Fire Extinguisher Disposal

Fire extinguishers are classified as dangerous goods and can not be disposed of at your household chemical waste collection and/or curbside collection.

Recycling fire extinguishers is good for the environment!

Steel is one of the world’s most recycled products. This means that it is 100 percent recyclable. And, a fire extinguisher container is made from steel.

Did you know that a 9kg fire extinguisher contains 3kg of steel when empty? If you recycle fire extinguishers, know that you will save less energy and raw materials. Creating steel from recycled materials uses 75 percent less energy than creating it from raw, virgin materials.

Can I bring my extinguisher to the scrap metal yard?

Some scrap metal yards might accept extinguishers (if they are empty), but this is not usually the case.

Depending on its type and class, your extinguisher could be filled with harmful chemicals, so you should not empty it just to bring it to your scrap metal yard.

Water and CO2 extinguishers are not filled with environmentally harmful chemicals, so they can be emptied into the environment, and once empty, you can bring them to your scrap metal yard (if they accept it). We still recommend taking your equipment to a professional drop-off center or leaving it to be removed by a qualified technician.

Dry Chemical Powder, Foam, and Wet Chemical fire extinguishers are filled with environmentally harmful chemicals, so they can not be emptied in the environment (they should only be used in case of a fire emergency). We recommend taking your equipment to a professional drop-off center or leaving it to be removed by a qualified technician.

Clean Agent Fire Extinguishers

We are specialized and licensed to manage clean agent fire extinguishers, such as Halotron and FE-36, enabling us to reclaim the clean agent from discharged units.

Additionally, we offer refills and retesting services for these extinguishers.

For further information about Halon fire extinguishers, please click the link below.

Disposal Centers

Common household problems waste, including fluorescent lights, smoke detectors, paint, gas bottles, fire extinguishers, batteries, and oils, can now be taken to your local Community Recycling Centre throughout the year. If there is no recycling center in your area, you can take these items and others to a Chemical CleanOut event.

You can also contact your local fire department and enquire if you can drop those off at the firehouse to dispose of them (only for expired but full or partially filled fire extinguishers). And you can contact your local council.