It might happen a few times during warm months: prepping for yard work in the spring, organizing for a garage sale in the summer, cleaning up for winter in the fall… You’re going to have to clean out the junk in your garage and shed eventually. Unfortunately, much of the junk you’ll find are not things you can simply sneak into your regular garbage pickup. Here are some common bits of machinery and yard waste collecting dust in your shed and how you can safely dispose of them. Note that we’re not going to discuss natural yard waste in this particular article.
Broken Electric Lawn Care Equipment
If you have an unusable lawnmower, weed-whacker, or other electrically powered lawn care equipment, you have a few options. First, is it fixable? Try selling it for parts, giving it to a neighbor, or donating it to a local group. Is it not fixable? You could sell mostly-metal equipment to a scrap metal yard. If you’re confident in your ability to safely take apart and clean machinery, you could dismantle the equipment yourself and sell the various metals. This could net you more profit than selling it whole to a scrap yard. Leftover non-metal pieces could go into your regular recycling and trash bins.
Chemicals Used On Your Lawn/Garden
If you have bottles of weed killer or other lawn care chemicals you need to dispose of, first things first: these things generally CANNOT be poured down a sink or storm drain without adverse effects. Read the product label, which could have printed instructions for disposal of the material and packaging. If there are no instructions or you can’t complete their instructions, your local waste authority should have some method in place for disposing of household chemicals. Call your local waste authority or check out their website to find out where you can drop off hazardous household wastes.
Outdoor Furniture
If you have sturdy metal and glass outdoor furniture sets that just aren’t cutting it anymore, you could be at a loss for what to do with these bulky objects. See if your local recycling center takes large pieces of metal like chairs or glass table tops. If they don’t, it’s possible that your local waste management services have an occasional “bulk pickup” day for large items across town. Call them to see when the next bulk pickup day is scheduled, and if the pieces you want to dispose of follow any bulk pickup guidelines. Plastic furniture is even harder to dispose of, as much of it is unrecyclable. If that seems to be the case with yours, safely break it up into smaller pieces for regular waste disposal or put it out on bulk pickup day.
When it comes to natural yard waste like leaves, grass, and stumps, your garbage removal service or landscaper will have their own rules for sorting and removal. We understand that bulky or hazardous man-made yard waste is a little more difficult. Waste management encompasses up to twenty different industries, so the knowledge of waste management services is extensive, even for handling obscure and large items. Rest assured that your trash removal services want you to dispose of waste in the most efficient and eco-friendly way possible, so they’re happy to give you the advice to get you there.
