White spirit (also known as mineral spirit or paint thinner) is most commonly used by households as part of do-it-yourself projects like decorating. By far the most common application is to clean paint brushes – it’s particularly useful when you’ve been using oil based paints.
White spirit can be disposed of with other solvents at your local tip. Never pour solvents down the sink or toilet as they contaminate the supply and could pose a risk to animals, people or the environment.
As you can see in the image above, there are multiple safety symbols highlighting the hazards posed on the white spirit container (in this case the bottle) – it’s not very pleasant stuff to deal with!
The market for white spirit is huge, but some websites incorrectly quote alcohol for consumption by humans as part of the value of the market. Clearly here we’re talking about white spirit in a DIY sense, and that pales into insignificance against the hundreds of billions of US dollars a year spent on the consumable type of spirits!
Globally, white spirit generates over $6 billion in sales, that’s around £5 billion in sterling. Over time, it’s growing at a rate of approximately 5.5% year on year.
While UK sales account for a relatively small percentage of that total (estimated to be approximately 8% of global sales by unit), that’s still a heck of a lot of chemical liquid to dispose of after use.
What Is White Spirit Used For?
Typically, we buy white spirit (often also referred to as paint thinner or turps, short for turpentine) in clear plastic bottles, usually in either one or two litre sizes. That’s actually a huge amount of the product, and unless you’re a serial decorator or DIY fanatic, it’s likely to last you years if you’re careful and use no more than required.
White spirit is a very effective tool, especially for cleaning paint brushes. You actually need a surprisingly small amount to get the job done after most paint jobs with petroleum based solvents.
Did you know that when you’re using this solvent as a cleaning agent for paint brushes, you can often reuse it over and over rather than disposing of what you’ve used each time? Neither did we until a couple of years ago.
The video is worth a watch to the end, as the demo of ‘cleaning’ the white spirit after cleaning brushes is mind blowing for those of use that had no idea it’s as simple as leaving the paint and thinner to separate.
While that’s not strictly speaking on topic for this page, preventing the need for disposal of paint thinner in the first place may well solve some people’s need to throw it out altogether!
Why Is It Dangerous If Disposed Of Carelessly?
White spirit is a chemical substance that’s toxic for a number of reasons.
From a human health perspective, it can be toxic to just about any part of the body. In particular, if it gets in the eyes or is ingested, you’ll need fast medical advice, and possibly a sharpish dash to A&E to be checked out.
According to the UK government website, exposure to white spirit regularly without following the instructions for safe use has been linked to irritation of the respiratory system, namely the nose, throat and lungs just by breathing the fumes.
As always if in doubt after exposure, consult professional medical advice.
Environmental risks are more the concern with disposal of chemical waste, though, as any leak into the water supply could result in contamination. Although the risk is low, it’s never acceptable to deliberately contaminate the water supply in case it reaches the drinking water of others.
In addition, marine life may be impacted by any spills into nature as a result of chemicals in waste water through the sewage system.
Are White Spirits and Mineral Spirits The Same Thing?
Almost everyone uses the term white spirit in the UK, but elsewhere in the world the terms White Spirits and Mineral Spirit are used to refer to the same product.
Can You Flush White Spirit Down The Toilet?
White spirit is a chemical, to be precise it’s a petroleum hydrocarbon. It’s a substitute for turpentine, although many people erroneously think they’re the same thing. From a disposal perspective, it doesn’t really matter. What’s important is that it is disposed of correctly and responsibly.
You cannot flush white spirit down the toilet because it’s a solvent and is insoluble (does not dissolve in water). Like petrol (it’s petroleum based), it can sit floating on the surface of water. Flushing it down the toilet is not allowed because it contaminates the waste water supply, causing environmental risk.
Just like the toilet, waste water drains away into the sewage system. Just because there’s a different sized pipe draining a sink and a toilet, it doesn’t make it acceptable for either to carry solvents away.
White spirit must not be washed away in the sink, as it contaminates the ground water and poses a risk to wildlife, the environment and even humans after it’s treated and returns to the fresh water supply.
Does White Spirit Damage Pipes?
It’s true to say that white spirit isn’t great for drainage pipework. In particular, solvents can erode rubber joints, making leaks for or between pipes more likely. With that said, the risk is relatively small – the main reason to avoid flushing or washing white spirit away is the hazard it creates in the water.
Can You Put White Spirit In The Bin?
While white spirit in the general waste is less likely to be environmentally harmful than it going down the sink or toilet, it’s not the best way to get rid of unwanted solvents in the household waste.
Do not put white spirit in the normal bin at home. Return it to the original container carefully, and drop it off at the local tip in the relevant hazardous waste containers.
Can You Put White Spirit In The Washing Machine?
There are lots of old wives tales that people still believe to be true, one of which is using white spirit for stain removal or to stop a washing machine from smelling.
White spirit is not suitable for washing machine use because the waste water goes down the drain, and solvents like these must not go into the waste water system.
What’s more, evidence suggests that there are much better products available for stain removal in clothing and the same goes to neutralise smells and clear gunk build ups from washing machines. These are better options as they create less environmental risk in the water that drains away from the machine after use.
How Do I Know If My Tip Takes White Spirit And Other Chemical Waste?
Most councils have tips that accept chemical waste, because the alternative if that residents might use less responsible methods of disposal as detailed above in this article, and even fly tipping.
While you will be likely to have a tip available in your local authority’s area that will accept and recycle solvents for you, that doesn’t mean every HWRC site will do. It’s best to check your local council’s website for details, as they’ll show which tip will accept your chemical waste.
Also check if a fee applies, most areas want to encourage residents to responsibly deal with their waste, so offer services like this for free.
What Should I Do If My Tip Won’t Accept Solvents?
In the few areas where solvents aren’t accepted, you can contact local chemical disposal companies for help.
You can find waste disposal companies in directories like the Yellow Pages if you’ve still got a paper copy from the past, but better still look them up on the internet via Google. Most will need you to drop off waste for them to process (often with a fee), but you might find that there are some local collection service options operating too.
I’m Liam. I spent twenty four years on the bins in South Yorkshire and now spend my time on recycling projects.
I created this site to use my knowledge of how the rounds work, and what people need to know about getting their wheelie bins emptied every week.
