Frequently Asked Questions

Call us at (814) 240-4177 and talk to a real person — we're a call-first business, not an online booking form. Tell us what kind of job you're doing and roughly how much debris you expect, and we'll recommend a size, quote a flat rate, and schedule delivery. If you call before noon on a day we're open, we can often get a container to you that same day. See our contact page for hours and directions to our yard on Cranberry St.

One number covers delivery, the rental period, a set tonnage allowance, and pickup — no separate delivery fee, no fuel surcharge, no line-item add-ons. We tell you the price on the phone before we schedule anything, and that's what you pay unless you go over your tonnage allowance or keep the container well past your rental period.

Two things mainly: going over the weight included with your size, and holding onto the container much longer than the agreed rental period. Heavy debris like concrete, dirt, shingles, or tile eats up your tonnage allowance a lot faster than household junk or construction scrap, so the type of material matters as much as the volume. If you're not sure how heavy your load will run, tell us the project on the phone and we'll help you size it — our dumpster sizes page has load estimates for each container.

Yes — call us before your scheduled pickup if you need more time and we'll work out an extension. Plans change on job sites all the time, so give us a call as soon as you know rather than waiting until pickup day. We take payment over the phone when you book, and if you need to reschedule or cancel, the earlier you let us know the easier it is for us to move things around.

Tell us the project and we'll size it for you — that's the fastest way. As a general guide, a 10-yard container handles a small bathroom gut, a single-room cleanout, or a garage purge. A 15-yard fits a kitchen remodel, basement cleanout, or small roof tear-off. A 20-yard covers a whole-house cleanout or a larger remodel. A 30-yard is built for major renovations, new construction, or estate cleanouts, and a 40-yard is for commercial fit-outs or large-volume light debris like a full teardown. Our sizes page breaks down dimensions and load capacity for all five.

Here's how the five sizes break down:

Yes, and it catches people off guard. The tonnage allowance is the same no matter what goes in, but heavy debris like concrete, brick, dirt, roofing shingles, or tile fills up that weight allowance while the container still looks mostly empty. Light debris — furniture, drywall, general household junk — takes a lot more volume to hit the same weight. If your project is heavy debris like a concrete tear-out, mention it on the phone so we can size and price it correctly; see our concrete & heavy debris and demolition debris pages for more.

For most residential and construction jobs, yes — general household junk, construction scrap, and demolition debris can go in together. Heavy material like concrete or dirt is the exception; because it's so dense, we often price and handle it as its own load rather than mixing it with lighter debris. If you've got a mixed job, mention it when you call and we'll make sure you're in the right size and price for what's actually going in.

Often, yes. Call us before noon on a day we're open and we can usually deliver that same day, depending on the size and what's already scheduled for our trucks. If same-day isn't available, we'll tell you straight and get you the next available slot. See our same-day dumpster rental page for more.

Most containers go right on the driveway, and we put boards down under every dumpster before it touches the ground — that's standard on every delivery, not something we upsell you into. The boards spread the weight out and protect the surface underneath. Tell us on the phone if your driveway has any specific concerns and we'll plan the drop accordingly.

It can. Erie gets some of the heaviest lake-effect snow in the country — sudden squalls off Lake Erie can drop a foot or more of snow in a few hours with almost no warning, on top of the freeze-thaw cycles that stress driveways and slabs all winter long. We keep an eye on conditions and will work with you on timing if a squall is moving through, and our driveway boards matter even more once ice and freeze-thaw cracking are in the mix. Book with a little extra lead time in the winter months if you can.

Placing a container on your own driveway or property generally doesn't require a permit. If there's no room and it needs to sit in the street or public right-of-way, that's a different matter — contact the City of Erie Bureau of Streets ahead of time to find out what's required, and give yourself extra lead time before your delivery date. Let us know when you book if street placement looks likely so we can plan around it.

General household junk, furniture, construction and demolition debris, wood, drywall, flooring, roofing shingles, and yard debris in reasonable amounts all go in without issue. If you're not sure about something specific, ask when you book — it's a quick question and saves everyone a headache on pickup day. Our what can go in a dumpster guide covers this in more depth.

No. Pennsylvania's Covered Device Recycling Act (Act 108 of 2010) has banned computers, monitors, TVs, and similar "covered devices" from landfill disposal statewide since January 24, 2013, so they can't go in the dumpster. These need to go through an electronics recycling program instead — see the PA DEP Covered Device Recycling Act page for what's covered and where to take them.

Some yard waste like branches and brush is fine in a dumpster, but Pennsylvania restricts leaves and grass clippings from ordinary landfill disposal under Act 101, and many municipalities in the area run their own separate leaf and yard-waste collection programs. Check with your municipality before assuming everything green goes in the dumpster. Our yard waste service page and the Erie County recycling guide have more detail, or see PA DEP's leaf and yard waste reduction page.

Yes. A lot of the housing stock near downtown Erie and the Bayfront area predates 1978, and homes that old can have lead paint, and asbestos if plaster, old flooring, or pipe insulation gets disturbed during a renovation. That's not something we test for or handle — if you suspect either, bring in a licensed abatement contractor before demolition starts. Once the area is cleared, we're glad to handle the dumpster for the rest of the job. See our estate cleanout and demolition debris pages for related guidance.

We're based at 1600 Cranberry St in Erie and serve Erie County town to town. Our core service area has always been Millcreek, Wesleyville, Summit Township, and Harborcreek, and we've grown from there to also cover Fairview, Girard, North East, Lawrence Park, McKean, Waterford, Edinboro, Union City, Corry, and Albion. See our full service area for details on each town.

Millcreek, Wesleyville, Summit Township, and Harborcreek are where we've worked longest and know best — that's the historic core of our business. The other towns we list are a genuine, active part of our service area too, just a newer extension of it. If you're anywhere in Erie County, call and ask; we'll tell you honestly whether we cover your address and what delivery looks like from there.

Some, yes. Erie County is our primary service area, but we do reach into neighboring Crawford County to the south for the right jobs. Call us with your address and project details and we'll tell you whether it's in range and what delivery would look like. You can find general information on the county at Crawford County, Pennsylvania's website.

Possibly. The towns listed on our locations page are where we work most often, but service area isn't a hard line on a map — it depends on the address and the job. Give us a call at (814) 240-4177 and we'll tell you straight whether we can get a container to you.