Short answer: If you live in the City of Clearwater, furniture and other large household items can go to the curb on your regular trash day at no extra charge, up to 40 cubic yards per home per calendar year (about 4 to 5 pieces per pickup). Appliances and electronics need a call to Solid Waste first at 727-562-4920. The city will not take construction debris, concrete, dirt, carpet, tile, lumber, roofing or tires from the curb; those go to the Pinellas County Solid Waste Disposal Complex at 3095 114th Ave. N. in St. Petersburg for $63.57 a ton, or $11.75 flat for a pickup truck or van load. Paint, chemicals and batteries are free at the county’s hazardous waste center, which also runs Saturday drop-offs at 29582 U.S. 19 N. in Clearwater. A dumpster on your own driveway needs no city permit; one in the street, on the sidewalk or on the grassy strip falls under the city’s Right-of-Way Permit (Engineering, 727-562-4750, about 7 business days). When the free curb pickup is not enough, Elephants delivers a dumpster in Clearwater from $319 or hauls junk from $150.
Clearwater is our third-busiest city after St. Petersburg and Tampa: our own job records show 57 dumpster rentals started at Clearwater addresses between January and October 9, 2026. Many of those calls start with the same question: “Can the city just take this, or do I need to pay someone?” Often the city can. Every rule and fee below comes from a City of Clearwater or Pinellas County page, linked where it appears, so you can check it yourself.
Does Clearwater pick up furniture and bulk items from the curb?
Yes, and you do not have to schedule it. The City of Clearwater’s residential trash collection page says large household items such as furniture, washers, dryers and sofas are collected on your regular collection day. The limit is 40 cubic yards per single-family home per calendar year, and the city’s guideline is about 4 to 5 pieces of furniture or similar items per pickup; larger piles can bring an extra time charge on your utility bill.
Two things trip people up. First, appliances and electronics need a call ahead to the Solid Waste operations line at 727-562-4920 before you set them out. Second, timing: set items out no earlier than the evening before and have them at the curb by 7 a.m. on your service day, within 2 feet of the curb and clear of mailboxes, parked cars, trees and wires. The trucks run fixed routes and will not come back for a pile that went out late. If you are not sure which day is yours, the city’s pick-up day lookup takes your street address. A missed pickup can be reported through the same site.
Yard waste goes out the same day with its own rules: branches cut to 4-foot lengths and bundled, leaves and grass bagged or boxed at 50 pounds or less, and the same 40-cubic-yard yearly limit. One rule many homeowners miss: the city only collects yard debris the property owner cut and gathered. A tree company or landscaper must haul away its own debris under city ordinance, and if a tree came down without a city permit, staff can ask for the permit or an arborist’s letter first.
What will the city not take from the curb?
This is where most “they left my pile” stories come from. The same city page lists what stays out of the regular garbage and the bulk pile: concrete, dirt, sod, sand, plaster and plasterboard, carpet, tile, lumber, bricks, roofing, any construction, remodeling or demolition debris, tires, auto batteries, pool chemicals, flammable items and liquid paint. Metal and building material are also excluded from the bulk and yard collections. In plain terms, if it came off the house rather than out of it, the city truck is not taking it.
Latex paint has a workaround the city spells out: leave the lid off until the paint dries, or soak it into newspaper, and the dried can goes in the cart. Landlords, take note: the same page makes the property owner responsible for debris a tenant leaves behind after a move-out or eviction. The city will clear it for an additional fee (call 727-562-4920), and a pile that sits can bring suspended service or a fine on the utility bill. Our eviction clean-out page covers the hauling side.
Where can I take junk myself near Clearwater?
There is no city-run dump inside Clearwater that takes household junk or construction debris. The places below are the ones the city and county pages actually name.
| Site | What it takes | Cost | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pinellas County Solid Waste Disposal Complex, 3095 114th Ave. N., St. Petersburg 33716, 727-464-7500 | Household junk, furniture, construction debris, tires (up to four at normal fees), the loads the city will not touch | $63.57 per ton; flat $11.75 for a pickup truck or van load, $4.25 for a car load (unmodified vehicles only); card or tap-to-pay, no cash listed | Mon–Fri 6 a.m.–6 p.m., Sat 7 a.m.–5 p.m., closed Sunday |
| Pinellas County Household Hazardous Waste Center, 2855 109th Ave. N., St. Petersburg | Paint, stains, solvents, cleaners, pool chemicals, pesticides, fuel, household and rechargeable batteries (not car batteries), vapes, fluorescent bulbs | Free for Pinellas households; government ID scanned | Tue–Fri and the 1st and 3rd Saturday, 7 a.m.–5 p.m. |
| HHW North, 29582 U.S. 19 N., Clearwater (behind the county government center, south of Curlew Road) | The same chemical and battery list; stay in your vehicle with items in the trunk or bed | Free for Pinellas households | Select Saturdays 9 a.m.–2 p.m.; 2026 dates left are Nov. 14 and Dec. 12 |
| Clearwater Solid Waste Facility, 1701 N. Hercules Ave., Clearwater, 727-562-4920 | Listed by the city and county for recycling drop-off and free mulch pickup (bring a pitchfork and a tarp), not for junk or debris | Free | Call the city for hours |
Two practical notes on the county complex. Everyone on site must wear personal protective equipment; bring your own or the county sells a kit for $22.50. And a trailer or a modified truck bed does not get the flat load fee; you weigh in and out and pay by the ton. The fee page also shows a temporary break: residential tire fees are waived from September 28 to October 30, 2026 (business tires excluded), and five or more tires in any load cost $210 a ton. For odd items this guide does not cover, such as propane tanks and fire extinguishers, which the hazardous waste center refuses, use the county’s Where Does It Go? search tool.
Where do TVs, computers and batteries go in Clearwater?
The city and county split this one. Clearwater’s electronic waste page says electronics with no rechargeable battery go inside your black garbage cart, never on the ground, and oversized ones get a special pickup by calling 727-562-4920. If the device has a battery you can remove, pull the battery and trash the rest. If the battery will not come out (many laptops, cordless tools, e-bikes), the whole item goes to the county’s hazardous waste program, which takes rechargeable batteries, devices with non-removable batteries, up to 12 vapes and one e-bike battery per visit, but not plug-in electronics such as monitors, TVs and printers. So a dead flat-screen TV in Clearwater is a call-ahead curb item, not a hazardous waste trip.
Do I need a permit for a dumpster in Clearwater?
On your own driveway or your own lot, no city permit is involved; the permit question is about public land. The City of Clearwater’s Right-of-Way Permit page covers anything placed or built in the street, under a sidewalk or in the grassy strip between the sidewalk and the road. Applications go to the Engineering Department (727-562-4750) through the online form or the drop box at the Municipal Services Building, 100 S. Myrtle Ave., and the city asks you to allow 7 business days for review. The page does not name dumpsters specifically, so if the street is your only option, call Engineering before you book the container, not after. In our experience almost every Clearwater home has room on the driveway; our driveway-fit guide shows how a 10-, 15- or 20-yard container sits on a standard two-car drive.
Two more Clearwater-specific points. Under city code section 32.288, any company that places or services a roll-off container in Clearwater must hold a city private hauler permit, so it is fair to ask any hauler whether they are permitted in the city; the city’s hauler permits office answers questions at 727-444-8554. And on Island Estates, Sand Key and Clearwater Beach, the bigger hurdle is usually the condo or homeowners association, not the city: most want the staging spot approved in writing, and some do not allow curbside bulk piles at all, which takes the free city option off the table for those addresses.
When does the free city pickup beat hiring Elephants, and when does it not?
Honest answer first: for a couch, a dresser and a few boxes, use the city. It costs nothing beyond the solid waste charge already on your utility bill, and our $150 minimum for junk removal cannot compete with free. The same goes for a bag of batteries or ten cans of paint; the county takes them at no charge.
The math flips on volume, weight and what the item is. At 4 to 5 pieces per weekly pickup, a packed garage goes out over several weeks, and a whole-house cleanout can pass the 40-cubic-yard yearly cap. Anything from a remodel, a roof, a bathroom demo or a fence is off the city truck entirely, and hauling tile or drywall in a borrowed pickup means repeat trips to 114th Avenue with the PPE rule and the per-ton fee each time. That is the job a dumpster is built for. Our Light Load plan starts at $319 for a 10-yard container with 1 ton included on a 2-day rental, for furniture, boxes, yard waste and garage junk; the Standard plan starts at $380 with 2 tons included for tile, drywall, roofing and remodel debris, and disposal up to the included weight is inside the price. Our 2026 job records say the typical rental is short: the median across every city we serve is 4 days, and a 10-yard usually goes back on the truck after 3. If you cannot carry things to the curb, or the pile has to be gone today rather than next trash day, junk removal at $50 per cubic yard with a $150 minimum covers the labor, the carry-out and the dump fee; our whole-house cleanout cost guide shows what full houses have actually run.
Ready for a dumpster or a junk pickup in Clearwater?
Call or text 727-240-7033, any hour, and tell us the address and what the pile is. We will say plainly whether the city curb pickup is the smarter move, and if it is not, we can usually deliver the same or next day. Prices, sizes and the included tons are on our Clearwater dumpster rental page and our Clearwater junk removal page.
Frequently asked questions
How many bulk items will Clearwater pick up at once?
The city guideline is about 4 to 5 pieces of furniture or similar items per pickup, within a limit of 40 cubic yards per single-family home per calendar year. Bigger piles can bring an additional time charge.
Do I have to call Clearwater to schedule a bulk pickup?
Not for furniture and ordinary large items; set them out for your regular collection day. You do need to call Solid Waste at 727-562-4920 before setting out appliances or electronics.
Will Clearwater take construction debris or carpet from the curb?
No. Concrete, dirt, plaster, carpet, tile, lumber, bricks, roofing and any construction, remodeling or demolition debris are excluded. Those go to the Pinellas County Solid Waste Disposal Complex at 3095 114th Ave. N. in St. Petersburg, or into a rented dumpster.
How much does the Pinellas County dump charge?
$63.57 per ton as of October 2026, or a flat $11.75 for a pickup truck or van load and $4.25 for a car load in an unmodified vehicle. Personal protective equipment is required on site, and the county sells a kit for $22.50 if you do not bring your own.
Do I need a permit to put a dumpster on a Clearwater street?
Placement in the street, on the sidewalk or in the grassy strip falls under the City of Clearwater Right-of-Way Permit, handled by the Engineering Department at 727-562-4750 with about 7 business days for review. A dumpster on your own driveway needs no city permit.
Where do I take old paint and batteries in Clearwater?
To the Pinellas County Household Hazardous Waste Center at 2855 109th Ave. N. in St. Petersburg (Tuesday to Friday and the first and third Saturday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.) or to HHW North at 29582 U.S. 19 N. in Clearwater on its scheduled Saturdays. Both are free for Pinellas County households with ID.
