Take leftover methylated spirits to a free NSW EPA Household Chemical CleanOut, where solvents are on the list of chemicals accepted. Until then, don't pour it down the sink or a drain, or put it in any of your household bins. It's a highly flammable liquid with a flash point of 13°C, so store it with care until the day.
Last updated: November 2026
What's in a bottle of methylated spirits?
Metho is mostly ethanol. The Diggers Safety Data Sheet puts it at 95% ethanol or more, with up to 5% water. That's a lot of alcohol, and the SDS rates both the liquid and its vapour as highly flammable.
The rest is a denaturant, made of a few additives in tiny amounts. In the Diggers product those are methyl isobutyl ketone at 0.25% and traces of denatonium benzoate and fluorescein. None of them is there in a high enough amount to add a hazard of its own. So the risks you're managing when you get rid of it are the ethanol's: it catches fire easily, and its vapour builds up.
Methylated spirits safety facts
- The flash point is 13°C, according to the Diggers SDS (2022). The Carchem SDS (2017) gives the same figure.
- Its vapour is about 1.6 times as heavy as air (Diggers SDS, 2022).
- In air, the vapour can ignite at any concentration from 3.5% to 19% (Diggers SDS, 2022).
- Fully evaporated, one litre of a flammable liquid can turn into as much as 5,000 litres of explosive vapour mixed with air (SafeWork NSW, checked November 2026).
- For transport it's an Australian Dangerous Goods Class 3 liquid, UN number 1170, packing group II (Diggers SDS, 2022).
- It's a Schedule 5 poison under the national poisons standard, the SUSMP (Diggers SDS, 2022; Carchem SDS, 2017).
How to dispose of methylated spirits, step by step
- Use up what you can. Diggers gives its recommended use as a cleaning solvent, so the last bit in a bottle can go on your next cleaning job. A bottle you've emptied that way is one less thing to drop off.
- Take the rest to a Household Chemical CleanOut. The EPA runs these as free drive-thru events, and solvents and household cleaners are on its list of accepted chemicals. You can bring up to 20 litres or 20 kilograms of a single item. Events run on set dates, so look up the next one on the EPA's finder at epa.nsw.gov.au/cleanout. How the day itself works is in our guide to the Household Chemical CleanOut in Sydney.
- A Community Recycling Centre is a maybe. NSW has more than 100 of these permanent drop-off centres, and their standard list covers paint, oils, batteries, gas bottles, smoke detectors, fire extinguishers and fluoro globes and tubes. Solvents aren't on the standard list, so a centre will only take metho if it accepts extra items, and it may charge for them. The EPA's own advice is to bring household chemicals to a CleanOut.
- Pack it for the drive. It rides in the boot, away from passengers. Keep it in its own labelled bottle with nothing else poured in, since mixing chemicals can set off a dangerous reaction. Our CleanOut guide has the rest of the packing list.
Why it can't go down the drain or in the bin
Sydney Water's rule for the sink fits on one line. Anything other than water, detergent and soap isn't safe to put down it.
Metho is also hard on waterways. The Diggers SDS expects it to harm fish, aquatic invertebrates and microorganisms, and to be toxic to algae. It is biodegradable. Even so, the same document tells users to prevent a spill getting into a waterway, with sand or earth as a barrier if that's what it takes.
Planet Ark's Recycling Near You is blunter about chemicals. They should never be poured down the drain or toilet, it says, and never go in your recycling or garbage bin at home.
Storing methylated spirits until the next CleanOut
CleanOuts come around on set dates, which means a bottle can sit in the garage for a while first. Keep the cap screwed down tight. Store it in a well-ventilated spot, out of the sun and away from heat, hot surfaces and other ignition sources like sparks and open flames, and keep it out of reach of children. Placement matters, because the vapour gathers in low or confined spaces.
If some spills
Act fast after an accidental spill. Turn off or remove anything nearby that could light it, such as a heater or a pilot light, and then open the doors and windows to air the space out. Put on solvent-resistant protective gloves (nitrile if you'll be at it for more than a quick wipe) and safety goggles, and avoid breathing the vapour in. Then soak it up with an absorbent material and put that in a labelled container you can seal, and allow any thin film that's left to evaporate. That sealed container goes to the CleanOut along with the bottle.
Packing up a workshop or an old garage?
Paul can take the metho along with everything else in there, because we handle hazardous waste, and Paul's team does all the lifting. There's no load limit. Book before midday and Paul can usually be there the same day. Call 0407 125 125, or see hard rubbish removal.
