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Need to get rid of an old mattress? You’re not alone. Mattresses are huge and bulky and difficult to dispose of. It would be nice if you could just drop it off with the rest of your garbage. So can you put a mattress in a dumpster? Let’s find out.
Can you put a mattress in a dumpster?
You’re usually not allowed to throw your unwanted mattress in a dumpster, but you need to check your local regulations because rules about mattress disposal vary by state and even by county.
The most common scenario is that mattresses are considered bulky waste and you might have to pay a fee to get it removed and/or leave it out on a day when bulky waste is picked up.
Some areas might require you to wrap the mattress in a plastic mattress bag; this is to ensure no bed bugs or similar pests get spread around.
Don’t ever throw a mattress in a dumpster without informing yourself about your local regulations. You might cause lots of problems, especially if it encourages other neighbors to do the same. In some cases, the trash company might even reject the whole dumpster.
In case you opt for a roll-off dumpster rental, you will be able to throw your old mattress and box spring in it along with any other household junk – big or small.
Whether your local waste management picks it up or you throw it in a roll-off dumpster, in both cases your old mattress is going to end up in the local landfill.
Can you leave a mattress next to an apartment dumpster?
Mattresses or box springs that are left by apartment dumpsters might get picked up on trash day, but there could be a pickup fee. In general, you shouldn’t be doing this because it obstructs the garbage truck drivers from doing their job and is unsanitary as it attracts rodents and pests.
You need to check your lease or apartment complex rules. Asking the landlord/manager might be the easiest way.
Also, don’t try to dump your bulky waste secretly/at night next to a dumpster – pretty much all buildings have cameras nowadays and you shouldn’t be causing trouble to your community anyway. If you don’t know how to ask your property manager, you don’t have to be too direct with “Can I leave a mattress by the dumpster?” Instead, you can go with something more open-ended and say “I want to dispose of a mattress properly. What are my options?”
The right thing to do is wait for the bulky waste pickup day or schedule an appointment and then put your mattress outside where it can be easily picked up.
Is it illegal to throw away a mattress in a dumpster?
In some places it is, and in some, it isn’t. If it is illegal in your area, repercussions include paying a fine for illegal dumping (fines increase for repeated offenses) and having your dumpster rejected.
If it is legal, you might be able to throw it in the dumpster as-is, or you might be required to wrap it up in plastic.
As much as 75% of a mattress can be recycled and turned into lots of different things, including lawn mulch, clothes, and pet bedding. With these options, it’s a shame to dump a mattress. On top of that, they are bulky, hard to move, expensive to transport, and take up a lot of space in a landfill.
Risks of putting a mattress in the dumpster
Aside from the fines and dumpster rejections I’ve already mentioned, mattresses pose other dangers to yourself and your community.
Some of them come from leaving the mattress where it doesn’t belong, and others from mattresses ending up in landfills.
- Illegally dumped mattresses are a breeding ground for rodents, bed bugs, cockroaches, and other pests.
- Mattresses can cause damage to incinerator machines in a landfill.
- If memory foam gets burned, it releases toxic chemicals.
- During the process of a natural breakdown of mattress materials, many toxic dyes, fumes, and other chemicals can get released into the environment.
How to get rid of an old mattress
There are many ways you can dispose of an old mattress that don’t include dumping it somewhere. Some of them are rather humane and one could actually make you some money.
Dispose of a mattress by:
- hiring a garbage removal service
- donating it
- giving it away to friends and family
- selling it
- recycling it
You can also get rid of a mattress through white glove delivery.
This is a situation in which the company that’s dropping off your new mattress simultaneously picks up the old mattress which then gets recycled, donated, or thrown away.
Now, I’m not going to get into details of another option which is upcycling your mattress as I’m going to take the liberty of assuming that since you’re reading an article about leaving your mattress in a dumpster, you’re probably looking for quick ways to get rid of it.
But let me just say that there’s a ton of useful and fun stuff you could make with mattress materials. Just in case you opt for that. Thumbs up if you do!
Hire a garbage removal service
Check out garbage removal services in your area and get their quotes. Then go with whatever’s most affordable or seems like the best deal.
Don’t forget to contact the local waste management authority (don’t confuse them with a company called Waste Management Inc). They might be able to help you for free unless your mattress is too large for what they are able to pick up.
You can search Google for the nearest local services or call some of these big companies:
- Waste Management Inc
- Republic Services
- USA Waste & Recycling
- Got Junk
- Junk King
- and many more.
Donate it
Donating a mattress might require you to take your mattress to the donation facility yourself, but some donation centers might send a vehicle to pick it up. The mattress should be free of stains, infestations, tears, and other visible signs of damage.
Here are some organizations and types of organizations that you can contact to see if they’d accept mattresses:
- Habitat for Humanity
- Salvation Army
- Furniture Bank Association of America
- Goodwill
- Religious organizations
- Local charities
- Thrift stores
Or, you could try to find a person in need yourself. Why not?
Give it away to friends or family
Honestly, checking whether anyone nearest to you needs a mattress should be one of the first ideas that come to your mind when you need to get rid of large and expensive items. This shows that you care and it strengthens bonds between your friends/family and yourself. Well, maybe you shouldn’t ask every single person; you’d know which ones are so proud of their luxurious lifestyles that they could get offended if you did.
Think about who might need a mattress and give them a call. It could be a student, someone who’s in between jobs, or new parents, for example.
Sell it
If your mattress is in good shape – and by this I mean almost as good as a new mattress – you can try selling it.
Many people find Facebook Marketplace the best way to sell used items, but you can also check out Craigslist or other websites. Laws about used mattress sales vary from state to state, but as an individual (and not a retailer), you can sell a used mattress anywhere except Kansas, where it’s illegal to sell a used mattress.
Check out our guide on how to make a successful mattress listing on Craigslist (the recommendations are the same for any other website as well) that’s going to ensure your mattress sells quickly.
Recycle it
You can look up mattress recycling facilities nearby and call them to ask when you could bring yours. You can also disassemble your mattress (provided that the mattress doesn’t contain fiberglass) and take different materials to different recycling centers. Metal springs can go to a scrap yard and you can take memory foam padding to a furniture recycling service.
Some states have special mattress recycling programs.
For example, Mattress Recycling Council founded Bye Bye Mattress which currently only operates in California, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. It is a website that helps people find the nearest mattress recycling service.
FAQs
A whopping 83% of all discarded mattresses end up in a landfill. Even though many mattresses get donated and some get recycled, there will always be mattresses in such a bad state that they fail to meet the standards for either of those options.
Depending on the type of service, it can be free (if it’s a part of white glove delivery), between $10 and $50 for landfill disposal or recycling, but you may also have to pay around $300 for junk haulers or about $500 for dumpster rental.
Yes. If you’ve completely disassembled a mattress so that none of its parts take up a large space, you can put them in a dumpster. But since you took so much time and effort and basically prepared the materials for recycling, you’re much better off recycling or even upcycling those parts.
If you get caught, you’ll have to pay a fine because that’s illegal. Mattresses on sidewalks obstruct passage to anyone who’s walking there. They get peed on, they might spread bed bugs; cockroaches lay eggs in them, and, if not removed soon, they might end up catching fire. I’ve lived in LA long enough and I’ve seen it happen. They get stinkier with every passing day. In some places, you can either leave mattresses in public areas if it’s a bulky item pickup day or schedule a pickup with local waste management. That is, unless the mattress exceeds the size they can pick up.
Conclusion
How exactly you can and should dispose of a mattress depends on your local rules and regulations.
You need to inform yourself about where and when to leave a mattress for pickup and whether it’s legal to put it in or next to a dumpster.
Make sure you don’t break any apartment complex rules. You can hire a mattress disposal service, but you can also take a couple more steps and give it or sell it to someone who needs it more than you.
Finally, learn about mattress recycling in your area if it’s available.
Next step: Read about the most durable mattresses. If you want to avoid having to get rid of your mattress, make sure you get a brand that lasts. We tested out all of the top brands and ranked them in order of how long they last so you can decide for yourself which on is the best option for you.
With over 5 years experience writing about sleep and mattresses, she's considered one of the go-to experts on the topic.
She likes cycling, nature, art, and languages. She pays special attention to providing you with accurate and useful information when it comes to your sleep quality.
After solving her personal sleep and tiredness problems, she is on to help others by sharing this invaluable information.
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