What Can and Can't Go in a Dumpster in Florida

Yes — load it

• Household junk and furniture: sofas, tables, boxes, general clutter — and mattresses.
• Construction and renovation debris: wood and lumber, framing, drywall, flooring and carpet, tile, cabinets and countertops, pallets.
• Roofing: asphalt shingles, underlayment and flashing — heavy, so mind the weight allowance.
• Cardboard and packaging.
• Concrete, brick, dirt, asphalt and gravel — in a weight-limited 10 or 15 yard, kept separate.
• Yard debris: branches, brush, shrubs, soil and sod — ideally in its own load.

That list lines up with Florida's own definitions. F.S. 403.703(6) defines construction and demolition debris to include "steel, glass, brick, concrete, asphalt roofing material, pipe, gypsum wallboard, and lumber" from building, renovating or tearing down, plus rocks, soils, trees and other vegetative matter from land clearing for a construction project, and clean cardboard, paper, plastic, wood and metal scraps from the job. Construction debris facilities may accept carpet remnants from a construction or demolition project (Rule 62-701.730(7)(h)) and plastic buckets holding hardened paint, tar or cement (Rule 62-701.730(7)(g)). Florida's Class III waste includes yard trash, carpet, cardboard and "furniture other than appliances" (Rule 62-701.200(14)); we found no Florida statute or rule that names mattresses.

What Florida law keeps out of landfills

Most of the no list comes from F.S. 403.708(12), which says a person "who knows or should know of the nature of the following types of solid waste may not dispose of such solid waste in landfills," and the rules that go with it:

Mercury-containing devices may not go to a landfill either (F.S. 403.7186(2)). Two common myths: Florida has no specific law banning electronics from landfills — FDEP says so — but FDEP "strongly recommends recycling all unwanted electronic products"; and the fluorescent lamp rule is aimed at businesses that throw out more than 10 spent lamps a month, not at households (F.S. 403.7186). The City's HHW Facility takes both, free for Duval residents.

What construction debris facilities turn away — and our boxes too

Most renovation and demolition loads go to a construction and demolition debris facility, and Rule 62-701.730(4)(a) says "No solid waste other than construction and demolition debris shall be disposed of" there; spotters on the working face pull anything unauthorized out of the waste stream (Rule 62-701.730(7)(d)). On top of that: no noncontainerized liquids in construction debris or household-waste units, and containers or tanks of 20 gallons or more must have one end removed or be punctured so they are empty (Rule 62-701.300(10)); no whole tires (Rule 62-701.300(8)(b)); no regulated asbestos (Rule 62-701.730(19)); and CCA pressure-treated wood "shall not be incorporated into compost or made into mulch" or burned in the open (Rule 62-701.300(14)).

Our own no list, from the start: paints and solvents, flammable liquids, fuel and oils, tires, batteries, hazardous chemicals, propane tanks and gas cylinders, medical waste, asbestos-containing materials and appliances containing refrigerant. If you are unsure about something, call (904) 595-8110 before you toss it in — it is far cheaper than finding out at the gate.

No — and where it goes instead

The HHW Facility is open Tuesday to Saturday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., (904) 387-8847, and is free for Duval residents. Outside Duval, St. Johns County's Tillman Ridge (3005 Allen Nease Rd, Elkton) and Stratton Road (250 North Stratton Rd, St. Augustine) transfer stations take household hazardous waste and white goods, and Nassau County holds a household hazardous waste event on 17 October 2026 at the County Road Department, 86200 Gene Lasserre Blvd, Yulee.

Appliances and refrigerant

Florida defines "white goods" as "discarded air conditioners, heaters, refrigerators, ranges, water heaters, freezers, and other similar domestic and commercial large appliances" (F.S. 403.703(47)), and F.S. 403.708(12)(d) keeps them out of landfills. Federal law covers what is inside: under 40 CFR 82.155(b), the final processor of a small appliance — scrap recyclers and landfill operators included — must recover any refrigerant left in it or get a signed statement or contract verifying it has been recovered. As the City puts it, "Major appliances are prohibited by law in landfills and therefore are collected separately from household garbage." That is why appliances containing refrigerant stay out of the box. Small kitchen appliances can go to the City's e-waste collection, and if you would rather not haul a big one yourself, ask about our junk removal service.

Asbestos in Florida

The federal asbestos rules (NESHAP) are run by FDEP, and in Duval the City's Environmental Quality Division, Air Quality Branch, is the local program (214 N. Hogan St., 5th Floor, 904-255-7100). A Notice of Renovation or Demolition is due "at least 10 working days before the start date" for projects removing asbestos-containing material above the thresholds — 260 linear feet on pipes, 160 square feet on other components or 35 cubic feet — and FDEP says every demolition of a covered building needs a notice even when no asbestos is present. The fee is a flat $200, or $100 when filed and paid online.

A building with four or fewer residential dwelling units is generally exempt, unless it is part of a larger multi-building project, has been used commercially, or is being demolished to make room for a commercial structure. Disposal is the hard line: Rule 62-701.730(19) says regulated asbestos "shall not be disposed of in a construction and demolition debris disposal unit," and FDEP's district or local program can supply a list of permitted asbestos disposal sites on request. Never put asbestos in a roll-off, and never burn it.

Sorting: construction debris, yard trash and household junk

Florida sorts waste by the facility that takes it, and it pays to sort it the same way. Construction and demolition debris — lumber, drywall, shingles, concrete, brick, pipe — can go to a construction debris facility, but F.S. 403.703(6) says mixing it with other types of solid waste makes the whole mixture something other than construction and demolition debris. Household junk from a cleanout is a different load. Yard trash is welcome at Class III and construction debris disposal; the ban is only for lined Class I landfills. After a storm, the City sorts debris into four piles — appliances, construction and bulky waste, vegetative debris and household trash — and says failure to keep them separate may prevent workers from collecting it.

So keep brush and stumps in their own load where you can, keep heavy concrete and brick apart from everything else, and do not mix a household cleanout into a remodel box without telling us. If you are not sure where something belongs, call before you load it.