Guides · 2026-08-12

# How to dispose of lithium-ion batteries safely

Lithium-ion batteries power phones, tools, e-bikes, scooters, and power banks. They are also a leading cause of fires in garbage trucks and recycling facilities when they are thrown in the trash or blue bin. U.S. cities increasingly ban loose lithium batteries from both carts.

If you only have alkaline AAs, see household batteries. Car lead-acid batteries are different — see car battery disposal.

Why lithium is different

Damaged or loose lithium cells can short, thermal-runaway, and ignite mixed trash. Compactors crush packs. That is why “just one battery in the trash” is a real facility risk, not a lecture.

Safe prep before you leave the house

• Place each battery or device in a non-metal container
• **Tape exposed terminals** on loose cells and power-tool packs
• Keep swollen, punctured, or wet batteries away from other flammables — many HHW sites want them called out at the gate
• Do not toss loose cells into a bag with keys, coins, or other batteries

For phones and laptops, a full device drop-off at an e-waste site is often safer than digging the pack out yourself.

Where to take them

Retail drop boxes

Home-improvement, electronics, and some grocery chains host battery boxes. Check whether they accept **rechargeable / lithium** vs alkaline only. Tool-brand pack recycling programs exist for many cordless platforms — ask the tool desk.

Household hazardous waste

County HHW is the reliable backstop for damaged packs, large power-tool batteries, and e-bike batteries that retail boxes refuse. Call about size limits before you haul an e-bike pack.

E-waste collection

Devices with embedded packs often ride with e-waste. Confirm the site wants batteries left installed or removed.

E-bike and scooter packs

These are high-energy packs. Do not curb them. Use manufacturer take-back, specialty battery recyclers, or HHW guidance. Fire risk is higher when packs have been water-damaged or previously overheated.

What not to do

• Put lithium batteries in trash or recycling
• Charge a swollen pack “one more time”
• Store damaged packs on a wood shelf above a workbench without a fire-safe plan
• Ship damaged lithium without following carrier dangerous-goods rules
• Throw power-tool packs in a construction dumpster

How to use DumpRegistry

• Open lithium-ion battery or search lithium battery drop-off
• City HHW guides: Irvine, Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas

If a pack is actively smoking or hot, treat it as an emergency — outdoors on non-flammable ground and call local emergency guidance — not as a recycling errand.

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