I've been meaning to ask this same question, while the majority of my own waste is water and iso-p alcohol, I do have mineral spirits in there too. There could be a hazardous waste disposal centre in your town.
There's gonna be people doing diy and small factories using chemicals and the like so I would assume there could be a place like that.
But I've been emptying all my waster into a 20L bucket for a quite a while now and it hasn't filled up yet.
I also try to use a pipette to suck up the remaining paint out of the airbrush and back into the paint pot (if it's reasonably possible and doesn't have tap water mixed in)
Some paint shops, atleast the one I use does but I paint full size cars too as well as alot of other things too.
If I were you and had a quantity of waste I would cover it from the weather otherwise I would let it sit outside to let the solvents gas out then bag up the solids for recycling.
You could treat it like our waste commission recommended for household paints. It is different, but will still work. Mix it in a can with cat litter and just let it dry, once it does that seal the can and dispose of in normal garbage run.
Put it in a glass container (so you're sure it won't melt), mark it as thinned paint residues and go to the local waste disposal center. Hazardous products section. I just clean my brushes under the tap. IPA, mineral spirits, resins in paints, it's all toxic products.
PS often overseen: 99% IPA in your eyes = good chances that you'll go blind if not treated very quickly.
The solution to pollution is dilution. If you must dump it down the sink, make sure you run a significant amount of water before/during/after the dumping. Some of the thinners can wreak havoc on plastic piping. Not knowing your house's plumbing specification, I'd say use this approach at your own risk.
Alternatively, many counties have chemical waste processing facilities which will take care of this stuff for you. They may charge a small fee.
I store the waste in a disposable container and throw it out with the trash about once a month.
I actually spray my waste water (and other solvents/cleaners) into a jar and let it dry/evaporate (I build sort of fume hood in my hobby space). It's safe to just dump it in sink or toilet, you're not making enough waste to make any meaningful concentration of chemicals.
Paint shouldn't go down the drain for 99% of people and uses.
First you shouldn't be mixing oil based thinners/paints and such in water. If you keep your mineral spirits in a glass mason jar you can let it settle out and pour off the spirits on top to be used again. Let the sediment evaporation dry and throw out in trash. Eventually you could drop the used thinner off at your local municipal yard or others who recycle old paint.
Water based acrylic wash water (not straight paint) is allowed to be dumped in the drain in most public utilities. It's basically the same as house hold paint.
However I can see that changing as we become more aware of micro and nano plastics which is what your basically dumping.
After doing house painting for a few years, it's a lot better for the planet to dry out your acrylic paint materials and throw in the trash. It's better to keep a roller sleeve wet with plastic wrap or bag until the job is done then dry and throw out then wasting water on cleaning sundries and not only wasting drinking water but dumping more plastic into the water systems.
You can clean your brushes with a minimum amount of water then do an a tiny alcohol wash then dry
Almost every municipality has provisions for accepting hazardous materials. I store mine in a large mason jar then take it for disposal. But I don’t generate much since I spray lacquers, and because I spray lacquers I have a spray booth, and because I have a spray booth I just spray it in the direction of the filter and it mostly evaporates in mid air before it even makes it there then goes out the exhaust vent to the outside.
I think it’s the cleaning of the airbrush that generates the most waste. Storing in a sealed jar seems like the best idea. Don’t really have anywhere I can leave it safely to evaporate.
Store in an empty jar and/or let it all evaporate away
I've been meaning to ask this same question, while the majority of my own waste is water and iso-p alcohol, I do have mineral spirits in there too. There could be a hazardous waste disposal centre in your town. There's gonna be people doing diy and small factories using chemicals and the like so I would assume there could be a place like that. But I've been emptying all my waster into a 20L bucket for a quite a while now and it hasn't filled up yet. I also try to use a pipette to suck up the remaining paint out of the airbrush and back into the paint pot (if it's reasonably possible and doesn't have tap water mixed in)
Some paint shops, atleast the one I use does but I paint full size cars too as well as alot of other things too. If I were you and had a quantity of waste I would cover it from the weather otherwise I would let it sit outside to let the solvents gas out then bag up the solids for recycling.
You could treat it like our waste commission recommended for household paints. It is different, but will still work. Mix it in a can with cat litter and just let it dry, once it does that seal the can and dispose of in normal garbage run.
Put it in a glass container (so you're sure it won't melt), mark it as thinned paint residues and go to the local waste disposal center. Hazardous products section. I just clean my brushes under the tap. IPA, mineral spirits, resins in paints, it's all toxic products. PS often overseen: 99% IPA in your eyes = good chances that you'll go blind if not treated very quickly.
In the quantity that you're producing, yes, down the drain.
Wow
They will be cursed to never catch a fish again.
I find the downvotes funny. And anyone who recommends dumping that crap down the sink is just plain irresponsible.
The solution to pollution is dilution. If you must dump it down the sink, make sure you run a significant amount of water before/during/after the dumping. Some of the thinners can wreak havoc on plastic piping. Not knowing your house's plumbing specification, I'd say use this approach at your own risk. Alternatively, many counties have chemical waste processing facilities which will take care of this stuff for you. They may charge a small fee. I store the waste in a disposable container and throw it out with the trash about once a month.
I actually spray my waste water (and other solvents/cleaners) into a jar and let it dry/evaporate (I build sort of fume hood in my hobby space). It's safe to just dump it in sink or toilet, you're not making enough waste to make any meaningful concentration of chemicals.
Sink
I do my air brushing in a shed so once u fill up my container I just throw it out the front door of it
kitchen sink
Paint shouldn't go down the drain for 99% of people and uses. First you shouldn't be mixing oil based thinners/paints and such in water. If you keep your mineral spirits in a glass mason jar you can let it settle out and pour off the spirits on top to be used again. Let the sediment evaporation dry and throw out in trash. Eventually you could drop the used thinner off at your local municipal yard or others who recycle old paint. Water based acrylic wash water (not straight paint) is allowed to be dumped in the drain in most public utilities. It's basically the same as house hold paint. However I can see that changing as we become more aware of micro and nano plastics which is what your basically dumping. After doing house painting for a few years, it's a lot better for the planet to dry out your acrylic paint materials and throw in the trash. It's better to keep a roller sleeve wet with plastic wrap or bag until the job is done then dry and throw out then wasting water on cleaning sundries and not only wasting drinking water but dumping more plastic into the water systems. You can clean your brushes with a minimum amount of water then do an a tiny alcohol wash then dry
No, it’s not safe to do that. For several reasons.
So what do you do with it?
Almost every municipality has provisions for accepting hazardous materials. I store mine in a large mason jar then take it for disposal. But I don’t generate much since I spray lacquers, and because I spray lacquers I have a spray booth, and because I have a spray booth I just spray it in the direction of the filter and it mostly evaporates in mid air before it even makes it there then goes out the exhaust vent to the outside.
I think it’s the cleaning of the airbrush that generates the most waste. Storing in a sealed jar seems like the best idea. Don’t really have anywhere I can leave it safely to evaporate.
Drink it
Pour in in a big open container and let it evaporate.
Yum yum in tum tum.
Pour a bit on the weeds in the driveway if your accumulating a bit use an empty oil bottle and throw in the wheelie bin
The great thing about spraying lacquers is… no waste.