Wood
Each UK citizen consumes on average one tonne of wood a year.
Our recycling / disposal advice
If unwanted wooden furniture is still in good condition, then a furniture recycling project may be interested in collecting it (see recycling search), so that it can be passed on to people on low incomes for reuse.
The collected wood is recycled and made into particle board.
The 'clean' wood containers accept clean virgin timber only i.e. clean timber that has not been treated or heavily painted.
Any timber with nails or screws is fine - they will be magnetically extracted and recycled.
Other 'dirty' wood, including chipboard and painted wood can now be recycled at most HWRCs, (but can still go in the normal waste container at other HWRCs), depending on how it was generated (as it may be Construction & Demolition waste). Before making your journey to the site please read the Construction & Demolition Waste guidance to see if it will be accepted.
MDF and chipboard can not currently be mixed with the wood in the 'clean' virgin timber container, as it will reduce the quality of the recycled material.
Any attached glass must be removed as it can not be accepted in the wood bin.
Place the wood in the allocated container at the Household Waste Recycling Centre. If you are unsure about where to put your wood, or whether the material should go into the 'clean' or 'dirty' wood container, please ask the site operative.
Use the search below to find where to recycle / dispose of Wood.