Battery recycling FAQs

What is the battery collection service?

From Monday 3 April 2023, we will be introducing a free weekly collection for your household batteries, which enables you to put out your old batteries in a small clear plastic bag to be recycled and placed in your black recycling box.

What types of batteries can I put in my recycling box?

You may put in your bag all old or wanted household batteries, such as AAA, AA, B, C, D, DD and 9V batteries.

What types of batteries should I not put in my recycling box?

Please don’t put the following types of batteries in your bag for us to collect:

• Lithium-ion ‘button’ batteries, such as those used in calculators, hearing aids and watches
• E-cigarette and vape pen batteries
• Chargeable batteries from laptops, mobile phones, power tools and vacuum cleaners
• Car batteries
• Battery chargers

If you need to get rid of these types of batteries, please take them to the Household Recycling Centre.

Why are you not collecting certain types of batteries?

We’re not collecting the following types of batteries for the reasons noted below.

Lithium-ion ‘button’ batteries, such as those used in calculators, hearing aids and watches

To collect these types of batteries safely, residents would need to follow a strict instruction to wrap a piece of sticky tape (such as Sellotape) around them before putting them out for us to collect. If this isn’t done, or the tape fails to cover the batteries’ ‘connections’ allowing their ‘terminals’ to make contact with other batteries, it could cause a potentially dangerous electrical discharge resulting in a spark or fire.

E-cigarette and vape pen batteries

Most e-cigarette and vape pen batteries are sealed (or ‘embedded’) inside the e-cigarette or vape pen, and therefore can’t be removed.

Chargeable batteries from laptops, mobile phones, power tools and vacuum cleaners

We’re unable to guarantee we’d have enough space on our vehicles to collect these types of batteries in addition to other smaller household batteries, such as AAA, AA, B, C, D, DD and 9V batteries.

Car batteries

Car batteries are generally large and heavy, which means we wouldn’t have enough space on our vehicles to collect these types of batteries. They’re also contain hazardous lead acid that often leaks, which is dangerous for our staff and can damage our vehicles.

Battery chargers

Like chargeable batteries from laptops, mobile phones, power tools and vacuum cleaners (noted above), we’re unable to guarantee we’d have enough space on our vehicles to collect these types of items alongside other smaller household batteries, such as AAA, AA, B, C, D, DD and 9V batteries.

If you need to get rid of these types of batteries, please take them to the Household Recycling Centre

Why do the batteries need to be separated into a plastic bag?

When batteries are recycled with other recyclable materials, such as plastics and cans, they can explode or cause fires, which is dangerous for our staff, cause damage to recycling processing equipment, and is bad for the environment.

Find out more about the dangers of collecting batteries mixed with other materials.

What happens to my batteries once you collect them?

Once collected, your old batteries will be sorted then shredded to recover the raw materials used to make them, including nickel, zinc, cadmium and lithium. These materials will be recycled to create new products, such as electronics or new batteries. The recovered lithium could even be used to power electric cars!

How should I correctly dispose of old e-cigarettes and vape pens?

E-cigarettes and vape pens contain many different parts and should be recycled at the Household Recycling Centre.

Last Modified: 02/05/2024 Back to top