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Solvents: Avoid F-Listed Solvents - If your cleaning solvents contain any of the chemicals shown below, equal to or above 10% before use, they are listed hazardous for disposal. Because of their high flammability, persistence or toxicity, these are hazardous compounds. (Certain mixtures of these may not be F-Waste.)
Look at your MSDS to find these chemicals
| Acetone |
Ethyl ether |
Pyridine |
| Benzene |
Isobutanol |
Tetrachloroethylene |
| Carbon tetrachloride |
Methanol |
Toluene |
| Chlorinated fluorocarbons |
Methylene chloride (dichloromethane) |
1, 1, 1 -trichloroethane |
| Chlorobenzene |
Methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) |
1, 1,2-trichloroethane |
| Cresols and cresylic acid |
Methyl isobutyl keto (MIBK) |
Trichloroethylene |
| Cyclohexane |
n-butyl alcohol |
1,1,2-trichloro-1,2,2,-trifluoroethane |
| 2-ethoxyethanol |
Nitrobenzene |
Trichlorofluoromethane |
| Ethyl acetate |
2-nitropropane |
Xylene |
| Ethyl benzene |
Ortho-dichlorobenzene |
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- Changing to water based inks will eliminate the need for these solvents. If you cannot change to water based inks, work with your vendors and suppliers to find safer solvent alternatives.
- Don't saturate towels with solvents and use cloth shop towels that can be laundered, not discarded.
- Store solvents and used shop towels away from dryers and other heat sources. Keep used towels in closed metal containers away from haze and emulsion removers containing sodium metaperiodate crystals.
- Use pump bottles or plunger cans for solvent.
Reuse and Recycle:
- Remove excess ink with a scraper or spatula before wiping with a shop towel. Put the carded off ink back into the original ink container for reuse, or into a waste ink container for proper recycling/disposal.
- Recycle cardboard and other bulk material. Less waste in the dumpster means lower disposal costs.
- Purchase frequently used materials in bulk to minimize container waste.
- Recycle spent solvents and scrap film.
- Used fixer has a silver quantity exceeding hazardous waste discharge limits and should be treated, sent to an off-site collection service or larger business that has silver recovery equipment or reclaimed using a minimum of two chemical recovery cartridges in series, on site.
Separate wastes, label containers and put containers in one area.
- Examples: Waste Ink Only; Used Shop Towels Only; Used Fixer Only; and Scrap Film Only.
For more information, visit the following pages in the VA SBAP web site:
SOURCE:
The Virginia Office of Small Business Assistance would like to thank the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, Pollution Prevention Unit for the use of this fact sheet. Information for this fact sheet was obtained from the City of Austin Solid Waste Services.