudson residents. PaintCare lists Union County’s October 25 day in Scotch Plains as for Union County households only, and it won’t take latex anyway.
New Jersey has no PaintCare program, so stores don’t take paint back for free. Give good, unopened latex paint to a neighbor, church or community group that paints. For oil-based paint before ECUA’s next day, keep it sealed and out of the heat. Businesses and landlords with a lot of oil-based paint need a hazardous waste company. New Jersey lets businesses handle oil-based paint as “universal waste,” in labeled containers.
For latex: pour off any extra so the can is half full or less, stir in cat litter or a paint hardener, and leave the lid off until it’s solid. Put the dry can, lid off, inside your lidded trash can; Newark won’t collect loose bags at the curb. For oil-based paint: keep it in the original labeled can, lid tight, and pack it in a box in your trunk for the county day.
Full preparation checklist →Not until 2027. ECUA’s 2026 days in Cedar Grove were May 2 and October 3, and both have passed. Watch ecuanj.com or call 973-792-9060 for next year’s dates.
Yes, once it’s completely dry. Newark doesn’t post its own rule, but New Jersey DEP says latex paint isn’t household hazardous waste. Harden it, leave the lid off, and put it inside your trash can. If you’re unsure, call Newark DPW at 973-733-3644.
No. Newark’s bulk list says paint, drywall and construction debris won’t be removed. The city says to call a private hauler for those.
Yes. Bring proof that you live in Essex County, like a license or utility bill with your Newark address. It’s free, and you stay in your car.
No. ECUA says the collection isn’t for commercial or industrial waste. Use a hazardous waste company for oil-based paint from your business.
October 7, 2026: read ECUA’s household hazardous waste page, home page (which lists the October 3, 2026 day as an upcoming event, though it has passed), the May 2 and October 3, 2026 ECUA flyers (posted by Verona), ECUA’s recycling drop-off list, and Newark DPW’s trash and bulk, what-we-pick-up, service center and events calendar pages, plus the DPW mailer. NJ DEP’s own household hazardous waste page blocked our requests; the latex rule comes from DEP’s 2026 debris-management FAQ (“Latex paint is not household hazardous waste”) and its universal waste training slides. PaintCare’s locator has no Essex County listing. Not found: any Newark page on drying latex for the trash, the addresses of the four DPW service centers (the page only shows a map), whether Newark’s 62 Frelinghuysen Ave recycling drop-off takes empty paint cans, ECUA’s 2027 dates, and whether Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newark’s ReStore takes paint (not checked, so not listed). Peer review, October 7, 2026: rechecked the ECUA pages and both flyers (8:30 a.m.–4 p.m., 99 W. Bradford Ave, latex and empty containers refused, not for commercial or industrial facilities). DEP’s FAQ wording on latex was confirmed. DEP has no live household hazardous waste page that we could find (the old address returns “page not found”), so DEP’s live universal waste page for oil-based finishes was added for the business rules.
Checked October 7, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
