I’m a one man show and I’m finding it increasingly difficult to dispose of my construction waste. I live in Harford County, Maryland which has NO rubble dumps for construction waste. A dumpster at my house is out of the question. There’s a couple of private dumps within 30 miles of my house, but when it rains they turn into mudholes and I am afraid of getting stuck. I went to one this morning and they said dump at your own risk ’cause the chances of you gettin’ stuck were real good. So off to the only other one and there was probably a three hour wait……..a whole long line of trucks. As a homeowner in Harford County, if I put one little piece of a 2 x 4 in the trash those guys will fish it out and leave it at the end of my driveway. For as much building as they are doing around me I can’t believe how hard it is to get rid of construction waste. I thought about trying to strike a deal with my local building supplier to use his dumpster, but I think he’ll say no ’cause of precident.
What do you guys do?
jocobe
Replies
Sorry brother, I've got three dumps with 15 minutes, and they all take construction waste. (though they have all raised their rates latley)
Try an indepandant waste hauling company. They might be willing to make a deal with you. I've had guys come for as little as about two pick up loads, (when I was truck-less) I think it cost me about $50.00.
You might be able to take it to them for less.
You might think about, to the extent possible, donating any scrap lumber to the Boys/Girls Club, church groups, Scouts. Even stuff that is far too small to be used as intended can often be used for toy boats, cars, bird houses or even just used as blocks, with just a bit of sanding, at the local day care or community center.
Another thought would be donating to any Veterans Administration hospitals or homes. I once donated some scrap 2by4s and plywood to the VA and they happily sanded away to make blocks for the children's ward at the hospital across the street. The old timers got something to do. The kids got toys. I got rid of scrap lumber. Everyone wins.
Of course, call before dropping the stuff off and you will need to sort the material. Not everything can be donated. A good chipper will reduce lumber to chips that will compost, drywall to gypsum and paper, both valuable soil amendments. Concrete is being crushed to make aggregate for more concrete.
Another alternative would be to neatly wrap the remainder as Christmas presents and leave them in you car, parked at he mall, with the windows down. Might as well let the thieves serve some useful purpose.
As the population of the US grows less land is unclaimed for a vital use by some concerned party. The days of free and unfettered dumping are, rightly so, long gone. Even though the construction waste situation is not that bad here it is slowly becoming an issue.
If I had all the cut off (shorts) of decking I've had hauled to the dump over the years ten thousand birdhouses could have been built.
The problem is who wants the wood? Nice clear or tight knot cedar decking and fascia.
Great for birdhouses or kindling.
Time only permits me to call the hauling guy to drop a dumpster at the end of the job and haul off the waste.
You could do it yourself if your time isn't worth anything.
Many homeowners are not aware that there are hauling companies that drop off small containers to load their debris in for a reasonable amount.Bob
"Rather be a hammer than a nail"
Bob,
is there a clean green drop-off site near you? That's what we do with all of our (untreated) cutoffs these days (mostly). The waste company mulches it or composts it.
best, GO
It struck me when reading your post that this is a great intro to another conversation. Sorry if I don't have any real solutions for your situation, but it spurred me to think about building methods that generate little waste. What are they, and are they cost-effective? And if so, why are they not more widespread?
So how about it ... thinking outside of the stick framing box (I'm assuming that that is the construction method generating the waste, or am I wrong?), what methods of residential construction are more material efficient, leading to less waste?
If we built all masonry and tile, the waste could make good base for the driveway..
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are." --Marcus Aurelius
I just learned of a rubbish service/dumpster supplier in my area, where you can haul trash, dump it on the floor of their warehouse where they sort out anything recyclable.
Some calling around may turn up the same service in your area.
Seems like a lot of people would be tempted to dump their stuff illegally, since it is so hard to do it legally. My borough (like a county in other states) operates the landfill (from property taxes) and doesn't charge for drop off. For trucks larger than a F-350 or for more than 5 pick-up loads in a day, they ask you drive to the landfill, 12 miles away. But otherwise, the transfer stations are scattered about, with one about 1/3 mile from me.
Somebody's gonna pay, however it is structured. So why not structure things so as to reduce illegal dumping and pirate use of private dumpsters in the office parks?
David Thomas Overlooking Cook Inlet in Kenai, Alaska
I think you'd be better off to ask around locally than asking here. Other contractors are certainly facing the same problem, and may have found creative solutions.
Seeme like they're the ones you need to be asking............
Why are hemorrhoids called "hemorrhoids" instead of "asteroids"?
I get rid of it in a couple of ways. I sort it and recycle it when I have time or I look for construction sites and offer to pay the GC to let me dump it in their dumpsters. I've never been turned down or overcharged and have found the just not having to take the 20-30 mile trip to the dump saves me as much as it costs to dump it locally. I usually take the extra time to clean up around the dumpsters even if the spillage is not mine and this helps to establish a good rapor with the different GC's. An occasional 6 pack during the summer or good bourbon during the winter doesn't hurt either.
When neither of the above works, I hire a trash hauler to get rid of it for me and figure that into the cost of the job.
Here is a thought. I know that local theater groups, drama clubs at high schools need things to build their sets. That might be one source that would be willing to go through the stuff and maybe even haul it off for you in exchange. Of course they can't do it for you all year long, but I am sure you might have materials they could use.Tamara
Here in LA they let me put a reasonable amount in the trash, so long as it's in plastic bags and the plaster debris is soaked with water to keep the dust down. Plaster and stucco are almost the only things I dumpster, the wood goes to a BIL who has a fireplace, the metals go to the junk box in my machine shop. I'll save up copper wire until the job is done, then sell it to a recycler. If you don't have a friend who has a fireplace, find somebody local who has one, and you'll have a friend real soon.... ;-)
-- J.S.
Is it illegal (I'm a newbie, so don't assume I am a seasoned individual in the business) to burn the wood and paper components? I dug up almost half a pallet of whole and bust brick from my front yard this past Summer when doing some landscaping around the home. Now I know how my builder handled the cleanup.
That was my idea, too: BURN IT! And if you can't burn it, see if you can hire someone else to take care of waste disposal for you. Who knows: in the end, subbing it out might even be more cost effective.
We used to be allowed burns here undfer certain circumstances but now the state DEP even gives the town a hard time about it in the burn pit. They want it all going to a waste recycler who burns it in an incinerator. theoretically, it burns hotter to destroy a lot of the dangerous stuff and the chimney stack height lets exhaust get higher into the atmosphere, away from sensitive respiratory systems.
I did say "theoretically", didn't I?
So we separate stuff to be hauled in a polluting truck on a polluting ferry down a crowded highway to a state approved incinerator where, if the wind is right, the smoke drifts back out to the island again on it's way out to sea..
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are." --Marcus Aurelius
Good thing that the government is around to make the really tough decisions and not leave it up to people like you and me, Piffin!
A friend of mine knows someone who has a wood burning furnace....it's actually located on the outside of his home. He said he will burn most anything....that's wood of some sort or another. I'm gonna check it out ..........
jocobe
Edited 11/23/2002 5:49:37 PM ET by JOCOBE
Those things are prety good - until you decide to burn old demo debris and the lead from the paint goes into the ashes and then to the garden compost pile..
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit.
The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."
--Marcus Aurelius
I don't know much about them, but that guy said he'll even burn pressure treated lumber. I'm not gonna give him any though.......................
jocobe
Heated whole 5300 sq ft house with scrap wood for 30 years till wife got too tired of feeding it. NEVER knowingly let a treated piece of wood get into firebox. Lotsa former thread with serious health risks from As breakdown in fire., etc.
This is something that has worked well for me on my current project. We were left with a huge pile of sheetrock scraps when the rockers were done ( 2000 sqft 2 family home) and my guys started laying it in the mud to get to the house. Miraculously it has all seemed to disappear. I think the gypsum is actually good for the heavy clay soil we have around here.