Chicago, Illinois junk removal
Chicago junk removal, down the stairs and out to the alley
A couch is wedged against the kitchen wall because it will not make the turn on the back porch stairs. Junk removal in Chicago starts with that walk around the piece: the room it sits in, the doorway it has to pass through, the staircase older than the sofa, and the alley where the truck can stop.
What has to go?
A couch that will not make the turn
Sofas that came in before a wall went up, or arrived through a window during a move, do not always go back out the way they came. The furniture removal page covers sectionals, sleepers and loveseats one shape at a time.
An old mattress once the new one arrives
The old mattress has to leave the bedroom and leave the building. Box springs go with it too. If bedbugs are a possibility, say so on the call so the crew who gets the mattress out knows before arrival.
A refrigerator or washer that quit
A refrigerator, a freezer, a window air conditioner, a dead washer or dryer. If a gas, water or power line is still live, call a plumber, an electrician or the gas company before the crew arrives. The sealed system that holds refrigerant stays closed in the appliance. Then we handle the carry out from the kitchen or the basement.
A parent's home that has to be emptied
Clearing the house after a parent dies, or after a move to care, is a job the family does together, with keepsakes and papers set aside before anything leaves. We take the pieces nobody kept and leave what the family is still deciding about.
A garage or basement full to the door
A broken water heater that was replaced, boxes nobody has opened, a stack of plywood, old bikes and lawn tools that have doubled up. A garage cleanout covers that mix.
The pile after a remodel
Tile, drywall, old flooring, cabinets, and the strip of carpet that used to be in the dining room. A crew or a rented dumpster is the first choice to make.
Two-flats, walk-ups and alleys
39 percent of Chicago homes were built in 1939 or earlier.1 Stairs, landings and back porches decide a sofa coming out of a walk-up. About 30 percent of households moved into their current home in 2020 or later;2 among renters the figure is closer to 42 percent, and a full apartment or house cleanout is a service the page covers in detail. In the city's high-rises, 20 percent of homes sit in buildings of fifty or more units,3 so ask the building about elevator use before any date is set.
The details to leave are about the way out as much as what is going: elevators, loading docks and alley access.
Junk removal services, by what has to go
Every service we offer in Chicago has its own page: single pieces, whole rooms and homes, and renovation and yard debris. Everything we haul is the full list for the mix-of-everything calls.
Single items and heavy pieces
Rooms, homes and offices
Renovation, yard and outdoor
When the crew arrives on a junk removal call
The visit is the same shape on a one-piece pickup and a full cleanout:
- You call (312) 847-2454 and tell us what has to go and where it sits.
- The call covers floors, stairs, elevators and parking.
- The pieces get a look before any work starts, and nothing moves until you say so.
- On the day, point out any pieces you added since the call.
A look at the room is where the small things come up: a desk no one mentioned, a filing cabinet heavier than it looks, a second room in the basement. Checking any hauler covers the questions worth asking before a truck leaves.
What a crew leaves behind
Paint, household chemicals, fuel, propane and solvents usually need special disposal. The City's household chemicals facility accepts those household materials from Chicagoans only;4 businesses have to use a private disposal company. Where leftover paint goes breaks the paint and chemicals side down can by can. Illinois has barred computers, monitors and TVs from the trash since January 1, 2012,5 so an old TV has to go to a registered recycler. The carry out of old TVs and computers is on its own page.
Appliances with refrigerant are their own case; the sealed system stays sealed in the unit. The City instructs residents to remove doors or lids from discarded refrigerators and freezers.6
Garbage service in Chicago depends on the building
City crews collect garbage weekly from single-family homes and apartment buildings of four units or less,7 about 600,000 households in all. Larger buildings arrange private collection, and owners of apartment buildings have to provide enough containers for all tenants and set up private or licensed scavenger pickup.6 So the first question in a building of five or more units is the building itself, not us: the dumpster, the hauler and the rules sit with the owner or the management company. Ask what the building takes before putting bags or furniture in a shared bin, since each private hauler sets its own list of what fits and what does not.
Who picks up the garbage depends on the building
City crews stop at four units. Bigger buildings set up their own pickup.
Houses and buildings of one to four units
About 600,000 households are on City collection.
- City crews pick up the garbage once a week, from lidded 96-gallon carts the trucks lift and empty.
- Blue cart recycling comes from the City as well.
Buildings of five or more units
- The owner has to provide enough garbage containers for every tenant.
- Pickup comes from a private or licensed scavenger the owner arranges.
- For recycling, ask the building owner or the management office.
Sources: Streets and Sanitation, Grid Garbage Collection; Streets and Sanitation, Garbage Carts; Chicago Recycles, Residential Recycling; Streets and Sanitation, Sanitation Code.
Junk removal in Chicago: your questions
What does junk removal include?
A crew carries pieces out, takes apart what will not fit through the door, loads the truck and drives away. The job can be a one-piece pickup, a whole bedroom, a basement cleared to the walls or a construction pile. Start on the right page from every junk removal service we offer.
What moves the price?
How a job gets priced breaks out volume, weight, stairs and the items that cost more to dispose of.
Do I need to be home, and do things have to be at the curb?
Being on site for the look helps. The crew carries from where things sit; nothing has to be out in the alley or at the curb. Leave heavy pieces inside where they are, and put nothing in the alley before a crew is there to take it.
What will the crew not take?
Paint, household chemicals, fuel, propane, solvents and batteries. Appliances that hold refrigerant leave sealed.
What happens to my things after they leave?
Pieces in good shape may be offered for reuse. The City code requires any licensed junk hauler to take loads to permitted facilities and keep records.8 Ask any hauler, including us, where its loads go.
Where do old paint and chemicals go?
The City's permanent Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility4 takes items such as bleach, harsh cleaning materials, drain cleaners, oil-based paints, solvents, CFL bulbs, aerosol cans and mercury items. The City does not take latex paint there and suggests drying leftover paint with kitty litter or sawdust4 and setting the hardened can out as trash. The facility is a resident drop-off; businesses are not accepted.
Can a crew get a couch down from a third-floor walk-up?
Say on the call that the piece is on the third floor of a walk-up and name the shape of the sofa. The crew looks at the stairs and the landings first, and some older staircases are tighter than a sleeper sofa, so the piece sometimes has to come apart.
What is the cheapest way to get rid of junk?
The cheapest route is giving away what is in good shape. Reuse groups and neighbors take pieces when the piece has clean upholstery, no broken frame and a reasonable size. For the rest, ask the building owner or manager what its own garbage and recycling service takes. Giving furniture away covers who takes what and what to do with pieces nobody will accept.
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25034, Chicago city (via Census API)
- U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25038, Chicago city (via Census API)
- U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25024 (units in structure), Chicago city (via Census API)
- City of Chicago Department of Environment, Household Chemicals & Computer Recycling Facility
- City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation, news release of December 6, 2011 (copy of Illinois EPA release)
- City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation, Sanitation Code Violation
- City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation, Grid Garbage Collection
- Municipal Code of Chicago 4-6-150(a), Junk peddlers
When the room is ready for a crew
Count the big pieces (couch, bed, dresser, washer) and note the floor, the stairs or the elevator, and where a truck can stop. Say which pieces hold refrigerant and whether a gas or electric line is still connected, then call (312) 847-2454 and tell us. If a call is not easy, leave your number in the callback form and we will reach back. The about page covers the questions on our side.