A fresh coat of paint can breathe new life into most projects, and for the most part, painting is rather enjoyable. But what happens to the leftover paint once you’re done with it? The Boulder County Hazardous Material Management Facility accepts paint free of charge from residents of Boulder County, City and County of Broomfield, and the Town of Erie and is located at 1901 63rd St, Boulder CO and is open to the public Wednesday - Saturday 8:30am-4:00pm.Over 50% of all material dropped off is paint. That’s about 1.4 Tons each drop-off day!!!Reduce your use!! If you only buy the amount of paint needed to finish the project, then there will be no paint for disposal or storage. Use this calculator to determine how much paint you will need for your project. First you’ll need to find the total square footage of your project area. Simply multiply the height by the width of your project area and you will get the square footage. If you are painting a room with ceilings, add the square footage of the walls to the length times the width of the ceiling for a total square footage to be painted. Once you have the total square footage divide by 400 and you will know how many gallons of paint you will need. If you have any leftover paint, make sure to store it properly. This helps the paint last longer. Remove excess paint from the rim and securely seal the lid and store in a safe, cool dry place. Anything you no longer need can be dropped off at the Hazardous Material Management Facility.If the paint can be reused it will be put into the Reuse Program free for residents, although donations are accepted.Please bring a driver’s license or other proof of residency.We have had some phenomenal projects done with materials used from the program over the years, and hope to see many more! All of the murals and paintings inside the facility were created using materials from our reuse program. Paint stays good for a long time: oil-based paint for up to 15 years and latex paint for 10 years. Generally, paint that mixes smoothly when stirred can still be used. If latex paint has been frozen, brush it on a newspaper. If there are no lumps, it hasn't been damaged and can be used.So far we have learned how to reduce our paint waste, and know how to reuse and dispose of old paint, but what happens to the paint that is dropped off at the Hazardous Materials Facility that cannot be reused? It gets recycled!! Here at the Boulder County Hazardous Facility all the paint that will be recycled gets stored in these totes. When the tanks get full they will get delivered to a paint recycler.Let’s go check out how paint gets recycled. [Visit to Green Sheen, latex paint recycler]But what if your latex paint does not meet the criteria to be reused? If there is less than 1/2 an inch of paint in the can, dry it out. The most common method is to remove the lid and set it out to dry for several days. Once the paint has solidified completely and dried, it can be thrown away with your regular household trash. Make sure to leave the lid off the paint container. This lets your waste disposal team know that it is ok to be thrown away.It’s extremely important to dry your old latex paint out before disposing of it. Waste haulers will not accept paint that is not completely solidified before it’s thrown away. Liquids, like paint, can leak out of trash trucks onto streets and even into the environment, negatively impacting the ecosystem.But what if your latex paint does not meet the criteria to be reused? If there is less than 1/2 an inch of paint in the can, dry it out. The most common method is to remove the lid and set it out to dry for several days. Once the paint has solidified completely and dried, it can be thrown away with your regular household trash. Make sure to leave the lid off the paint container. This lets your waste disposal team know that it is ok to be thrown away.Together we can make Boulder County a Zero Waste community. For more information on paint and hazardous waste, please visit www.bouldercountyrecycles.org or stop by the Boulder County Hazardous Materials Management Facility and talk with a Specialist.And remember, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Compost!