Motor oil in Montgomery County, MD — unofficial (≤5 gal pavilion · filters · empty bottles → trash)

Hours, fees, and gates change. Confirm on the official page the morning you go. This page is unofficial and not the county. Not a hauler. Holiday names and holiday clock hours: not stated. Separate pavilion-tank clock: not stated. Motor oil is not the vegetable-oil tank — and empty plastic motor oil bottles are trash, not blue-bin recycling.

Which kind is it?

1. 1

   Resident, ≤5 gallons, unmixed motor oil / most other oils / hydraulic fluid / kerosene?

   Pavilion tanks · Recycling Area center

   Shady Grove Processing Facility and Transfer Station. Go to the Recycling Area; collection containers are in the center under the pavilion; pour into the appropriate labeled container. No charge. Do not mix with any other fluids so it can be recycled. Fees page: motor oil accepted only from residents. Cap: up to 5 gallons (per-visit vs per-month: not stated). Facility clock: Mon–Sat 7 a.m.–5 p.m.; Sun 9 a.m.–5 p.m. commercial entrance only. Separate pavilion clock: not stated.

2. 2

   Need more than 5 gallons?

   Used Oil Disposal Exemption Form · staff review

   How Do I: certain residential and Over the Road (OTR) vehicle owners may apply using the Used Oil Disposal Exemption Form. Staff review whether the exemption is justified. Do not show up over the cap and hope. What counts as “justified,” turnaround time, and what to bring after approval: not stated on the How Do I page — use the form / call 311.

3. 3

   Used oil filters from home (vehicle or small engine)?

   Labeled filter barrel · same pavilion

   Recycling Area, center under the pavilion, labeled used oil filter barrel next to the oil collection containers. No charge for home filters (motor-oil How Do I). Separate oil-filters How Do I: same pad — place into the used oil filter container next to the used oil tank. Business filters: contract a private used oil filter recycler — not county.

4. 4

   Empty plastic motor oil bottles?

   Household trash · not blue bin

   How Do I: dispose of empty plastic motor oil bottles as trash. Do not put empty containers in your recycling bin. Opposite of empty cooking / vegetable oil bottles (those recycle — cooking oil draft).

5. 5

   Old gasoline, gas-oil mix, or unwanted fuel?

   HHW · same Recycling Area

   Motor-oil How Do I: old gasoline is accepted as Household Hazardous Waste — also in the Transfer Station Recycling Area, not the pavilion oil tanks. HHW How Do I accepts gasoline, gas-oil mixes, flammable liquids, and unwanted fuels. See HHW (draft). Do not pour gasoline into the motor-oil containers.

6. 6

   Hoping a nearby gas station will take it?

   Check locally · no county list

   How Do I: some area gas and service stations accept used motor oil — check with stations near you. County does not publish a station directory on that page. Station names, hours, and caps: not stated here — do not invent them.

7. 7

   Business / commercial used oil or filters?

   Residents only (oil) · private recycler (filters)

   Fees page: motor oil is on the “accepted only from residents” list at the Recyclable Materials Drop-Off Area. Business oil filters: How Do I says contract a private used oil filter recycler. Commercial oil drop-off path beyond the resident-only fees line: not stated as a free pavilion path — do not invent one. OTR over-5-gal path uses the exemption form (choice 2).

8. 8

   Cooking / vegetable oil, antifreeze, or thinking the HHW compound is the oil tank?

   Wrong pad · see linked pages

   Cooking / vegetable oil → separate vegetable-oil tank (cooking oil). Antifreeze is listed on the fees page as residents-only recyclable drop-off; detailed antifreeze How Do I path: not expanded on this page. HHW How Do I also lists used motor oil / hydraulic / kerosene (5 gal limit) with a “see more detail” pointer to the motor-oil page — use the pavilion tanks for the pour-off described here; use HHW for gasoline and other HHW materials. Poolesville Beauty Spot is bulk trash ≤499 lb — not an oil tank.

Where to go

Empty plastic motor oil bottles → trash (not blue bin). Empty cooking / vegetable oil bottles → recycle. Cite each How Do I; do not mix them. Last-checked 7 Sep 2026.

Poolesville Beauty Spot (19200 Jerusalem Road, Saturdays 8 a.m.–4 p.m.) is bulk trash up to 499 lb for residents. It is not a motor-oil pavilion. Last-checked 7 Sep 2026.

Unreconciled Sunday: motor-oil How Do I puts drop-off in the Recycling Area; facility/hours pages say Sunday use the Commercial and Truck entrance only (16055 Shady Grove Road, 9 a.m.–5 p.m.). This page does not pick a winner. Confirm the morning you go. Last-checked 7 Sep 2026.

Bring this

• Proof of residency (residential drop-off): Maryland license or photo ID with a Montgomery County address; a current utility bill with a physical MoCo address and your name; or a mortgage statement / lease in your name for a physical MoCo address. Out-of-county plates still need one of those. Proof of County Residency.
• Unmixed motor oil / hydraulic / kerosene only in the pavilion tanks. Cap: up to 5 gallons without an approved exemption. Bring it in a sealed container you can pour from.
• Home oil filters: drain as best you can (drain procedure detail: not stated); place in the labeled filter barrel next to the oil tanks.
• Over 5 gallons: complete the Used Oil Disposal Exemption Form and wait for staff review before assuming you can drop off.
• Covered load if you self-haul (hours page). PPE (high-vis vest, hard hat, closed-toe shoes) is required on the main tipping floor, not described as required for Recycling Area pour-offs.

Not here

• Motor oil mixed with gasoline, antifreeze, cooking oil, water, or other fluids (won’t recycle — How Do I).
• Empty plastic motor oil bottles in the blue bin (those are trash).
• Business oil filters at the county barrel (private recycler).
• Showing up over 5 gallons without an approved exemption.
• Gasoline poured into the motor-oil pavilion tanks (HHW path).
• Cooking / vegetable oil in the motor-oil tanks (different tank — cooking oil).
• Poolesville Beauty Spot as a motor-oil destination.
• A county-published list of gas stations that take used oil (How Do I says check locally; no list).
• Invented station names, hours, fees, or reviews.
• Commercial free motor-oil drop-off contradicting the fees-page residents-only line.
• Meds / sharps pages (YMYL — not this site).

Official sources

• How Do I — motor oil (≤5 gal pavilion; exemption form; filters; empty bottles → trash; gasoline → HHW; check stations locally)
• How Do I — oil filters (home filters next to used oil tank; business → private recycler)
• Used Oil Disposal Exemption Form (linked from motor-oil How Do I)
• How Do I — household hazardous waste (gasoline / fuels; also names used motor oil 5 gal with detail link)
• How Do I — cooking oil (contrast: empty cooking-oil bottles recycle)
• Shady Grove Processing Facility and Transfer Station
• Trash and Recycling Drop-Off Hours and Events
• User Fees (motor oil: residents only)
• Proof of County Residency
• Poolesville Beauty Spot (bulk trash only — not motor oil)