How Do You Dispose & Recycle Your Old Gas Grill?

Use these guidelines to prepare your old gas grill before sending it to recycling or proper disposal.

Proper care and maintenance of your gas grill’s parts will keep it running for a long time. When you need to get rid of your old grill, we strongly recommend using responsible disposal methods such as recycling, donating, and other creative eco-friendly methods.

Be sure to clean your old gas grill thoroughly before taking it to a recycling center for disposal. By following the guidelines below you’ll have your old grill ready for proper disposal in no time!

How to Prepare Your Old Gas Grill for Recycling

⚠️ WARNING: Be extremely careful! Both the gas and flame are highly dangerous. NEVER turn the knob on full blast or use a large flame to light the grill.

While these are practical general guidelines for preparing your old gas grill for recycling or disposal, it is strongly recommended to hire a professional to safely dispose of your old gas grill for you before attempting any of these steps.

Propane tanks are technically considered hazardous waste. Check with your local government for specific laws in your area before disposing of an old propane tank.

Some states and municipalities have strict regulations about proper propane tank disposal. These laws can include rules about where you can store used or unused tanks, such as whether you can put them in your garage, under your porch, or in your shed.

Propane tanks can usually be reused through propane tank exchange programs. If you are in need of propane tank disposal, you can take it to a propane gas dealer. A scrap metal recycler cannot safely perform propane tank disposal, due to residual gas in the empty tank.

Before you can move on to propane tank disposal and recycling, you’ll need to make sure the tank is completely emptied of any gas.

First, check to see if there is still any propane left in the tank. If your old gas grill still works and isn’t damaged, you can check to see if the propane tank is completely empty by slightly turning the knob on to the burner on your gas grill.

You should be able to smell the gas once you turn the knob. Next, check to see if the grill lights like it usually does when you light a match by the burner.

If the grill doesn’t ignite right away or you can’t smell the gas, DO NOT continue trying to light it. Your propane tank may still be releasing gas and just not getting through to the burner. Continuing to repeatedly turn the knob and light a match is just begging for a blazing catastrophe to happen.

The safest way to do make sure your propane tank is properly discharged is to have this step performed by a professional. Check for highly rated propane dealers in your area by doing a Google search or checking the Yellow Pages.

If you don’t have a propane dealer in your area who offers these services, you can check with your local fire department, gas company, or hazardous waste specialists.

Before taking your propane tank to have it emptied, you’ll need to safely remove it from your old grill. To do this, cap the lines, turn off the tank valve and loosen the bolts that attach the propane tank to the grill.

Never store a propane tank indoors, as this can be very dangerous and is even illegal in many areas.

⚠️ WARNING: DO NOT try to empty a propane tank by turning the valve and letting the gas escape. This is extremely dangerous and will cause the area to become highly flammable.

Since rubber cannot be recycled, cut the hose from the tank connector and the grill burners then dispose of it in the regular trash collection.

Gas valves can be removed and recycled as scrap metal since they are usually made of brass or aluminum.

The body of your old gas grill made up mostly of recyclable metals such as steel, stainless steel, and aluminum. These metals can be recycled as scrap metal and then melted down and used in the construction of new products and materials.

If the handles on the lid of your old gas grill are made of plastic that does not have the recycle logo on it, they will need to be thrown away with the regular trash. Otherwise, they can be recycled with other recyclable plastics.

Just like with the grill body, your old gas grill’s lid can likely be recycled as scrap metal if it is made of aluminum, steel, or stainless steel.

Side shelves made of plastic must have the recycle logo imprinted on them to be recycled. Otherwise, they will need to be thrown away. If your old grill’s shelves are made of metal, they can be recycled as scrap.

Any electronics such as ignition wires and electric controllers, as well as any batteries, will have to be disposed of with regular household electronics. Many cities hold free e-waste recycling drop-off events. Check your community papers and message boards to find out when and where they will be held in your area.

If the gas control knobs are made of black plastic, they can likely be recycled. Otherwise, they will need to be thrown away, even if they appear to be made of metal.

Casters should be thrown away with your regular garbage. Usually, plastic wheels can be recycled with other recyclable plastics.

As you can see, an old gas grill can be hard to get rid of. So, leaving it beside a dumpster or on the curb might be a tempting solution. However, most garbage services won’t pick up heavy, bulky items. Plus, you can expect to get a citation along with a heavy fine for not disposing of it properly.

Since grills are made mostly of metal, they can easily be recycled as scrap. The recycled scrap metal can then be reused in the production of any number of items containing the same type of metal. Recycling your old gas grill is a great way to help cut down on landfill waste and energy use, but you’ll have to haul it to a recycling facility yourself.

You can skip the hassle and frustration of disposing of your old gas grill and hire a professional junk removal service to pick it up and recycle or dispose of it for you. These companies charge a fee for pick-up and haul-away, but the time and energy you save are worth it.

LoadUp offers on-demand junk removal at a price 20-30% lower than most other junk haulers. LoadUp also donates or recycles the items they pick up, keeping your old grill out of the local landfill and off the streets.

LoadUp provides you with an upfront price before you even book your pickup, and there’s no on-site estimate needed. Unlike other junk haulers, they won’t increase the price when they arrive or tack on hidden fees.

LoadUp also offers pickups nationwide as soon as the next day and can pick up your old gas grill from the curb so you don’t have to wait around for them to get rid of your old grill!

All of LoadUp’s contracted pickup and disposal professionals are fully background-checked and are insured for up to $1 million. Once your removal team is on the way, you get real-time tracking via text message. After your pickup is completed, you’ll receive an email with a link to rate and review their services.

Saying Goodbye to Your Old Grill

While it may be hard to say “goodbye” to your old grill, remember that LoadUp can make it a lot less painful!

Since you’re getting rid of your old gas grill, if you’re in the market for a new one, check out our article on How to Buy the Perfect Grill.