Though oil paints have a beautiful effect on any painting you make and the glaze and sheen make the painting come to life, there are few important tips to be safe while painting.
Disposing of used medium: Make a Turps jar or buy one. It makes the oil medium reusable by keeping debris away from brush while re-using the medium and helps in proper cleaning of brush. Hence you need to dispose of it less often. Also, you need to call the concerned authority in your state or city for disposing the oil medium as it is hazardous material because dumping it is against the law. Also draining it is not an option as its not good for pipelines and eventually goes into water bodies etc.
Fumes are dangerous: Oil paint medium like linseed oil gives away hazardous fumes. So it is very important that the place you are working in is ventilated. If inhaled or touched these fumes may cause skin rash or lung irritation. Avoid having pets or kids in the room where you paint.
Most Important: Do not use and dump dry rugs to wipe the oil paint medium. It causes spontaneous combustion. Use wet rugs or wet paper towels and dump them in a covered metal bin. It is hardly taught in any art class but oil paint mediums have known to catch fire and have burnt down studios. You can add water in the bin too. Another way is to wash the rug with soap and water and air-dry it then dump it, but again in a metal covered bin.