Reminder: the following service is for City of Escondido residents only
- If you live outside the City of Escondido, call 1-877-713-2784 for County of San Diego Residents Hazardous Household Waste hotline.
- City of Escondido residents, click here to schedule an appointment at our household hazardous waste facility.
Hazardous waste in my home?
There are many types of hazardous waste in the average home. Items such as batteries, paint, drain cleaners and bleach can hurt our environment if not disposed of properly.
How can I reduce household hazardous waste (HHW) in my home?
USE IT UP! If you use all of a product with hazardous ingredients in accordance with label directions, there is no HHW to manage. Containers that once held a hazardous product are not considered HHW if they are completely empty. If you can't use it up, see if someone else can use the remaining product.
Where can I dispose of HHW?
For your convenience, we operate a household hazardous waste facility located at 1044 West Washington Avenue in Escondido (see map).
This facility is open on an appointment-only basis, two Saturdays per month. Please click here or call (760) 745-3203 between 8am and 5pm, Monday – Friday to find out the available dates and schedule an appointment. This will ensure that we efficiently process and serve our customers. When you arrive for your appointment, use the center express lane and follow it all the way to the back of our facility. Do not stop at scales.
For more information please call (760) 745-3203 or click here to schedule an appointment.
 Important Information on Sharps Waste
New State Regulations
Beginning on September 1, 2008, State law (Section 118286 of the California Health and Safety Code) makes it illegal to dispose of sharps waste in the trash or recycling containers, and requires that all sharps waste be transported to a collection center in an approved sharps container.
Section 117671 of the California Health and Safety Code defines "home-generated sharps waste" as hypodermic needles, pen needles, intravenous needles, lancets, and other devices that are used to penetrate the skin for the delivery of medications derived from a household, including a multifamily residence or household.
In addition to prohibiting the disposal of sharps waste in the trash, the Medical Waste Management Act requires home-generated sharps to be placed in approved containers for transport and disposal. Home-generated sharps should not be disposed of in bleach bottles, soda containers, or detergent containers. Instead, users should store the sharps waste in red bio-hazardous containers for easy identification.
Bio-hazard containers are available for purchase by consumers. Additionally, some jurisdictions have containers available at no cost. Information can be found at county health websites.
Bio-hazard containers can be disposed of in one of four ways:
- Taken to a local household hazardous waste facility;
- Taken to a medical waste generator facility (hospitals, clinics, or doctors’ offices);
- Shipped through a mail-back program;
- Taken to an approved home-generated sharps waste collection location.
To find a location to properly dispose of home-generated sharps, go to the California Integrated Waste Management Board’s Medical Waste Disposal Directory.
For more information, visit CIWMB's Sharps web page.
Click here for detailed information about the new state regulations.
Important Notice – Universal Waste
As of February 9, 2006, state regulations require that homeowners dispose of universal waste by taking them to a certified household hazardous waste collection facility.
 Click here for detailed information about the new state regulations.
The following universal wastes may not be placed out for curbside collection or disposed of in a bin/container meant for solid waste:
- Common Batteries – AA, AAA, D cells, C cells and button batteries (e.g. hearing aid batteries)
- Fluorescent tubes and bulbs including mercury containing lamps
 Electronic Devices – televisions, computers and computer monitors, printers, VCR’s, cell phones, telephones, radios and microwave ovens
- Pilot Light Sensors – Mercury containing switches are found in some gas appliances such as stoves, ovens, clothes dryers, water heaters, furnaces and space heaters
- Items containing Mercury – Gauges, thermometers, thermostats and switches
- Non-Empty aerosol cans that contain hazardous materials – cans that are labeled with TOXIC or FLAMMABLE that are not completely empty
For more information please call (760) 745-3203 or click here to schedule an appointment.
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