Everything you need to get rid of leftover paint responsibly in Lancaster.
1299 Harrisburg Pike, Lancaster, PA 17603
PaintCare's listing says customers now unload their own vehicle: pull up to the yellow line, wait for the door to open, pull to the second line, and put your items on the staff cart. Pack cans in boxes you can lift. For a very large load, call 717-397-9968 first.
850 New Holland Ave, Lancaster, PA 17602
Listed so you don't waste a trip: it does not take paint in any form. This is also the city's Solid Waste Hotline (717-291-4744, swhotline@cityoflancasterpa.gov) for trash questions.
1 paint store and 4 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.
1299 Harrisburg Pike, Lancaster, PA 17603
2685 Blackthorne Court, Manchester Township, PA 17406
2503 Whiteford Rd, Whiteford, MD 21160
1800 Russell Rd, Lebanon, PA 17046
1238 County Welfare Rd, Leesport, PA 19533
From PaintCare’s drop-off map ↗, updated October 6, 2026. Hours and limits are PaintCare’s. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
LCSWMA publishes no paint limit (its 10-a-day limit is for electronics), but call 717-397-9968 before you bring that much. Since you unload yourself, pack the cans in boxes you can lift. Dry any nearly empty latex cans and trash them instead.
Any Lancaster County resident can use Harrisburg Pike, so the drive is your only cost. For dried latex, follow your own hauler's or borough's trash rules.
Penn Waste, the city's hauler, asks for hardened paint with the lid tightly closed, inside a sealed garbage bag, and total trash under 60 pounds. Repack it that way.
LCSWMA won't take your paint. Its market list points businesses to companies like ACV Enviro in Lewisberry; call for prices.
Take leftover liquid paint (latex or oil-based) to the LCSWMA Household Hazardous Waste Facility, 1299 Harrisburg Pike, Lancaster, PA; it's free for Lancaster County residents, Monday-Friday 7 a.m.-4 p.m. and Saturday 7-11 a.m. PaintCare's listing says you unload your own cans. Empty or dried-out cans go in the trash.
In Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Lancaster County residents can take liquid paint, latex or oil-based, to the LCSWMA Household Hazardous Waste Facility at 1299 Harrisburg Pike for free, six days a week. Empty or dried-out cans go in the trash instead.
The Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority (LCSWMA) facility is open Monday-Friday 7 a.m.-4 p.m. and Saturday 7-11 a.m. Lancaster County residents pay nothing for paint, stain, thinner or turpentine. It does not take household hazardous waste from businesses.
PaintCare's listing for the facility says customers now unload their own vehicle onto a staff cart. Pull up to the yellow line, wait for the door, then pull to the second line. LCSWMA's 10-items-a-day limit is printed with its electronics list; it publishes no paint limit. For a big cleanout, call 717-397-9968 before you load up.
The facility takes liquid paint only. Empty and dried-out paint cans go out with regular trash. So a can with a thin dried skin on the bottom doesn't need the trip.
Lancaster city's hauler, Penn Waste, says to dry or harden paint (hardener, shredded paper or kitty litter), close the lid tightly and put the can in a sealed garbage bag. City pickup is up to six 32-gallon bags, 30 pounds each, per week.
The city's Recycling Drop-Off Center at 850 New Holland Ave takes paper, cardboard, bottles and cans only. Questions about city trash go to the Solid Waste Hotline, 717-291-4744.
Dry small amounts of latex and put them in the trash following your hauler's rules. Businesses can't use LCSWMA's facility; its market list names ACV Enviro, 550 Industrial Dr, Lewisberry (717-938-4700), among companies that take paint. Dauphin County residents should use Dauphin County's own program. Pennsylvania has no PaintCare program, so stores don't take paint back for free.
Keep paint in its original, labeled can with the lid tight. Pack cans in boxes you can lift yourself, since you unload at LCSWMA. For a very large load, call ahead. Bring something showing a Lancaster County address. Leave empty and dried cans at home for the trash.
Full preparation checklist →Yes, for Lancaster County residents at the LCSWMA Household Hazardous Waste Facility, 1299 Harrisburg Pike.
Yes, if it's still liquid. Latex and oil-based paint are both taken. Dried-out or empty cans go in the trash.
Yes. The facility is open Saturdays 7-11 a.m. as well as weekdays 7 a.m.-4 p.m.
No. This guide covers Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and the LCSWMA facility is for Lancaster County, PA residents only.
No. LCSWMA doesn't take hazardous waste from businesses. Use a company from its market list, such as ACV Enviro in Lewisberry.
October 16, 2026: read LCSWMA's Household Hazardous Waste Facility page, its plan-your-drop-off and market list pages, the City of Lancaster trash and recycling and Recycling Drop-Off Center pages, Penn Waste's FAQ, PA DEP's household page and paint flyer, and PaintCare locator site 14541. LCSWMA's waste search returned no paint result. In the page's code, the "limit 10 items per day per customer" note is the label on the electronics list, so the guide no longer applies it to paint; no paint limit is published, and the guide says to call for big loads. The self-unload rule comes from PaintCare's listing, not LCSWMA's own page. The city's 850 New Holland Ave center lists ZIP 17602 on one page and 17603 on another, and closing at 3 or 4 p.m. We did not confirm the Lancaster Habitat ReStore's current address or paint policy. Other boroughs' trash rules weren't checked. Peer review (October 16, 2026) re-read every source, moved the 10-item limit to electronics, and removed an unsourced comparison with other haulers.
Checked October 16, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
