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Fridge EWC code Every fridge, freezer and air con unit takes a hazardous code.

  • Free, no account
  • Based on the UK List of Waste and GOV.UK guidance
  • Nothing is stored

Find an EWC code

Fridges and air conditioning: 4 codes.

Fridges and air conditioning

  • HazardousElectrical equipment

    Industrial or commercial units with CFC, HCFC or HFC coolant or foam

  • HazardousHousehold-type, collected separately

    Household-type units with ozone-depleting coolant or foam

  • HazardousElectrical equipment

    Other industrial or commercial units

  • HazardousHousehold-type, collected separately

    Other household-type units

Are all fridges hazardous waste?

UnitHousehold-typeOther
With ozone-depleting coolant or foam20 01 23*16 02 11*
With HFC coolant or foam20 01 35*16 02 11*
All other units20 01 35*16 02 13*

That covers fridges, freezers, chillers and air conditioning units. GOV.UK gives no non-hazardous code for any of them.

Is an office fridge 20 01 23* or 16 02 11*?

A fridge from a site cabin or office tea room is the household type, so it takes a chapter 20 code, even though a business is getting rid of it. Commercial kit a home wouldn’t have, such as a supermarket display chiller, takes chapter 16: 16 02 11* if its coolant or foam contains CFCs, HCFCs or HFCs, otherwise 16 02 13*. GOV.UK’s table only mentions ozone-depleting substances, but the list’s own wording for 16 02 11* includes HFCs.

Does a fridge need a consignment note?

From a business in England, yes, like any hazardous waste: it moves on a hazardous waste consignment note, not a transfer note. A householder taking a fridge from their own home to a collection point doesn’t need one.

Sources