Oil - cooking / vegetable
You can take old cooking oil to your local Household Waste Recycling Centre, but there is a limit of 5 litres of cooking oil per visit. There are no recycling schemes in Cumbria for small volumes of cooking oil generated by households. Small quantities of old cooking oil can be home composted though it`s best to mix well with paper or cardboard first. If you are not able to home compost, you can pour your cooled waste cooking oil into the bottle you bought it in (making sure the lid is on tight) wrap the bottle up in a plastic bag and tie it tightly at the top. It can then go in your general household waste for collection. NEVER pour old cooking oil down the drain as this can cause fatbergs which can block your drains.
Oil - engine
Oil can be recycled at you local Household Waste Recycling Centre. There is a limit of 20 litres of engine oil per visit.
Pouring oil down drains is illegal and burning oil can lead to a £2000 fine. Waste engine oil can easily be recycled. Ask your local garage if they collect it.
Oil /tanks - Domestic heating)
Currently not accepted at the HWRCs. For guidance please telephone the helpline 0300 003 1118. Alternatively please contact your oil supplier for advice.
Organic waste
Most organic household waste can be composted in a home compost bin. More information is available on our home composting pages.