Basketball season has ended, and baseball is about to begin. You fight your way into the garage, start heaving boxes and totes out of the way, digging through an endless pile of “we could need this one day” only to trip over a stray piece of leftover wood and almost break your neck.  You get up, infuriated, and realize, today is the day. You need a dumpster, and you need one BAD!

Time to make the dreaded phone call. Not being in the construction or waste industry yourself you have no idea what you even need, what you should pay, or how it works. All you know is that next trip could be fatal.

It’s time to call Affordable Junk Removal. Unlike these other dumpster companies, we will speak to you in regular everyday English. But first, let’s answer a few basic questions that just about everybody asks:

1. Whats the difference between a dumpster and a roll-off? Well, that’s easy, not much! Dumpsters have a lot of nick names, they can be called dumpsters, cans, containers, roll-offs, as well as a few others. God knows why I guess the waste folks just want to spice things up. Some dumpsters come off a type of truck called a hook lift, a big hook grabs the dumpster and pulls it on the truck, while others come off of a roll off, a chain grabs the dumpster and pulls it on the truck. None of this really matters to you, so long as you are putting it in a spot where the truck can access it.
2. Where can I put my dumpster? This is an important question. While some people want to put their dumpster in the grass to keep their parking spots available, and others want to jam it back against the garage, there are a few things to know first. The end of the dumpster that is nearest to the cab of the truck is the side where the hook grabs it. The opposite end, nearest the tailgate of the truck, is the part that has the door on it. This is an 8 ft long door that you open so that you can load the dumpster. If you don’t leave at least 8 feet around it then the door won’t open. The dumpsters are about 4.5″ tall so if your plan is to try and throw it all over the top you’re really making the process way too difficult, it’s far easier to open the door, load it as much as possible, then shut the door, and toss the few remaining items over the top. Dumpsters are large steel containers, so they are heavy. They can be placed on firm (not soggy) grass, and we will put boards under the rollers (wheels that make the dumpster move) to prevent damage and make them easier to lift, however, if it rains or what have you there is a chance it will be tough to pick up or scratch up your grass a little. Finally, some people want to place the dumpster in a precarious spot. Be it a hill, a small tough to access parking area, or what have you. The dumpster is 12 feet long. The truck is about 17 feet long. Wherever we drop it, we have to be able to safely get the truck in there, plus the length of the dumpster. So you need at least 30 feet of clearance without making turns. As far as hills go, a slight incline will work but a full blown hill might not. Keep in mind that we have to pick up this dumpster when it’s full. If the dumpster has 2 Tons in it plus the weight of the can itself, well I’m no mathematician but that’s literally tons of weight pushing down on the hook of the truck while it’s on a hill. Bad News. The good news is our skilled drivers will tell you exactly what your options are when it gets dropped off.
3. What can go in a dumpster? Definitely your husbands 80’s hair band tape collection and all of those boxes of your school work that your mom passed down to you when you finally got your first house. JK JK. Really you can put almost anything in it. The only “prohibited” items are Gas, Oil, Wet Paint, Propane Tanks, Concrete, Stone, Brush or Dirt. The first few items are considered hazardous waste and the last few need to go to a special facility or nursery. Also, it’s important to mention that you can’t put in anything that was once living and breathing. This is strictly frowned upon! Aside from that, you can put in whatever you want. The great Commonwealth of Mass has assigned a recycling fee to a few things called Core Items. These are items with Freon, TV’s, Mattresses, and Tires. We charge you whatever Core Item fee they charge us, it’s a pass through but think of it as doing your part for the environment. Prices can be found on our pricing page.
4. How are dumpsters rented? So here’s why we are so incredible, aside from this hilarious, witty, and educational blog. At Affordable Junk Removal, we rent dumpsters with the knowledge that you don’t want them in your yard too long. And neither do your neighbors. We do 7-day rentals, 10-day rentals, and 14-day rentals (most of the time). If you go with our 7 day special that includes 1 ton of weight (2,000 pounds my friends). If you go over the 1 ton YOU ONLY PAY FOR WHAT YOU USE. I will repeat that, you ONLY pay for what you use. If it’s 1.2 tons then you pay for that extra .2 ton. Other dumpster companies will charge you for 3 tons up front knowing that most people come nowhere close to that for regular household trash. See you are saving money already! Say you want to fill it with super heavy stuff, like shingles. Well, in that case, you let us know ahead of time and we will show you the way (cue the song). What if you need your dumpster longer, like a few months. Well give us a shout and we will see what we can do to help generic cialis from india.
5. How does the billing work? Well, here at Affordable we try and make everything as easy as humanly possible for everyone involved. When you book your dumpster you will provide a credit card and an email address. That card will be charged the initial fee and you will be emailed a paid invoice as well as a refresher on how this all works. Once your dumpster is picked up it is weighed out at a transfer station. If you went over your weight or had some Core Items your card will be charged and you will get a final invoice email detailing the charges. Save this for your tax write offs.
6. What if it rains? Or Snows? Or Sleet? Or Hail? Fortunately, it does all of those things here in our great state. Unfortunately, we don’t have a way to separate precipitation from the items in your dumpster. If you are concerned, feel free to put a tarp on your dumpster prior to precipitation.
7. What happens to my junk? Good news on this one. We are NEVER direct to landfill. All of our loads are brought to transfer facilities where anything that can be recycled is. We have a vested interest in loving the earth as we live here, our friends and family live here, and our kids will most likely continue to live here.
8. Any more questions? Give us a call 774-287-1133. You will talk to a real human, probably Jason Schadler, the owner, right here in MA. You are not calling Canada like when you call those Got guys, you are talking to a regular guy that lives in your community, understands our local dumps and transfer stations and actually, cares about the people here.

That’s all for today folks, hope you feel a little more confident making that call. Really, there is nothing to be afraid of! Thanks for taking the time to read Dumpster 101: Everything you want to know but were afraid to ask. Like us on Facebook, Follow us on >Instagram @affordablejunk and Twitter @takeawayjunk  See you on the flip side, now go nurse that wound!