Recycling Center

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HOURS: The Middleton Recycling Center is located at 4330 Parmenter Street (next to the Municipal Operations Center) and is open year-round on Saturday mornings (excluding major holidays) from 8am to noon and Wednesday evenings (May - September) from 5:30 - 7:00PM. The phone number is: 608-821-8390 (answered only during open hours).   

THE RECYCLING CENTER IS FOR USE BY CITY OF MIDDLETON RESIDENTS ONLY (BE PREPARED TO SHOW ID TO PROVE RESIDENCY)

STAFF AT THE RECYCLING CENTER ARE NOT ABLE TO ASSIST IN UNLOADING RECYCLED ITEMS

FEES: Unless specified, there is no cost to recycle the items listed below. Items requiring a fee we can be paid by cash, check, or credit card. There is an additional 3.5% charge for credit card transactions.  Electronic check transactions have an additional $1.15 charge.

ITEMS THAT CAN BE RECYCLED:

Batteries (Rechargeable) - $1 per pound; Large Lead Acid - $10 each

NOT ACCEPTED: alkaline, zinc, and button batteries.

Block Styrofoam (#6) - Packaging material used to protect TVs and other electronic items during shipping. Block Styrofoam is the type of foam that can be broken into pieces. Clean Styrofoam food containers are acceptable for recycling. Please remove all tape and labels from Styrofoam pieces and break larger pieces into smaller ones. 

NOT ACCEPTED: #4 polyethylene foam, foam insulation board or packing material, packing peanuts, Styrofoam with food contamination 

Books - in good condition, without water damage or mold. No textbooks, encyclopedias, or dictionaries.

CDs/DVDs, Disks, VHS, Audio & Computer Tapes - $1 per pound

Corrugated Cardboard - large corrugated cardboard boxes that won’t fit in blue bin for curbside pick-up.  Corrugated cardboard has three layers including a wavy inner layer. All boxes must be flattened.

NOT ACCEPTED: paper or newspaper, cardboard tubes, hard cardboard packing materials, pizza boxes, cereal boxes 

Durable Medical Equipment - wheelchairs, crutches, walkers, etc.

Electronics- No fee (except as noted below) for all types of computers, cell phones, iPods, tablets, radios, wires, toasters, fans, vacuums (bags removed), hairdryers, etc.

$40 each - TVs over 27" and council TVs (broken TVs not accepted)
$20 each - TVs 27" and smaller (broken TVs not accepted), fridges (dorm size or smaller), window A/C units, dehumidifiers, water coolers.  
$10 each - CRT (cathode ray tube) computer monitors; all-in-one computers
$5 each - microwaves

NOT ACCEPTED: carbon monoxide detectors; broken or disassembled TVs and CRT monitors; rear projection TVs; electric heaters with oil; thermostats with mercury; ballasts with PCBs; CFLs and fluorescent tubes; lightbulbs.

Electric/Battery Lawn Mowers and Snow Blowers - $10 each

Eyeglasses

Hard Plastics - plastic lawn chairs/furniture, children's play slides, toddler toys, 5-gallon buckets, lawn edging, crates, plant nursery pots and trays, drainage pipes/tubing, etc.  Items must be 100% plastic, no metal. 

Motor Oil & Filters - located just outside the recycling center, open at all times.  

NOT ACCEPTED: cooking oil and other liquids and chemicals

Plastic Bags (WRAP Recycling) - plastic retail bags, food storage bags (sandwich and Ziploc), produce bags (fruit and vegetable), dry cleaning bags, case wrap, bread bags, air pillow packaging, paper products wrap 

NOT ACCEPTED: non-transparent plastic bags such as salt, frozen food, fertilizer, and pesticides; shower curtains; tarps; bubble wrap

Printer Cartridges and Toner

Scrap Metals - Items must be at least 80% metal.

NOT ACCEPTED: fuel containers

Shoes in good condition.

Small Gas Engines - lawnmowers, weed trimmers, snow blowers.  All small engines must be drained of gas and oil with the spark plug wire disconnected.

Smoke Detectors (ionization type) - $15 each

Terracycle Items 

Brita® brand products including pitchers, dispensers, bottles, faucet systems, filters and filter packaging. 

Colgate brand or any brand of oral care products including toothpaste tubes and caps, toothbrushes, toothbrush and toothpaste tube outer packaging, floss containers.

Textiles - clothing, fabric, sleeping bags, curtains, etc. (clean and in good condition).

Wood (Raw) - pallets, plywood, scrap wood (nail are okay).  

NOT ACCEPTED: particle board; treated, painted or stained wood; engineered wood

FreeCycle - The Recycling Center has an area designated for reusable items. Dropped-off items must be in good condition and clean. See attendant before dropping off or picking up items. You must sign a waiver if taking an item from FreeCycle.

ITEMS NOT ACCEPTED (general list) - broken or disassembled TVs and CRT monitors; CO detectors; ballasts with PCBs; electric heaters with oil thermostats; alkaline, zinc, and button batteries; CFLs and fluorescent tubes (lightbulbs); treated, painted, stained, or engineered wood; propane cylinders and tanks; furniture; mattresses; windows or other glass items; cardboard tubes and other cardboard packing materials; pizza boxes; packing peanuts and foam packing materials; non-transparent plastic bags such as salt, frozen food, fertilizer and pesticide bags; plastic items such as shower curtains, tarps, and bubble wrap; liquids such as paint, chemicals, antifreeze, non-motor oil automotive fluids (like transmission fluid), cleaning products.

The City of Middleton has partnered with leading local and national recycling companies to ensure responsible and ethical disposal of all recyclable materials. Fees for some items may fluctuate due to market conditions. The City is working to collect additional items for recycling as options become available.

For recycling options of materials not listed above, please consult the City’s Trash & Recycling Guide.

If you have a quality item please consider making it available to others for reuse, instead of throwing away or recycling it. Many local charities, organizations and websites dedicated to reuse of quality items are listed on page 10 of the City’s Trash & Recycling Guide. For instance, if you have quality construction materials consider donating them to Habitat for Humanity. Other items can be reused simply by listing them on a free web service such as www.FreeCycle.org, www.MadisonStuffExchange.com, or Craigslist.org. If listing something on a web site note that it helps to include a photo or two of the item you’re making available.

For additional questions, please contact:
The Middleton Recycling Center at (608) 821-8390 (phone answered only during open hours); or
Kelly Hilyard, Sustainability Coordinator, via Email or at (608) 821-8362 or (217) 357-1860.