Home cleanouts
A dumpster for a garage, basement or attic cleanout
Clearing storage spaces is mostly light, bulky stuff, so the right box is the one with enough room. Most of the effort is sorting, which goes faster with a container in the driveway.
Answered Mon–Sat 8 a.m.–8 p.m. · Sun 8 a.m.–1 p.m. ET
Which size for which room
- One crowded single-car garage: often a 10 or 15 yard.
- A full basement with old furniture, carpet and shelving: usually 15 to 20 yards.
- An attic of boxes and holiday decorations: often smaller than you'd guess, since boxes crush down.
- Two or three of these in one go: a 20 or 30 yard.
Break down shelving and flatten boxes as you go. It can be the difference between one size and the next.
Garages hide the problem items
Pull these out before you start tossing
Keep out of the container
- Half-used cans of oil paint, stain, thinner and pesticide
- Car batteries and lithium tool batteries
- Propane cylinders from a grill or torch
- An old fridge or chest freezer that still holds refrigerant
Where they go instead
The Roanoke Valley Resource Authority takes household chemicals at its monthly collection at the Tinker Creek Transfer Station, by appointment. Car batteries, motor oil and up to five gallons of latex paint can go to its transfer stations on any open day. The full list covers the rest.
Use the city pickup for the leftovers
If you live in the city, the weekly bulk collection takes up to three bulky items on your trash day. A sofa you couldn't fit, or something you decided to keep until the last minute, can go to the curb the week after the dumpster leaves.
Donating usable furniture and tools first also leaves more room in the container.
How long to keep it
A garage often takes one long weekend. Basements take longer because everything comes up the stairs. Ask how many days the rental includes and what an extra day costs, and set the drop-off for the morning you plan to begin, not a week early.
Get a roll-off quote for your Roanoke address
Have three answers handy: what's going in, which patch of driveway or curb it can occupy, and the day you'd like to start. The rental company comes back with a container size, an open drop-off day and a figure for the whole job. Nothing gets scheduled unless you say yes.
Answered Mon–Sat 8 a.m.–8 p.m. · Sun 8 a.m.–1 p.m. ET
Phone conversations can be recorded for quality and billing (how referrals work, privacy). Trash carts, recycling and curbside bulk pickup belong to City of Roanoke Solid Waste, not this number.