When gas goes bad, or you switched to an electric mower and have excess you no longer need, it’s essential to know how to dispose of gasoline correctly. Taking it to a local hazardous waste facility or a community collection event is more environmentally responsible than dumping it on the ground or letting it evaporate.
Gasoline disposal methods
Whether you’ve got an old tank of gas sitting in the garage or need to drain fuel from your lawn mower due to performance issues, properly disposing of the fuel is important. How you dispose of it depends on where you live and local regulations.
Ultimately, state environmental protection departments determine how citizens discard hazardous wastes, including unwanted or bad petroleum products like gasoline. While these disposal methods are typically safe bets, you should always check with your city or county and see what local regulations must be followed.
Take the gas to a household hazardous waste facility (HHW)
In most areas, taking gasoline to a local HHW is the preferred disposal method. To use these facilities, you typically have to be a county resident, and they may charge a nominal fee. Check their website or call ahead to see if they take gasoline and their protocol.
Find a local recycling center
Head to Earth 911’s gasoline page to find a local recycling center. Keep in mind that they may charge a small fee to accept gas.
Attend a community collection event
Sometimes, local municipalities put on special waste-removal events to collect hazardous waste, including gasoline, paint, and motor oil. These events are typically complimentary for residents. Check your town’s website to see if they offer such a service.
Drop it off at your local fire department
Some local fire stations will take old gasoline off your hands and then send it to the proper facility for disposal. As always, check with the fire department before heading to the station to drop off your used gas — not all departments offer this service to their residents.
Check with mechanics and garages in your community
If you fail to find a suitable alternative to the other disposal methods, contact local mechanics or the school district’s bus garage and ask how they dispose of their excess or unwanted gas. After all, they must get rid of it, too.
What makes gasoline go bad?
Gasoline comprises a mix of hydrocarbons — components refined from crude oil that provide power when burned in your engine — and other chemical compounds added to keep fuel stable and inhibit corrosion. However, exposure to oxygen, water, and other contaminants causes these compounds to degrade over time, creating a sludgy varnish.
This varnish decreases the gas’ quality and performance. When you run bad gas through a fuel system when trying to mow your lawn, the sludge clogs injectors, filters, and fuel lines, gumming everything up.
Dirt, rust, and other contaminants also find their way into your gas tank, which can cause an engine to perform sluggishly, or they can stop it altogether. When this happens, you’ll need more than essential lawn mower maintenance to get it running well again.
How can you tell if gasoline is still good?
How does it look?
Using your eyes is the best way to determine if your gasoline is still usable. You want to check its color and clarity. Newly refined, fresh gasoline is almost colorless with a slight amber coloration and is crystal clear.
It gradually darkens as it breaks down and oxidizes, turning to an orangish or brownish hue. It also will become cloudy.
Also, look for visible impurities. Rust and other foreign particles will settle out of the gasoline and sit in a layer on the bottom of the gas can.
How does it smell?
Checking the gasoline’s odor is another good indicator of its usability, but do this cautiously. Take a slight whiff instead of inhaling a hefty cloud of fumes.
New, “good” gas has that sharp, clean smell most people know. However, as gasoline degrades, the odor changes to musty or sour. This change happens as varnish and other impurities form.
How does it perform?
If it looks and smells decent, but you have trouble with the engine you’re using it in, there’s a good chance it’s no longer suitable. Common engine problems when using bad gas include failure to start, ignition hesitation, and stalling.
Safely transporting gasoline for disposal
- Use an approved container with a Factory Mutual (FM) or Underwriters Laboratory (UL) symbol. Ensure the lid fits tightly and the plastic container is free of cracks.
- Avoid transporting it in your vehicle’s passenger compartment. Instead, transport it in an open truck bed or trailer.
- Keep the container away from flames, sparks, and hot surfaces.
- Don’t let the container slide around as you drive. Secure it with sturdy ropes or straps so it doesn’t tip over or move when you make turns or sudden stops.
- Remove it from your vehicle ASAP when you reach your destination.
- Clean up spills immediately. Avoid using water to clean up gasoline since it only spreads it around. Use kitty litter to soak up the excess and then dispose of the litter in the same manner as gas.
Improper gasoline disposal methods
It may be tempting to dispose of your household hazardous waste more quickly by skipping the trip to a local household hazardous waste facility or a community collection event, but please don’t. Although these disposal methods are easier, they pose significant risks to you, others, and the environment.
- Don’t place a container in your regular trash pickup — it could combust in the garbage truck or landfill.
- Don’t dump it on the ground – it has too much potential to trickle down to the groundwater or run into a storm drain, causing significant environmental problems. Plus, it can quickly kill your grass.
- Don’t pour it down a sink or toilet — it can contaminate local water supplies and is illegal.
- Don’t burn it — igniting a highly flammable product like gasoline is hazardous and can cause severe injury or even death.
- Don’t let it evaporate — exposure to gasoline fumes can cause dizziness, headache, nausea, and vomiting.
FAQs about disposing of gasoline
How long can gas sit in a can?
Proper storage guidelines ensure the gas stays stable and usable for six to 12 months. Store gasoline in a clean, sealed container out of direct sunlight and heat. Exposure to moisture, oxygen, and contaminants causes degradation.
Can you mix bad gasoline with fresh?
If you have a small amount of bad gasoline (that hasn’t been sitting for years), you may be able to mix it with fresh gas in small quantities and use it in your lawnmower or string trimmer. Strain the old fuel through a coffee filter to remove impurities, and then dilute it to a 1:5 ratio with the new gasoline.
How do you siphon bad gas from a lawnmower?
Avoid using your mouth to siphon gas out of the tank when working with gasoline. Instead, use a manual pump and a hose to prevent swallowing or inhaling the gas.
Leave it to a professional to worry about old gas
Why not hire a lawn service instead of worrying about maintaining lawn equipment and disposing of your old gas? Lawn Love can connect you with a local, highly-rated lawn care pro who can handle the gas in his own mower. In turn, all you need to worry about is keeping gas in your car so you can spend your free time traveling instead of cutting grass.
Main Photo Credit: jdoms | Adobe Stock Free | License
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