Everything you need to get rid of leftover paint responsibly in Hickory.
4017 Rocky Ford Rd, Newton, NC 28658
PaintCare’s listing says the landfill is south of the intersection of Highway 10 and the Hickory-Lincolnton Highway. The Rocky Ford Road convenience center down the road (3864 Rocky Ford Rd) is a separate trash and recycling site that doesn’t list paint. The 2018 county brochure says to call 704-462-1348 for current hours.
L.P. Frans Stadium, 2500 Clement Blvd NW, Hickory, NC 28601
Drive-through event run by Catawba County Utilities & Engineering and the City of Hickory. Expect a wait. The county contact is Ariel Kanupp. PaintCare’s listing for this event says no spray cans, but the City of Hickory’s notice lists spray paint as accepted at the event; the no-spray rule is for the Blackburn Landfill.
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.
2500 Clement Blvd NW, Hickory, NC 28601
4017 Rocky Ford Rd, Newton, NC 28658
3155 Philadelphia Church Rd, Dallas, NC 28034
354 Twin Oaks Rd, Statesville, NC 28625
354 Twin Oaks Rd, Statesville, NC 28625
From PaintCare’s drop-off map ↗, updated October 6, 2026. Hours and limits are PaintCare’s. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Bring cans of wall paint and stain to Blackburn any weekday or Saturday morning. Set aside the spray cans, thinner and sealers for November 7 at L.P. Frans Stadium.
The stadium event allows no trailers. If the load needs a trailer, take the paint to Blackburn, which has no such rule posted.
The county’s 2018 brochure says you can spray the leftover paint onto cloth, let it dry, and throw the dry cloth and empty can in the trash.
The convenience center at 3864 Rocky Ford Road is a separate trash and recycling site run by Republic Services, and it doesn’t list paint. Use the landfill at 4017 Rocky Ford Road.
Take latex or oil-based paint to the Blackburn Landfill, 4017 Rocky Ford Road, Newton, Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–4 p.m. or Saturday 8–11:30 a.m.; it’s free for Catawba County residents. Spray paint isn’t taken there. Bring it to the county’s hazardous waste day on Saturday, November 7, 2026, 9 a.m.–1 p.m., at L.P. Frans Stadium.
Hickory residents take paint to Catawba County’s Blackburn Landfill at 4017 Rocky Ford Road in Newton, which takes latex and oil-based paint free all year. Spray paint waits for the county’s hazardous waste day, held this fall at L.P. Frans Stadium in Hickory on November 7, 2026. Both are for Catawba County residents only.
The county’s paint collection runs during landfill hours: Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–4 p.m. and Saturday 8–11:30 a.m. It takes latex and oil-based paint, electronics and household batteries for free.
Blackburn won’t take spray paint. The November 7, 2026 event at L.P. Frans Stadium, 9 a.m.–1 p.m., takes spray paint, thinners, shellac and sealers. No trailers.
Hickory’s sanitation page lists paint as a banned item in the blue recycling rollout and says not to put liquids in the green garbage rollout. Empty cans with no liquid and no lid can go in the garbage, the county says.
The county’s paint brochure suggests giving usable paint to neighbors, friends, schools, theater groups or community groups. White paint in unopened cans is often wanted. We couldn’t confirm a current local list of places that take paint donations, so call any group before you drop paint off.
Mix small amounts of leftover colors and use them as a primer coat, as the county suggests. Give unopened cans to a group that can use them, after calling first. Charlotte’s Mecklenburg County centers make people from other counties buy a sticker, so Blackburn’s free drop-off is the better choice for Catawba County residents. North Carolina has no PaintCare program.
Keep paint in its original can with the lid on. Pull out spray cans and keep them for the hazardous waste day. Get to Blackburn before 4 p.m. on weekdays or 11:30 a.m. on Saturday.
Full preparation checklist →At the Blackburn Landfill, 4017 Rocky Ford Road in Newton. It takes latex and oil-based paint free from Catawba County residents.
No. Hold spray cans for the county’s hazardous waste day. The next one is November 7, 2026, at L.P. Frans Stadium.
Saturday, November 7, 2026, 9 a.m.–1 p.m., at L.P. Frans Stadium, 2500 Clement Blvd NW. The spring 2026 day, May 2 at the Hickory American Legion Fairgrounds, has passed.
No. The landfill paint program and the hazardous waste days refuse business waste.
Yes, if it has no liquid and no lid. The county says empty cans aren’t hazardous waste.
October 13, 2026: read Catawba County’s landfill page (free paint and electronics collection, latex and oil-based, empty cans to garbage, hours, 2026 holidays), the November 7, 2026 event flyer (L.P. Frans Stadium, no trailers, no business waste, spray cans not taken at Blackburn), the City of Hickory’s fall and May 2 event notices, the county’s 2018 paint brochure (no business waste, spray-can drying, donation ideas), the convenience center page, Hickory’s sanitation page and PaintCare’s locator data. Not found: a gallon limit at Blackburn, a current donation list, and any rule for parts of Hickory that lie outside Catawba County. Catawba County is not on NC DEQ’s permanent facility list. Peer review (October 13, 2026) removed the 2018 brochure’s Habitat for Humanity and Resource Warehouse phone numbers because we couldn’t confirm they still take paint. PaintCare’s listing for the stadium event says “no spray cans,” but the City of Hickory’s notice lists spray paint for the event (the county flyer says “paint products”); the no-spray rule applies to Blackburn, so we followed the city and county.
Checked October 13, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
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