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

Yes — load it

• Household junk and furniture: sofas, tables, chairs, mattresses, boxes and general clutter.
• Construction and renovation debris: wood, lumber, drywall, plaster, flooring, siding, tile, cabinets and fixtures, insulation and general job site waste.
• Roofing: shingles and underlayment, heavy, so mind the weight limit.
• Metal, plastic, cardboard and packaging.
• Concrete, brick and asphalt — in limited loads, kept separate from lighter debris.
• Yard waste: branches and brush, grass and leaves, shrubs, soil, mulch and sod — as its own load.

Michigan's landfill ban list does not include mattresses, furniture, shingles, drywall or wood, so a roofing load or a furniture cleanout is fine. What the state does care about is below, along with our own no list. If you are ever unsure, just ask; we confirm before delivery so your load stays within the disposal rules.

Michigan's landfill ban list

These are the state rules in Part 115 of Michigan's environmental code, MCL 324.11514 as amended in 2023, and where each item goes instead:

Two common myths. Michigan has no landfill ban on electronics: its electronics law (Part 173) is a manufacturer takeback program, though landfills and haulers may still refuse them. And household chemicals such as solvents, cleansers and pesticides are not on the statutory ban list; EGLE says they "are not well suited for solid waste disposal either", and they are on our no list.

Electronics and appliances: ask first

Electronics. TVs, computers and monitors are not banned from Michigan landfills, but manufacturers run takeback programs under state law (MCL 324.17309, 324.17311), and a landfill or hauler may refuse them. Recycling is the better route. Ask us before you load them; our junk removal service recycles electronics through approved programs, and Tuscola County Recycling in Caro takes electronics, with a fee on TVs, laptops and monitors.

Fridges, freezers and AC units. EGLE says used appliances that contain refrigerants must have the refrigerants removed, and a certified technician must remove, recover and recycle them; federal rules put the same duty on the final processor (40 CFR 82.155). Refrigerants are on our no list, so a fridge or freezer goes in only if the refrigerant has been properly removed, and you should ask first. Our junk removal crew takes refrigerators, washers, dryers and stoves.

Our no list, and our yearly notice

Our own no list: paints, solvents and automotive fluids, batteries, propane tanks and fuel containers, tires, medical waste, asbestos and hazardous chemicals, and refrigerants. Some materials must be handled separately for safety and environmental reasons, and if you are unsure about something, call (989) 930-1786 before you load it; it is far cheaper than finding out at the facility.

Michigan requires a solid waste hauler that disposes of waste in a landfill to tell each customer once a year what is banned from landfills under MCL 324.11514, the appropriate disposal options, and the state environmental agency's website (MCL 324.11527a). This guide is that notice: the banned list is above, the disposal options are below, and EGLE's website is michigan.gov/egle. Banned items stay out of the box.

No — and where it goes instead

Most of these programs are for residents only and run on set days or by appointment, and several 2026 seasons are already over, so check the program's own page before you plan around a drop-off.

Asbestos in Michigan

EGLE needs notice through its MiEnviro Portal at least ten working days before a regulated demolition or renovation. Residential buildings with four or fewer units under private control or ownership are not covered by the federal asbestos rule behind that notice, but privately owned homes or apartments demolished for urban renewal or as part of a public or commercial project are covered, and so are apartment buildings with five or more units. MIOSHA's Asbestos Program separately requires notice 10 days before any non-emergency abatement project of more than 10 linear feet or 15 square feet of friable asbestos-containing material, so the rules may still apply to work on a home.

Asbestos waste goes only to a landfill that complies with the federal asbestos disposal rule (MCL 324.11514(2)(h)). Never put asbestos in a roll-off.

What the local pickups refuse

The town rules line up with the state list. In Saginaw, City pickup will not take liquids such as oil, paints and solvents, anything defined as hazardous under an environmental or health law, or construction and demolition debris and contract work (City Code § 50.06). Bay City's curbside leaves out materials from building, remodeling, repair or demolition such as stones, bricks, plaster, lumber, shingles, gypsum board and concrete (§ 86-74), and contractor debris at the curb is prohibited (§ 86-75). Vassar's service will not pick up construction or demolition debris beyond one bushel basket (§ 58-39), and Chesaning's carts do not take construction debris, wood, sod or dirt.

Brush has its own limits too. Chesaning will not pick up brush cut by a commercial contractor, Carrollton Township's brush pickup does not cover contracted work or whole-tree removal, and Bridgeport Township's chipping crews refuse branches mixed with fence posts, wire or other building material. That mixed pile belongs in a dumpster.

Sorting: clean loads, mixed loads, yard waste and household junk

It pays to sort. Light materials can be mixed, but heavy materials such as concrete and shingles should be kept separate to stay within weight limits, and disposal sites treat them differently too: the City of Saginaw's Convenience Station, for one, says cement, block and brick may not be combined with any other materials. Yard waste is its own load, because Michigan keeps more than a small amount of it out of landfills (MCL 324.11514(1)(d)), and keeping it separate from construction debris and household trash lets it go to approved green waste and composting facilities. If you are replacing a fence or a deck as part of a yard job, we can provide separate dumpsters for organic and non-organic waste.

Household junk from a cleanout is the load most likely to hide a car battery, a can of old oil or a set of tires, so check it before it goes in. All waste from our dumpsters goes to licensed Mid Michigan recycling and disposal facilities, and we recycle concrete, wood and metal whenever possible. If you are not sure where something belongs, call before you load it.