Free Bulky Load Pick Up

When scheduling a bulky item pick-up, you will be asked to identify the items. Examples of acceptable items include:

• Air conditioner* (window units only)
• Baby and child car seats
• Basketball goals - Please remove concrete base and cut to 8 ft. or shorter.
• Bed frames - Please dismantle.
• Bikes
• Boards - Please remove or bend nails and cut 8 ft. or shorter.
• Carpet - Please roll and cut no longer than 4 ft.
• Chairs
• Chests - Please empty.
• Couches/sofas/loveseats
• Desks - Please empty.
• Doors
• Dressers - Please empty.
• Electronics* such as CD/VCR/DVD/Stereo equipment
• Entertainment center - Please empty.
• Fireplace inserts
• Garbage cans - Leave note indicating to take the can.
• Grills
• Leaf blowers*
• Microwave ovens*
• Mowers (push)
• Small appliances*
• Trash compactors*
• Vacuum cleaners*

*Note that all items that have a cord are now recyclable and can be taken to Wake County's Multi-Materials Facility or to our Recycling Drop Off Centers. Please think green!

Computers (and all items you connect to a computer) and TVs are banned from disposal in NC landfills and can not be collected as a Free Bulky Load Collection. Please click on the right for our link to our web page on Electronics and Computer Recycling to properly recycle these items.

Bulky Load collection is for items that do not fit in your garbage cart. Normal household waste will not be collected. NOTE: EVERYTHING placed on the curb will be collected once you schedule a Bulky Load collection. Do not place items inside containers you do not wish to throw away. Items must be able to be easily and safely lifted by two men.

The following items can not be collected as Bulky Load. Residents may take them to the county landfill, county convenience center or county Multi-Materials Facility themselves or contract with a private waste hauler. Important: Please call Wake County Solid Waste Management at 919-856-6186 to ensure their rules have not changed before making the trip.

• Any material resulting from work performed by a contractor
• Appliances (dishwashers, dryers, freezers, refrigerators, stoves, ovens, washers, water heaters)
• Automobile parts including motors, tires, doors, fenders, car seats, batteries
• Building materials
• Central air conditioning or heating units
• Ceramic tile
• Computers* (Effective 7/1/11 they were banned from disposal in NC landfills.)
• Concrete blocks or brick
• Dirt
• Duct or sheet metal materials
• Fence posts with concrete attached
• Floor coverings (except carpet/padding installed or removed by homeowner)
• Glass
• Marble or simulated marble countertops
• Nails or boards with protruding nails
• Pallets
• Plaster or any materials resulting from contractual work or commercially related activities
• Propane and/or oxygen tanks
• Rocks
• Roofing
• Sand
• Sheetrock
• TVs* (Effective 7/1/11 they were banned from disposal in NC landfills.)
• Water tanks
• Yard waste

* Residents may call 919-996-6890 to schedule a curbside collection for computers. Other items with a cord may be taken to Wake County's Multi-Materials Facility or to our Recycling Drop Off Centers.

Important: Debris resulting from contracted work will not be collected.

You must call ahead to schedule a Bulky Load Collection. A collection for a specific address can be scheduled no more often than every 90 days. You can schedule collection by calling Solid Waste Services customer service at 919-996-6890. Once your collection has been arranged, place all items at the curb as Solid Waste Services employees will not enter your yard to collect items for disposal.

Items placed at curbside without scheduling ahead for a bulky load collection will not be picked up by regular garbage, recycling or yard waste collection crews, and are subject to or will be assessed administrative fees and civil penalties according to Section 7 of Raleigh City Code.

When scheduling a pick up, please have the following information available:

1. Name
2. Address
3. Daytime phone number
4. Description of item(s) to be collected
5. Regular collection day

• Bulky items may not exceed a pickup truck load per collection. Repeat bulky load collections at the same address may be denied.
• Place the materials at the curb no earlier than the noon of the day before the collection day.
• Materials from contracted jobs or land clearing will NOT be collected.
• Construction or building materials will NOT be collected.
• Any material that may be wind blown, including packing peanuts, must be bagged to prevent it from blowing around your neighborhood or out of the collection truck.

The City of Raleigh supports reuse of items in good condition before disposal. If you have such items, please consider donating them to a non-profit organization, or bring them to the city's Swap Shop.

Using recycling services provided by local agencies, nonprofits, and recycling companies across the state, a typical household can divert over 400 pounds per year of materials from landfills.