Junk Removal in Kansas City, Missouri

Before you call anyone, including us: Kansas City will haul most of this away for free.

The city runs a Bulky Item Pickup for residents, booked through 311. Put your items within three feet of the curb by 7 a.m. on collection day — and not before 3 p.m. the day before. You get up to fifteen items, nothing over 500 pounds each, at no charge.

Couches, tables, chairs, beds, mattresses, rugs, carpet, cabinets, bathroom fixtures, stoves, dishwashers, washers, dryers, water heaters and furnaces are all on the accepted list.

If that describes your problem, stop reading and go book it.

The mattress myth

You will find hauling companies in this city claiming Kansas City refuses mattresses. It does not. Mattresses are on the accepted list for bulky pickup.

What is true is that transfer stations often surcharge mattresses, because they compress, spring back, and jam compactors. That is a cost we absorb when a mattress comes in on a paid load. It is not a reason to pay us when the city would take it off your curb for nothing.

Where the free program stops

Four hard edges, and they are the entire reason paid hauling exists here:

1. The refused list. Tires, hazardous materials, car batteries, yard waste, glass containers, non-hazardous liquids and construction debris over 500 pounds are never collected.
2. Fifteen items. A garage, a basement or an estate is not fifteen items. It is a truckload, sometimes three.
3. The schedule. Free collection runs on appointment dates. If a tenant leaves Friday or you close on Tuesday, the next slot may be no use.
4. The curb. The city collects what is already at the road. If it is down a basement stairwell or up two flights, getting it to the curb is the job — and that is the part they do not do.

The refrigerator trap

This one catches people every week. Any appliance containing refrigerant — fridge, freezer, AC unit, dehumidifier — needs a separate truck, and you have to declare it when you schedule. Miss that and the crew comes, takes everything else, and leaves the fridge sitting at the curb.

You can identify one two ways: does it cool air or food, or does it carry a label reading R-22, R-134a, R-410A or Freon. There is no model-year cutoff, whatever you read elsewhere.

It also has to be completely empty of food and mold. A fridge that has been off for three weeks in July usually is not.

314 square miles is not one service area

Kansas City covers 314.73 square miles with 508,090 residents — physically bigger than every other city in the metro put together. A pickup in the Northland and one in Waldo are the better part of an hour apart.

We schedule by district rather than city-wide for that reason, and it is worth asking any hauler how they route. A crew already working Brookside can be at a Waldo address the same afternoon; one starting from Liberty cannot.

Areas we cover

River Market, Westport, Waldo, Brookside, the Country Club Plaza, 18th & Vine, Hyde Park, Crown Center, Downtown and the Northland.

Local resources

• City of Kansas City, MO — Bulky Item Pickup
• City of Kansas City, MO — Trash & Recycling

Questions we get

Does Kansas City pick up large items for free?

Yes. City residents can schedule a free Bulky Item Pickup through 311. Items go within three feet of the curb by 7 a.m., up to fifteen per appointment, nothing over 500 pounds. Couches, mattresses, carpet and metal appliances are all accepted.

Will the city take my old refrigerator?

Yes, but any appliance containing refrigerant needs a separate truck, so you must declare it when scheduling. Look for a label reading R-22, R-134a, R-410A or Freon. It must also be completely empty of food and mold, or the crew will leave it.