Trash Pickup in St. Petersburg, FL

Elephants Dumpster Rental & Junk Removal provides trash pickup and bulk waste hauling in St. Petersburg and across Pinellas County for items your city curbside service will not take — furniture, mattresses, appliances, yard debris and overflow bags. One-time or recurring, and we tell you when free municipal bulk pickup would be cheaper. Locally owned since 2021, licensed and insured, open 24/7. Call or text 727-240-7033 for a free quote.

SERVING MOST LOCATIONS IN

Top-Tier Trash Pickup Services

Our trash pickup services are unmatched! Skip the hassle and let Elephants Dumpster Rental & Junk Removal in St. Petersburg handle it. Our skilled team is ready to take care of your trash efficiently and professionally.

Benefits of Choosing Our Trash Pickup Services

Trash can pile up quickly, causing clutter and inconvenience in homes, offices, and outdoor spaces. Whether you’re dealing with household waste, construction debris, or commercial trash, efficient trash pickup services can make all the difference. As your local junk removal experts in St. Petersburg, we provide reliable and cost-effective solutions for all your trash pickup needs.

Convenience

Our trash pickup services are designed to make your life easier. Forget the hassle of transporting trash to a landfill or recycling center—our team will come to your location, load up the unwanted items, and ensure proper disposal.

Time-Saving

Time is valuable, and dealing with trash can be a drain. With our services, you can free up your schedule to focus on more important matters while we handle the removal and disposal.

Environmentally Responsible

Proper waste disposal is essential for the environment. Our trash pickup services prioritize recycling and eco-friendly disposal methods, reducing the impact on landfills and conserving resources.

Safe and Efficient

Handling heavy, bulky, or hazardous waste can be risky. Our trained professionals have the equipment and expertise to manage trash removal safely and efficiently.

Items We Handle During Trash Pickup

Our trash pickup service in St. Petersburg is designed to handle a wide variety of items and materials, including:

Household Trash: Everyday waste like food containers, packaging, and general household clutter.

Construction Debris: Debris from construction, renovation, or remodeling projects, including old appliances, drywall, and flooring.

Furniture: We’ll take away unwanted furniture, from old sofas to broken chairs.

Electronics: Outdated electronics and appliances are no problem for our trash pickup service.

Commercial Waste: We assist businesses by removing office furniture, equipment, and other commercial debris.

Our professional team is ready to make your space cleaner and clutter-free.

Selecting a Reliable Trash Pickup Service

Choosing the right trash pickup service should simplify your life, not complicate it. A dependable trash pickup service is essential for maintaining a clean and organized space, whether you’re dealing with household clutter, office waste, or construction debris. By trusting professionals to handle the job, you ensure that your trash is removed efficiently and responsibly, leaving you with a tidy and stress-free environment. Don’t let trash pile up—contact our team for reliable trash pickup services and experience the ease of a cleaner, more organized space.

About Us

Elephants Dumpster Rental & Junk Removal offers fast and reliable trash pickup services throughout St. Petersburg. We provide both same-day and next-day appointments, ensuring you don’t have to wait long for service. Our punctual crew schedules in 2-hour arrival windows and gives you a courtesy call when we’re on our way.

Once our team arrives, you can show us the items that need to be removed. We’ll confirm our pricing and efficiently handle the job, leaving your space clean and clutter-free.

Ready to clear out your junk? Contact us today to book your appointment!

What Trash Pickup Actually Covers

“Trash pickup” means two very different things in Pinellas County, and knowing which one you need saves you both money and a wasted week.

The first is your city or county garbage service, the bin at your curb or in your alley that gets emptied on a set schedule. The City of St. Petersburg alone collects from more than 76,000 household accounts. That service is already paid for through your utility bill, and for weekly household waste it is the right tool.

The second is on-demand trash pickup from a private hauler. That is what this page is about. It exists for everything the bin cannot swallow: the pile in the garage, the furniture nobody wants, the eight bags left after a move-out, the shed cleanout, the load of drywall from a bathroom remodel. We show up when you ask, load it by hand, sweep up, and take it away in one visit.

The honest advice: if it fits in your bin, use your bin. Call us when it doesn’t.

Where City Trash Service Stops and a Private Hauler Starts

This is the part almost nobody looks up, and it is the single most useful thing on this page. Municipal programs have hard limits, and once you cross one, the city either declines the load or charges by volume.

Rule One: It Has to Be In the Container

The City of St. Petersburg is explicit that regular trash and yard waste belong in the designated bin, not loose on the curb or in the alley. A pile of bags stacked next to the container is not “put out for collection.” It is a pile that will still be there tomorrow, and in many neighborhoods it is also a code complaint waiting to happen.

Rule Two: The Free Special Pickup List Has Caps

St. Pete does offer a free Special Pickup for large items, which is genuinely useful and underused. But every category has a ceiling. According to the city’s Special Pickup page, free collection covers:

Car batteries — up to 5
Car tires — up to 5
Doors — up to 2
Empty 20 lb propane tanks — up to 2
Furniture, carpet and appliances — up to 3 cubic yards
Kitchen cabinets — up to 2
Windows — up to 2

Three cubic yards sounds like a lot until you measure it. A single sofa, a mattress set and a recliner will use most of it. A three-bedroom move-out will blow straight past it.

Rule Three: Past the List, the City Charges by the Yard

For anything outside that list, which the city names as large quantities of accumulated waste, building materials and brush, St. Petersburg charges $25.65 per cubic yard. That is the number to compare any private quote against. Requests go through SeeClickFix or by phone to the Sanitation Department at 727-893-7398, and including a photo speeds up the estimate.

Rule Four: Placement Still Applies

Special Pickup items have to go where your trash is normally collected — alley if you’re an alley address, curb if you’re a curb address. Items staged in the driveway or side yard get skipped. This is also the practical difference with a private hauler: we carry it out of the garage, the back bedroom or the attic ourselves. Nothing has to reach the curb.

Rule Five: Outside City Limits, the Rules Change

If you’re in unincorporated Pinellas County or a different municipality, collection is handled by your own city or a franchise hauler, with its own schedule, its own bulk-item allowance and its own fees. Clearwater, Largo, Pinellas Park, Seminole and Dunedin each run their own programs. Check yours before assuming St. Pete’s rules apply to your address.

What We Pick Up

If two people can carry it and it isn’t hazardous or regulated, it goes in the truck. In practice that covers almost everything a household or small business generates.

Bagged Household Trash and Overflow

The straightforward case. Bags that didn’t fit, weeks of accumulation, or the aftermath of a party, a holiday or a renovation. We take the whole pile in one pass.

Furniture

Sofas, sectionals, recliners, dining sets, dressers, headboards, desks and bookcases. Anything that has to come down a staircase or through a tight doorway is our problem, not yours. See furniture removal and sofa removal.

Mattresses and Box Springs

Bulky, awkward and refused by most curbside programs. Mattress removal is one of our most common single-item calls, and it is also the item most often affected by bed bug contamination, which changes how it has to be wrapped and handled.

Appliances

Refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers, dishwashers, ranges and water heaters. Anything containing refrigerant has to be handled separately because the coolant must be recovered by a certified technician rather than vented. See appliance removal and refrigerator removal.

Electronics

Televisions, monitors, desktops, laptops, printers and networking gear. Screens and circuit boards contain lead, mercury and other heavy metals, so these are routed to electronics recycling rather than the landfill.

Yard and Storm Debris

Branches, palm fronds, hedge trimmings, sod, fencing and the tarp-and-plywood aftermath of a storm. See yard debris removal and hurricane debris removal.

Garage, Attic, Shed and Closet Overflow

The category that generates the most calls, because it accumulates invisibly for a decade. Related: garage cleanouts, attic cleanouts, storage cleanouts and shed removal.

Move-Out and Turnover Piles

Whatever the last tenant or owner left behind. Often on a hard deadline, which is why same-day junk removal exists. Related: estate cleanouts, eviction cleanouts and foreclosure cleanouts.

Construction and Remodel Debris

Drywall, tile, cabinets, trim, flooring, roofing and lumber. This is the category the city explicitly charges extra for, and it is heavy, which is why weight drives the price. See construction debris removal and concrete removal.

Scrap Metal and Odd Items

Grills, bed frames, filing cabinets, exercise equipment, bicycles, above-ground pools, hot tubs and pianos. See scrap metal removal, exercise equipment removal, hot tub removal and piano removal.

What We Cannot Legally Put in the Truck

Every legitimate hauler in Florida has this list, and anyone who tells you they’ll take these in a general load is either cutting corners or about to charge you for a problem later. Household hazardous waste is regulated separately from solid waste, and it cannot go into a standard trash load, a dumpster, or a landfill.

Paint, stains, solvents and thinners
Pool chemicals, pesticides, herbicides and fertilizer
Motor oil, gasoline, antifreeze and brake fluid
Propane tanks that are not empty
Car and rechargeable batteries
Fluorescent tubes and CFL bulbs (mercury)
Asbestos-containing material, which requires a licensed abatement contractor
Medical or biohazard waste, ammunition and explosives

Set these aside where we can see them and we will tell you exactly where each one needs to go. That advice is free, and it is a lot cheaper than a fine.

Where to Take Household Hazardous Waste in Pinellas County

Pinellas County runs a genuinely good program for this, it is free, and most residents have no idea it exists. The county’s Solid Waste department operates two permanent collection facilities that divert household chemicals out of the regular waste stream.

HHW Center — St. Petersburg

The permanent facility at 2855 109th Avenue N., St. Petersburg, open select days each week from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

HHW North — Clearwater

The north county facility at 29582 U.S. 19 N., Clearwater, open select Saturdays each month from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Because the days rotate, check the county’s Household Hazardous Waste Collection page and program calendar before you load the car.

The Limits Worth Knowing

The program is for Pinellas County households only. Businesses are not eligible, which matters if you’re clearing out a commercial space and assumed you could drop chemicals off the same way a homeowner does. The City of St. Petersburg also points residents toward Household Chemical Collection Events held around the county through the year for items like rechargeable batteries, paint, fluorescent bulbs and fertilizer.

One more free option most people miss: St. Pete residents can arrange free Special Pickup of televisions, furniture or computer equipment by calling the Sanitation Department at 727-893-7398. If that covers your whole problem, use it. We would rather tell you that than sell you a truck you don’t need.

What Happens to Your Trash After We Load It

Sorting is where a hauler either earns the “eco-friendly” claim or just says it. Ours is straightforward and you can verify every step of it.

Donatable goods — furniture, working appliances, tools, bikes, clothing and housewares get set aside for donation instead of thrown away.
Metals — appliances, bed frames, grills and structural steel go to a scrap recycler.
Electronics — routed to certified e-waste recycling so heavy metals stay out of the ground.
Cardboard and paper — separated for recycling. See cardboard recycling.
Yard waste — organic material goes to composting and mulch processing rather than disposal.
Concrete, block and masonry — crushed and reused as aggregate and fill.
Household hazardous waste — delivered to the county HHW facilities described above.

What genuinely can’t be reused enters the county system, and Pinellas follows the EPA’s Waste Management Hierarchy: reduce, reuse, recycle, then energy recovery, then landfill. Trash goes to the Waste-to-Energy Facility first, where combustion cuts volume by roughly 90 percent and generates electricity, with Bridgeway Acres Landfill used as a last resort. The Solid Waste Disposal Complex sits at 3095 114th Ave. N. in St. Petersburg.

Trash Pickup vs. Hauling It Yourself: The Real Math

Plenty of loads are worth doing yourself, and we’ll say so. Here is what the DIY route actually costs in Pinellas County, using the county’s own published disposal fees.

Fees at the Solid Waste Disposal Complex are based on what you arrive in, not just what you’re dumping:

Cars: $4.25 per load (flat)
Pickup trucks and vans: $11.75 per load (flat)
Anything larger, or any vehicle pulling a trailer: $58.86 per ton

Two traps in that fee schedule. First, the flat rate disappears the moment your vehicle is modified — add sidewalls to a pickup bed and you’re billed by weight. Second, a trailer moves you to per-ton pricing, and construction debris is dense enough that a small trailer can carry over a ton without looking full.

The scalehouse runs Monday through Friday 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Sunday. So the true DIY cost is the tipping fee, plus fuel, plus the truck if you don’t own one, plus multiple round trips, plus your Saturday, plus the loading. For a single car-load of light material, DIY genuinely wins. For anything heavy, bulky, upstairs, or more than one load, it usually doesn’t.

One-Time Pickup, Recurring Service, or a Dumpster?

Three different problems, three different answers. Picking the wrong one is the most common way people overpay.

Choose a One-Time Pickup When…

You have a defined pile and a deadline. A cleanout, a move-out, a remodel, an estate. We do the labor, it’s done in a single visit, and nothing sits in your driveway.

Choose Recurring Service When…

You generate more than your bin holds on a predictable rhythm. Restaurants, small retail, contractors, short-term rentals between guests, and property managers running steady turnover. See business junk removal, property management services and HOA services.

Choose a Dumpster When…

The work is spread over days and you want to load at your own pace, or the volume is large enough that a container is cheaper per cubic yard than labor. Our 10-yard handles a small cleanout or a bathroom; 15-yard suits a garage or a roof; 20-yard covers a whole-house cleanout; 30-yard is for major renovation and demolition. Start at dumpster rental or residential dumpster rental.

Not sure? Describe the pile on the phone. We will tell you which of the three is cheapest for you, even when that answer is the one we make the least on.

How to Get Ready for a Trash Pickup

Put it in one place if you can. Not required, but a consolidated pile is faster, and faster is cheaper.
Separate the hazardous items. Paint, chemicals, propane, batteries and bulbs to one side, visible.
Pull out anything you’re keeping. The single most common problem on a job is something loaded by mistake. If it stays, move it or label it clearly.
Flag donations. Point out what still works and we’ll set it aside rather than dump it.
Clear the path. Move cars, unlock the gate, and tell us about stairs, a tight hallway or a soft lawn.
Empty the appliances. Defrost the freezer and drain the washer. A refrigerator full of spoiled food is a different job.
Check parking. Narrow streets, alley-only access, gated communities and HOA work-hour restrictions all matter. Tell us in advance.
Secure pets. Doors will be propped open for a while.

What Drives the Cost of Trash Pickup

We price per job from what we can see, and these are the factors that move the number:

Volume. How much truck space it fills. This is the primary driver for ordinary household material.
Weight. Takes over for dense material. Concrete, tile, dirt, shingles and plaster are priced on weight because disposal is billed by the ton.
Labor and access. Curbside is cheapest. Second floor with no elevator, a long carry, or a backyard behind a narrow gate all add time.
Item type. Refrigerant appliances, electronics and mattresses have their own handling and disposal paths.
Sorting. A mixed hoarding-type cleanout takes far longer per cubic yard than a stack of identical boxes.
Timing. Same-day and after-hours work costs more than a scheduled slot. Booking a few days out is the easiest way to save money.

Compare any quote against the city’s $25.65 per cubic yard for material outside the free Special Pickup list, and against $58.86 per ton if you’d be hauling it yourself by trailer. Those two numbers are the honest yardstick. Our current options are on the pricing page.

Trash Pickup for Landlords, Realtors and Property Managers

Turnover work has a different clock. A unit that isn’t empty isn’t listed, and every day of delay is rent.

What matters on these jobs is access without the owner present and documentation. We work from a lockbox or a code, confirm the scope in writing first so there’s no dispute about what was removed, and photograph before and after when a deposit deduction or an insurance claim depends on it. For eviction cleanouts in particular, be aware that Florida has specific legal procedures governing a tenant’s abandoned personal property, and the removal should not start until your attorney or property manager confirms the timeline has been satisfied. We follow your counsel’s schedule.

Storm and Hurricane Trash Pickup

After a named storm, municipal collection is overwhelmed and normal schedules stop applying. Debris often sits for weeks, and in a coastal county that means wet drywall and soaked furniture growing mold in the heat.

A few things that genuinely help. Photograph everything before it moves if you’re filing a claim. Separate the piles — municipal storm programs frequently require vegetative debris, construction debris, appliances and hazardous items to be kept apart, and a mixed pile gets skipped. Keep debris off storm drains and out of the street, because blocked drains cause the next flood. And treat flood-soaked material as contaminated; floodwater is not clean water. See hurricane debris removal.

How Fast Can You Get Here?

Unlike demolition work, trash pickup has almost no regulatory lead time. There is no permit, no survey, no notification period. That means same-day and next-day service is realistic most of the week, and it is the main advantage over waiting on a municipal special pickup.

Quote: usually within the hour by phone, or from photos you text.
Same-day: often possible if you call in the morning and you’re inside our core service area.
Next-day: the normal case, and the cheapest option.
The pickup itself: a single item takes minutes. A garage takes a couple of hours. A full-house cleanout can take most of a day.

For anything urgent, see same-day junk removal and single item pickup.

Services We Combine With Trash Pickup

Most calls turn out to be more than one job. Bundling into a single visit is cheaper than booking separately:

Where We Provide Trash Pickup in Pinellas County

We cover Pinellas County and the surrounding Tampa Bay area: St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo, Seminole, Pinellas Park, Dunedin, Palm Harbor, Safety Harbor, Oldsmar, Tarpon Springs, Gulfport, South Pasadena, Kenneth City, Treasure Island, St. Pete Beach, Madeira Beach, Indian Rocks Beach, Redington Beach, Redington Shores, Belleair, Belleair Bluffs, Belleair Beach, Tierra Verde, Clearwater Beach, East Lake, Westchase, Gandy and Tampa. Full list on our service area page.

Trash Pickup Services in St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Tampa

Our service map has three anchors: St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Tampa. Those three cities absorb most of our trash pickup services work, and everything in between them across Pinellas County is covered on the same schedule and the same price list.

St. Petersburg, FL

St. Petersburg is our home city and the shortest drive we make, which is why trash pickup services here is the easiest to fit in on short notice. From Snell Isle and Old Northeast down through Historic Kenwood, Greater Woodlawn, Lakewood Estates and the Skyway Marina District, we already know which streets have rear alley access and which ones need a smaller truck. More on our St. Petersburg junk removal coverage.

Clearwater, FL

Clearwater work is a daily thing for us. From the condo towers on Sand Key to the single-family blocks around Countryside and On Top of the World, trash pickup services here is usually about access rules more than volume — HOA approval, service elevators, restricted haul hours. We deal with all of it so you do not have to. See the full Clearwater service page.

Tampa, FL

Yes, we cross the bay. Tampa trash pickup services is booked the same way everything else is, covering Downtown, Water Street, Harbour Island, Bayshore Beautiful, Seminole Heights, Carrollwood, Westchase and Temple Terrace. Because Tampa is in Hillsborough County, bridge time and a different tipping fee are baked into the quote — there is no surprise bridge surcharge added at the end. Details on our Tampa coverage.

The Rest of Pinellas County

Between and around the big three we cover the whole county. Inland that means Largo, Pinellas Park, Seminole, Dunedin, Palm Harbor, Tarpon Springs, Safety Harbor, Oldsmar and East Lake. On the water we run St. Pete Beach, Treasure Island, Madeira Beach, Indian Rocks Beach, Indian Shores, Redington Beach, Redington Shores, North Redington Beach, Clearwater Beach and Tierra Verde. The smaller municipalities count too: Gulfport, Kenneth City, South Pasadena, Belleair, Belleair Beach, Belleair Bluffs and Belleair Shore. On the Tampa side we also work Westchase and the Gandy corridor. Full county detail is on the Pinellas County page.

Not sure whether your address is inside the line? Call 727-240-7033 and ask. We would rather tell you honestly that a job is outside our range than take a deposit and cancel on you.

Frequently Asked Questions About Trash Pickup

How is trash pickup different from my regular city garbage service?

Your city service empties a container on a fixed schedule and is already covered by your utility bill. Private trash pickup is on demand, has no volume cap, and includes the labor. We carry material out of the garage, attic or back bedroom rather than requiring it at the curb. Use your bin for weekly household waste; call a hauler when the volume, weight or item type exceeds what the bin and the free special pickup allow.

Does St. Petersburg pick up large items for free?

Yes, within limits. The city’s free Special Pickup covers up to 5 car batteries, 5 car tires, 2 doors, 2 empty 20 lb propane tanks, 2 kitchen cabinets, 2 windows, and up to 3 cubic yards of furniture, carpet and appliances. Beyond that list, including accumulated waste, building materials and brush, the city charges $25.65 per cubic yard. Requests go through SeeClickFix or the Sanitation Department at 727-893-7398.

How much does trash pickup cost?

It is quoted per job based on volume, weight, access and item type. Dense material like concrete, tile and shingles is priced on weight because disposal is billed by the ton. Useful comparisons: the city charges $25.65 per cubic yard for material outside its free list, and the county’s disposal fee is $58.86 per ton if you were hauling it yourself with a trailer. Send photos for a same-day number.

Can you come the same day?

Often, yes. Trash pickup has no permit or notification requirement, so there is no regulatory waiting period. Call in the morning and same-day is realistic within our core service area. Next-day is the normal case and is usually cheaper.

What can’t you take?

Regulated household hazardous waste. That means paint, solvents, pool chemicals, pesticides, motor oil, gasoline, antifreeze, non-empty propane tanks, car and rechargeable batteries, fluorescent bulbs, asbestos material, medical waste and ammunition. These cannot legally go in a general trash load or a dumpster. Pinellas County accepts household chemicals free at its HHW facilities, and we will point you to the right one.

Where do I take paint and pool chemicals?

Pinellas County operates two free permanent facilities: the HHW Center at 2855 109th Avenue N. in St. Petersburg, open select weekdays 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and HHW North at 29582 U.S. 19 N. in Clearwater, open select Saturdays 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Check the county’s program calendar first, since the open days rotate. The program is for Pinellas County households only and does not accept business waste.

Do I have to be home?

No, as long as we have access and the scope is clear. We work from lockboxes and gate codes routinely for landlords and property managers, and we confirm in writing what is being removed beforehand so nothing is taken by mistake.

Do you recycle or donate anything?

Yes. Working furniture, appliances, tools and housewares are set aside for donation. Metals go to a scrap recycler, electronics to certified e-waste recycling, cardboard to paper recycling, yard waste to composting and mulch, and concrete to aggregate. What’s left enters the county system, which sends waste to its Waste-to-Energy Facility first and uses the landfill as a last resort.

Should I book a pickup or rent a dumpster?

Book a pickup when you want the labor done and the pile gone in one visit. Rent a dumpster when the work spans several days, you’d rather load at your own pace, or the volume is large enough that a container beats paying for labor. Describe the job on the phone and we’ll tell you which is cheaper, including when that’s the option we earn less on.

Do you handle recurring commercial pickups?

Yes. Restaurants, retail, offices, warehouses, short-term rentals and HOAs run on predictable overflow, and a standing schedule costs less than repeated one-off calls. See business junk removal and commercial services.

Do you offer trash pickup services in Tampa, FL?

Yes. Tampa is a regular part of our route, not a special trip. We cross the Howard Frankland, Gandy and Courtney Campbell bridges for trash pickup services in South Tampa, Hyde Park, Palma Ceia, Seminole Heights, Ybor City, Westchase, Carrollwood, Temple Terrace and New Tampa. Tampa is in Hillsborough County, so loads tip at Hillsborough facilities instead of the Pinellas plant. That difference is already in the number we quote you — there is no bridge surcharge bolted on at the end.

How fast can you get to Clearwater for trash pickup services?

Clearwater is our second-busiest market, so same-day or next-day is normal. Jobs in Countryside, Skycrest, Morningside and the US-19 corridor are straightforward. Anything on Clearwater Beach, Sand Key or Island Estates we schedule early in the morning, because the Memorial Causeway and beach parking will wreck an afternoon window. If the building needs a certificate of insurance or a reserved service elevator, tell us when you book and we handle it.

Which cities do you serve besides St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Tampa?

All of Pinellas County. Inland that is Largo, Pinellas Park, Seminole, Dunedin, Palm Harbor, Tarpon Springs, Safety Harbor, Oldsmar and East Lake. On the water it is St. Pete Beach, Treasure Island, Madeira Beach, Indian Rocks Beach, Indian Shores, Redington Beach, Redington Shores, North Redington Beach, Clearwater Beach and Tierra Verde. We also cover Gulfport, Kenneth City, South Pasadena, Belleair, Belleair Beach, Belleair Bluffs and Belleair Shore, plus Westchase and the Gandy corridor on the Hillsborough side.

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Contact us today to arrange your junk removal service. Our team is ready to provide you with a prompt, efficient, and hassle-free experience.

Trash Pickup Services