Junk removal guide
Where Your Stuff Goes After I Haul It
Not everything on the truck has to end up in the ground. Frederick County has good places for usable furniture, metal, electronics and recyclables. Here is where hauled items can go, roughly in the order worth trying, with the landfill as the last stop.
1. Donation, when it is still usable
Usable furniture, building materials and household goods can often go to a donation center instead of the landfill. Two local options:
- Habitat for Humanity ReStore, 917 N. East Street, Frederick. Takes building materials, furniture, housewares, tools, electronics and outdoor goods, dropped at the rear loading dock Tuesday to Saturday, 10 AM to 5 PM. Items have to be clean and in good condition: nothing stained, smelly, covered in pet hair, torn or broken. Habitat also lists a free pickup for large donations within Frederick County.
- Goodwill of Monocacy Valley, 1003 W. Patrick Street, Frederick (other locations are listed on their site). Accepts usable furniture, household goods, clothing and some appliances, subject to its donation guidelines. Exclusions include mattresses, stoves, refrigerators, pianos, hazardous materials and other listed items. The Patrick Street location lists hours of 8 AM to 10 PM, but Goodwill's donation page lists 9 AM to 9 PM. Confirm donation hours with the location before making the trip.
If you want something donated, arrange a donation pickup or drop-off before I arrive, and clearly mark anything you want me to leave. What usually happens is simple: if it is clean and works, a donation center is worth a try; if it is stained or broken, it will be turned away.
2. County recycling drop-off
Frederick County's recycling drop-off center is at 9031 Reichs Ford Road, open Monday to Saturday, 7 AM to 4:30 PM. The county lists these with no fee:
- Bottles, cans, boxes and jars
- Large appliances such as refrigerators, stoves, washers, air conditioners and water heaters (empty and not contaminated)
- Scrap metal: bikes, fencing, lawn mowers, grills, filing cabinets and other items that are at least 75% metal
- Bulky rigid plastics: plastic furniture, crates, buckets, storage tubs, play sets, trash cans and laundry baskets
- Yard waste, dry textiles, motor oil and filters, antifreeze and lead-acid batteries, each with the county's daily limits
Brunswick and Emmitsburg run their own drop-off centers too; the county page points to them.
3. Electronics
Electronics do not go to the recycling drop-off center. The county takes them at the separate Electronics Loop at the same Reichs Ford Road site: computers and parts, monitors and TVs, phones, printers, game systems, stereos, microwaves and rechargeable batteries. There is a facility fee charged by weight, and the county limits each resident, business or hauler to ten TVs or monitors per calendar year. Tape battery terminals, or bag lithium-ion batteries one by one, to prevent fires.
4. Scrap metal
Besides the county drop-off, Frederick has private scrap yards. Reliable Recycling Center, 8005 Reichs Ford Road, takes steel, cast iron, copper, brass, aluminum, stainless, copper wire and most electronics, Monday to Thursday 8 AM to 4:30 PM and Friday 8 AM to 7 PM. Their rules: nothing with gas or diesel inside, sealed units drained or soldered shut, and hydraulic fluid drained.
5. Mattresses
I could not confirm a mattress recycling drop-off in Frederick County. A stained mattress won't pass a donation center's condition rules, so mattresses usually go to the county landfill, which accepts mattresses and box springs (residents get a yearly limit at the residential rate).
6. The landfill, last
What is left after donation and recycling goes to the county landfill on Reichs Ford Road. Disposal fees are part of my written price, so there is no separate dump charge, and the $100 minimum applies to any job. Hours, fees and accepted materials are in my Frederick County landfill guide.
What I don't take: hazardous waste
Paint and solvents in liquid form, chemicals, pesticides, pool chemicals and fuel stay behind. Frederick County holds household hazardous waste drop-off events for residents; dates and the accepted list are on the county household hazardous waste page. The full list of what I haul is on what I take, and the service itself is on junk removal in Frederick.
Get a written price
Call or text 240-315-7030 with the address and a few photos, or use the quote form. Owner-operated and hands-on since 2019. You get a written price back, usually the same day.
Jay's Property Management LLC, 5738 Jefferson Pike, Frederick, MD 21703. Mon–Fri 9 AM–5 PM. james.king7522@gmail.com