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2 min readSo you’re ready to throw some old junk away, either because you’re moving, you’re renovating, or you’re just sick of looking at your busted furniture and yard waste.
Unfortunately, junk removal companies won’t accept everything you might need to throw away.
You’ll only know for sure if a company will haul your junk away if you call that company, but we can tell you what most junk companies will take. Keep reading to learn what junk removal services will usually haul away for you.
Just because you’re tired of your old stuff doesn’t mean it’s useless. If your furniture or appliances still have some life in them, consider donating them instead of sending them to the dump. Read our list of charities that pick up your donations to find an organization that will come get your old stuff.
Unless you have a chemical factory or a nuclear power plant in your backyard, junk removal companies can probably take almost everything you need to throw away.
Here is what most dumpster rental and full-service junk removal companies will dispose of for you:
This list isn’t exhaustive, so if you need to throw away furniture or other junk that you’re not finding here, check out our favorite junk removal companies to see what they can do for you.
The list of things that junk removal companies won’t accept is much shorter. Basically, “if it’s poisonous to inhale, eat, or drink, we probably won’t take it,” as one Junk King representative told us.
This eliminates things like asbestos, motor oil, paint, gasoline, batteries, and pesticides. That said, some of the things companies do take would obviously kill you if you tried to eat them (like hot tubs), but you get the picture.
Additionally, some companies—like 1-800-GOT-JUNK—will only pick up stuff that a two-person team could lift. This is part of the reason that most companies won’t accept things like old vehicles, boats, and RVs.
This heavily depends on which junk removal company you hire. As you might expect, a lot of the junk ends up in a landfill—but some companies recycle a lot of the junk they take.
In fact, College Hunks Hauling Junk either donates or recycles 70% of the junk it takes off your hands.1
Unfortunately, you can't just take everything you have left to the landfill. Pesticides, smoke alarms, and old batteries have specific rules for safe disposal, which you can usually find on their labels or packaging (or on the ol’ Google).
If you can’t find instructions, ask your junk removal rep about the proper disposal procedures.
You can also learn about disposing of hazardous material in this EPA guide to household hazardous waste.
Now that you know what you can and can’t throw away with a professional disposal company, here are a few more resources that can help you get rid of your junk:
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