[sdiy] disposing of used etchant, was:PCB houses

[Ben Lincoln]

I believe it's both.

Most major cities in the US (or at least over here on the Left Coast) 
should have some sort of household hazardous waste disposal site or 
service that can be taken advantage of. I grew up in a rural area and 
once or twice a year the government would set up a temporary station 
where everyone could drop off their unwanted chemicals and batteries and 
whatnot. I live in a city now, and there are permanent collection sites 
in various locations. You have to call first to set up an appointment, 
but it's free. Years ago I even got them to take (without a fuss) some 
unlabeled glass bottles full of lab-strength acids or bases that an 
ex-roommate abandoned. Copper etchant has to be a much more 
commonly-deposited item than something like that, since it's used for 
jewelry as well as circuit boards.

Ingo Debus wrote:
> I'm not a chemist, but as far as I know the problem with used etchant 
> is not that it is not neutral. It's the copper (ions) that are bad for 
> the environment.