Once a project is completed, and you are cleaning everything up, you notice a half-used container of drywall mud. You know you have no use for it as this project will be your last one for a while, and you do not want to store it in your garage.
So, what do you do with it? How do you dispose of drywall mud?
Two ways to dispose of drywall mud; take it to your local C&D and drop it with them, they will charge you a fee, or you can throw it away with your household garbage. Talk to your local waste management before you throw it out with your garbage. 2016 drywall mud needs to be treated with caution.
What is the best way to dispose of dried drywall mud? How do you get rid of drywall mud dust? Why is 2016 drywall mud dangerous? Let us find out!
How Do You Dispose of Drywall Mud?
Once you have completed your project requiring drywall, you may find that you have excess drywall leftover that you do not know what to do with or how to dispose of correctly. There are two main ways that you can dispose of your leftover drywall mud.
No matter which way you choose, you need to ensure you follow your state’s local disposal guidelines. Let us go through the two main disposal methods available to you.
Take It to a C&D Drop-Off
In general, drywall mud does not contain any hazardous ingredients or chemicals. However, it is a better idea to take your leftover drywall mud to a C&D (construction and demolition) location and leave it with the professionals there.
Most of the C&D sites will charge a small fee for taking the drywall mud off your hands, which is usually charged depending on the size of the bag. If you want to know what your closest C&D is and what they will charge you for taking your drywall mud, then you can look them up online for more details.
If you wish to use this method of disposing of your drywall mud, you will need to bag the mud in a durable bag that will not break under the weight as it can be pretty heavy.
Throw It Away with Your Garbage
If you do not want to go through the hassle of going to a C&D and paying for them to take your drywall mud, it is legal and safe for you to dispose of it with your regular household garbage.
But this can turn into a problem for the waste disposal workers, so you can approach it in two ways if you want to help them out.
The first way you can do this is to chat with your local waste disposal people the next time they come through to pick up the garbage. This way, they will know about it beforehand and deal with it correctly according to their regulations.
If you cannot speak to your waste management people, then you can split up your drywall mud into small amounts and add one bit into your household garbage every week until it is all thrown away.
When to Take Drywall Mud to a HHW Center
There are some concerns over some drywall mud that was made at a specific time. Professional businesses do not sell drywall mud from 2016 as this was created with either sulfur, mercury, volatile organic compounds, or all three of them.
If you check the label of your drywall mud or from the drywall mud you may have purchased from a third party, and the label says it was made in 2016, you should throw it away and not use it, but you cannot follow the disposal methods mentioned above.
In 2016, new regulations were put in place to protect the environment and you. For this drywall mud, you need to take it to an HHW (Household Hazardous Waste) center so that it can be disposed of correctly.
How Do You Dispose of Dried Drywall Mud?
Suppose you need to break down old drywall mud for one of your projects, and you need to dispose of the dried drywall mud; what do you do?
Well, this will depend on what the production year of that dried drywall mud was. If the drywall mud was produced in 2016, you need to take it to an HHW center for disposal. But if the drywall mud was made after this time, then the previously mentioned options are your best choice.
However, if the drywall mud still has chunks of other material attached, you need to take it to a C&D for disposal and not throw it away with your garbage.
How Do You Dispose of Drywall Mud Dust?
When working with drywall, at some point, you are going to have to deal with some drywall mud dust. If you can, the best way to deal with this dust is to use a broom and sweep it up, then place the dust into a plastic bag and throw it away with your regular household garbage.
There is an exception if you are dealing with dust from drywall mud that was made in 2016. If this is the dust you are working with, then you need to proceed with caution. If you do not, according to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), you can suffer from respiratory tract irritation along with other breathing issues.
If this 2016 drywall mud contains a chemical called silica, you could develop lung cancer from breathing it in. you need to be extremely careful dealing with this product.
Using a Vacuum
No matter how inviting it might be to pull out your vacuum to deal with the drywall mud dust, it is not recommended that you do this as you may ruin your household vacuum. The drywall mud dust will clog your vacuum.
If you have access to a shop vac, this will handle the drywall mud dust perfectly well. If you do not vacuum up any hazardous materials, you can just throw the vacuum bag away with your regular garbage.
Safety Measures When Disposing of Drywall Mud
When working with any form of drywall mud, you need to ensure that you follow the safety precautions as per regulations, especially if dealing with 2016 drywall mud.
Some safety measures include wearing proper working gloves, using a respirator, wearing long pants and a long-sleeve shirt, and wearing closed-toe shoes.
You do not need this protective gear if you carry an unopened drywall mud container, but if the container is open, everyone who comes close to it will need it.
Final Thoughts
Disposing of drywall mud can be a pretty easy task and usually does not require any unique method, but if you are dealing with drywall mud from 2016, then you need to take extreme caution as this can be harmful to your health.
If you have any concerns with the drywall mud you have, you should contact your local C&D for advice.
I have a bachelor’s degree in construction engineering. When I’m not constructing or remodeling X-Ray Rooms, Cardiovascular Labs, and Pharmacies…I’m at home with my wife, two daughters and a dog. Outside of family, I love grilling and barbequing on my Big Green Egg and working on projects around the house.