Recycle your empty aerosols

Part of: What goes in which bin

Contents

In the UK, we go through 550 million metal aerosol cans each year. Aerosols are used to package many products, such as:

  • hairspray
  • deodorant
  • shaving foam
  • furniture polish
  • oven cleaners

How to recycle your empty aerosols

Recycling your empty aerosols means we can make new cans from old ones, cutting carbon emissions and reducing the need to mine for more metal.

The cans must be empty before you recycle them in your black bin. Never squash or pierce empty or full aerosol cans.

To check that they are empty, simply:

  • Spray - If you hear no hiss and nothing comes out; it’s empty. Recycle it!
  • Squirt - If nothing squirts out; it’s empty. Recycle it!
  • Shake - If you hear no sloshing; it’s empty. Recycle it!

Read more about recycling metal aerosols.

If there is still stuff left in the can

If your aerosol cans still have stuff left in them, they can’t go in the black recycling bin. Put them to one side and drop them off at the recycling centre when you next visit.

Find your nearest centre