Chicago junk removal questions, answered

A crew pulls pieces out of the room, takes apart what will not fit through the door, loads the truck and drives away. One piece, a whole bedroom, a basement cleared to the walls or a construction pile all fit the same shape of job. The version sorted by what has to go is on every junk removal service we offer.

Being there for the look helps, because small questions come up: a second room in the basement, a desk nobody mentioned, a cabinet heavier than it looks. If you cannot be there, a friend or a building manager can let the crew in and point out what goes; set that up through the contact page.

No. The crew carries from where things sit, whether that is a third-floor walk-up, a service elevator or a garage. Keep pieces inside where they are and put nothing in the alley before the truck arrives. The sorting routine for a full move-out sits on moving out of an apartment.

Drawers come out empty so the dresser is lighter on the carry. Keepsakes, papers and anything that has to stay get set aside before the crew arrives, especially on an estate job. Set aside anything you plan to give away as well, so the crew knows what to leave for a donation pickup. The move-out version of the question is on clearing a whole apartment.

What a junk removal price covers walks through each driver and the pieces that cost more to dispose of.

Haulers measure the load differently, carry different trucks and leave different items. One hauler may give a flat phone number; another may want to look. Where the load ends up matters too: the City code requires licensed junk haulers to take junk to permitted facilities and keep records¹ of where it went. The full compare-two-haulers list is on checking any hauler.

Yes. A king coming down a narrow staircase is on getting the mattress out of the bedroom; what happens to the mattress after it leaves picks up at the truck.

Refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers and window air conditioners. The crew does not open an appliance, pull its lines or cut tubing. Gas, water and power disconnects go to a plumber, an electrician or the gas company first. The City instructs residents to remove doors or lids from discarded refrigerators and freezers.² The full carry out is on appliance removal.

No. Paint, household chemicals, fuel, propane, solvents and batteries usually need special disposal. The City's household chemicals facility accepts household materials from Chicagoans only,³ so a business cannot drop a customer's items there. The latex, oil-based paint and spray can routes are on where leftover paint goes.

No. Illinois has barred computers, monitors and TVs from the trash since January 1, 2012;⁴ residents take them to a registered recycler. The drop-off options are on electronics after the trash ban, and the carry-out option is on TV removal.

Chicago's code holds any licensed junk hauler to taking its loads to permitted facilities and keeping records of where they went.¹ Ask any hauler which permitted sites it uses, and compare the answer between two quotes.

Say on the call that the piece is in a walk-up and name the floor. A sectional sometimes has to come apart on the top landing before the carry out. The single-piece version lives on furniture removal.

Ask the building about elevator use before any date is set, since high-rises set their own rules on service elevators, pads, loading docks and when a crew may use them. Mention those building rules on the call so the look at the pieces does not run into something the lobby already answered. The full set of questions is on checking any hauler.

City crews collect garbage weekly from single-family homes and buildings of four units or less, about 600,000 households in all.⁵ In buildings larger than four units, the owner provides the containers and arranges private or licensed scavenger pickup.² So the first stop for furniture, bulk pieces or extra loads in a larger building is the owner or the manager, not us.

City blue cart recycling serves one-to-four unit buildings;⁶ residents of larger buildings are told to check with their building owner or property manager for collection information. Ask whether the carts in the hallway are the right place for a stack of flattened boxes before you set them there.

Yes. The City's permanent Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility³ accepts household chemicals, oil-based paints, CFL bulbs, aerosols, mercury items and residential electronics from Chicago residents, along with rechargeable, car, small lead-acid and lithium batteries (not alkaline). The facility is a resident drop-off; businesses are not accepted. Latex paint is a case of its own: the City suggests drying leftover paint with kitty litter or sawdust³ and setting the hardened can out as trash.

Chicago's code bans dumping on any lot in the city except at a permitted facility and declares the dumping a nuisance.⁷ The City's 311 system logged 15,402 fly dumping complaints in 2025.⁸ The fly dumping guide covers what to ask a hauler before you say yes.

A short set of details goes in: what has to go, where it sits, which floor it is on, whether there are stairs or an elevator, and where a truck can stop.

A rough count of the big pieces, the floor, how the stairs or elevator run, and anything heavy or awkward: tile, concrete, a piano, a hot tub. Flag anything the building sets, such as elevator access rules or an office that approves haulers. On an estate job, point out any pieces that need to stay, so the crew leaves them in place. The move-out version is on moving out of an apartment.

Yes. The callback form takes your name, a phone number and an optional note. What to put in the note is on the contact page.

The crew carries from houses, two-flats, three-flats, apartments and high-rises; the shape of the carry out changes with the building. A single-family home with a front stoop reads differently from a walk-up with a back porch, and both read differently from a loading dock in a high-rise. Reach us on the contact page.