What junk removal won't take in South Florida, and where it goes instead

01

Is there a list of what junk removal won't take?

Yes: what junk removal won't take is household hazardous waste, plus a few items that need special handling.

The EPA counts leftover paints, cleaners, oils, batteries and pesticides as household hazardous waste that needs special care at disposal. Palm Beach County's Solid Waste Authority is blunter: these items can "cause fires in garbage trucks and facilities." A load with a leaking gas can in it is a risk in a hot truck on a South Florida afternoon, and it can get the whole load turned away.

Here is the list my crew works from. If it is on this list, it comes out of the pile before we load:

• Liquid paint, stains, solvents and thinners
• Pool chemicals, pesticides and fertilizer
• Gasoline, motor oil and antifreeze
• Propane tanks and other gas cylinders
• Car, boat and lithium batteries
• Medical waste and sharps
• Anything you suspect contains asbestos

02

What does junk removal take?

Junk removal takes almost everything else in a normal house, garage, office or job site. If you could carry it out of a home or a remodel and it isn't on the hazardous list, we can most likely take it, and the flat price covers the disposal.

This is the everyday stuff Dany and his crew load and haul across Broward and Miami-Dade:

• Furniture: couches, sectionals, beds, dressers, tables, recliners
• Mattresses and box springs
• Appliances: fridges, washers, dryers, stoves, water heaters
• Whole-house, garage, estate and storage unit contents
• Office and commercial junk: desks, chairs, filing cabinets
• Hot tubs, once the power is disconnected and the water is drained
• Renovation debris: drywall, lumber, tile, cabinets, old flooring
• Concrete and masonry, and roofing debris (haul only)
• Brush and yard debris

03

Can junk removal take a refrigerator or freezer?

Yes, junk removal can take a refrigerator or freezer once the food is out. A fridge full of spoiled food is a mess nobody wants to carry, so empty it a day ahead and leave the doors cracked.

Fridges are on the list of things cities treat carefully because of the refrigerant inside. The EPA's rules make "the final person in the disposal chain," such as a scrap recycler or landfill, responsible for making sure the refrigerant is recovered. That is why Pembroke Pines' bulk pickup only collects a fridge or air conditioner with a sticker showing a certified technician removed the Freon, with the doors and compressor taken off. With us you skip that step: you empty it, we carry it out and haul it. Appliance removal starts at $100.

04

What junk removal won't take until you do one step

Some items are fine to haul once you handle one small thing. Do these before we arrive and the job stays quick.

• Hot tubs: have an electrician shut off and disconnect the power, and drain the water a day or two ahead.
• Gas grills: take the propane tank off. The grill can go, the tank goes to a drop-off.
• Lawn mowers, pressure washers and generators: drain the gas and oil first.
• Latex paint: Miami-Dade's chemical centers page tells residents to dry out unusable liquid latex paint with newspaper or kitty litter, then put the can in the waste cart. Oil-based paint goes to a drop-off.
• Tires: ask first, and tell me how many when you text the photo.

05

Where do hazardous items go in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach?

Hazardous household items go to your county's drop-off program, never the curb or a hauler's truck. Each county runs it differently.

In Broward, the county's hazardous waste drop-off runs at three Residential Drop-Off Centers (Pompano Beach, Davie and West Park), Saturdays only from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., for residents of participating cities such as Davie, Hollywood, Weston, Dania Beach and Margate. Bring a photo ID and proof of address. Containers can't exceed five gallons, with a limit of 25 gallons per visit, and up to 5 tires per load. If your city isn't on the list, call your city's public works department.

In Miami-Dade, home chemicals go to the West Dade center at 8801 NW 58 Street in Doral, the South Dade center at 23707 SW 97 Avenue (Gate B), or a mobile drop-off event. The county's green cart rules say car batteries, propane tanks and household chemicals stay out of the cart. In Palm Beach County, the SWA takes household hazardous waste free for residents at seven centers, with no curbside collection.

Asbestos is its own case. The EPA says you generally can't tell by looking, and if in doubt, "treat the material as if it contains asbestos and leave it alone." Get it tested before anyone tears it out or hauls it.

06

How to prep a cleanout so nothing gets missed

Before a garage or house cleanout, walk the space once with a box. Put every can, bottle and tank you find in that box and set it aside. Garages and sheds are where this stuff hides: the back of shelves, under the workbench, behind the water heater.

Then send me photos of the rest. I give you one flat, all-in price that covers labor, loading, hauling and disposal. A garage cleanout starts at $300 and a house cleanout at $1,000, and junk removal is paid after the job. If a company tells you they take everything, no questions asked, ask where it ends up. I would rather tell you now that the pool chlorine has to go to a drop-off than surprise you on the day.

When the hazardous box is out of the way, book my junk removal.