AlarmRecycle is a recycling program for used or expired smoke alarms, carbon monoxide (CO) alarms and combination smoke & CO alarms. Since October 1, 2011, BC residents have been able to drop off their smoke and CO alarms for recycling at AlarmRecycle drop-off locations across BC. The program is managed by Product Care Association.

Refer to the Find a Depot page or call 1-800-667-4321 to find your nearest drop-off location. Each AlarmRecycle location has a drop box available for recycling smoke and CO alarms – free of charge. The maximum limit for return at one time is 40 smoke or CO alarms. If you have more than 40 units, please contact Product Care Association and we will arrange to pick them up free of charge.

Products accepted free of charge at drop-off locations:

• Smoke alarms
• Carbon monoxide (CO) alarms
• Combination smoke & CO alarms

For more information, please refer to the Accepted Products page.

The maximum limit for return at one time is 40 smoke or CO alarms. If you have more than 40 units, please contact Product Care Association and we will arrange to pick them up free of charge.

After you bring your smoke or CO alarm to an AlarmRecycle drop-off location, it is transported to a recycler for processing and then broken down into different parts. The resulting materials are then recycled as much as possible. We continue to work with recyclers to maximize the amount of materials
that can be recycled. Any materials requiring special handling are managed according to all applicable provincial and federal regulations.

The program intends to have a province-wide collection system in place and efforts to fill existing collection gaps are ongoing. Please hold on to your used or expired smoke and CO alarms until a collection site is established in or near your community. For other disposal options, call the Recycling Hotline at 604.732.9253 in the Lower Mainland and 1.800.667.4321 in the rest of BC.

The program does not accept devices that perform only the detection function and not the alarm function, e.g. a smoke and/or CO detector unit connected to a building-wide monitoring or alarm system. These types of units are typically installed in commercial buildings and are outside the scope of this program. These types of units are defined by the CAN/ULC-s529 standard.

For disposal options for products that are not accepted in the program, call the Recycling Hotline at 604.732.9253 in the Lower Mainland and 1.800.667.4321 in the rest of BC.

AlarmRecycle is a non-profit program funded entirely by recycling fees (“eco-fees”) applied to the sale of smoke and CO alarms in BC. The fees fund the collection, transportation, recycling and safe disposal of returned products, as well as program administration and communication. The fees may be included in the product price or displayed as a separate charge at check-out. In some stores you may see the words eco-fee, environmental handling fee, or recycling fee on your receipt.

The recycling fee is NOT a government tax. No part of the fee is remitted to the government, though HST is applied to the recycling fee.

The recycling fee covers all program costs, including the collection, transportation and recycling of smoke and CO alarms.

All collected fees stay in the AlarmRecycle program and provide British Columbians with an environmentally responsible recycling option for their old and expired smoke and CO alarms.

The recycling fee is NOT a government tax. No part of the fee is remitted to the government, though HST is applied to the recycling fee.

The recycling fee is not a deposit, so you won’t get a refund when you recycle a smoke or CO alarm. However, there is no charge to drop off your smoke and CO alarms at any AlarmRecycle drop-off location.

For more information on the AlarmRecycle program, please contact Daniela at daniela@productcare.org or 604-592-2972 ext. 216.