FAQ
Junk removal questions, answered properly
Topic 1
How junk removal works
What actually happens on the day?
The crew arrives in the appointment window, walks the job with you, and confirms exactly which items are going and what it costs. Once you approve that, they do the removal — carrying items out from wherever they are, loading the truck, and sweeping the space. Then the load goes to donation, recycling or disposal depending on what is in it.
Do I need to move anything to the curb first?
No. The crew removes items from wherever they sit — upstairs bedrooms, basements, attics, back yards, storage units. Moving things outside yourself is optional and does not change the price.
Do I need to be there?
Someone should be present to confirm what is being removed and approve the price before loading starts. If you cannot be there, another adult can walk the job in your place, or you can agree the scope in advance in writing — which is how most real estate and property management jobs are handled.
How long does a job take?
A single item is usually a matter of minutes on site. A garage or a room takes a couple of hours. A full property cleanout can take most of a day, or several days across multiple loads. The variable is rarely the volume — it is how much decision-making happens during the job.
Do you do the lifting, or do I help?
The crew does the lifting. That is the service. You point at what is going; they handle the rest.
Will you clean up afterwards?
The crew sweeps the areas they cleared before leaving, which is what makes the difference between an emptied space and a finished one. It is not a deep clean — scrubbing, patching and painting are separate trades.
Topic 2
Pricing and payment
How is the price calculated?
Most jobs are priced by volume — how much space the load takes up in the truck. Heavy materials such as concrete, tile, soil and roofing debris are priced by weight instead, because they reach a truck's legal weight limit long before they fill it. Access and labor affect the number too: a fourth-floor walk-up is more work than a garage.
Why are there no prices listed on the site?
Because a national price list would be wrong in most markets. Tipping fees, recycling rates and labor costs vary substantially between metro areas. Quoting against your actual job and market gives you a number you can rely on.
When do I find out the price?
Before anything is loaded. The crew confirms the scope and the number on site and starts only once you approve it.
Which items cost extra?
Mattresses, refrigerant appliances (refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners), televisions and tires typically carry a separate per-unit facility fee that gets passed through. Mention them when you request a quote so the number is complete from the start.
Is there a minimum charge?
Most markets have one, since dispatching a truck and crew has a fixed cost. A single item is priced as a single item rather than as a full load.
What happens if the job is bigger than I described?
The crew re-quotes on site before loading rather than adding to the bill afterwards. If the revised number does not work, you can reduce the scope or decline.
Topic 3
What we take
What items do you accept?
Furniture, appliances, electronics, mattresses, yard waste, construction and renovation debris, and general household and office clutter. In practice: if two people can carry it and it is not hazardous, it can usually go.
What can you not take?
Household hazardous waste and regulated materials: paint, solvents, chemicals, fuel, oil, propane and compressed gas cylinders, asbestos and lead materials, biological and medical waste, ammunition, fireworks and radioactive material. These are legal restrictions on transport and disposal rather than company preferences.
Can you take a single item?
Yes. Single-item pickups are among the most common jobs — one sofa, one mattress, one appliance. They are priced accordingly.
Do you take furniture that is broken or stained?
Yes. Condition affects where an item ends up, not whether it can be removed. Good-condition pieces are offered to donation partners; damaged pieces are disposed of.
Do you take appliances?
Yes, and they are largely recyclable — major appliances are predominantly steel. Water, gas and hardwired electrical connections need to be professionally disconnected before pickup, since crews are not licensed to do plumbing, gas or electrical work.
Can you take construction and renovation debris?
Yes — drywall, lumber, flooring, cabinets, fixtures, roofing and masonry. It is priced by weight rather than volume. If the building predates 1980, suspected asbestos and lead must be assessed and abated by a licensed contractor first.
What about paint?
Not on the truck. Most counties run a free household hazardous waste drop-off for residents. Latex paint is often an exception — once fully dried out it can usually go in regular trash — but check your local rules.
Topic 4
Scheduling and changes
How far ahead should I book?
Same-day and next-day slots are available, so short notice is not a problem. Booking ahead still helps when the job is tied to a fixed date — a closing, a move-out inspection or a lease deadline — because it lets you pick the window rather than take what is left.
Can I get same-day or next-day service?
Yes — same-day and next-day service is available, and it is one of the most common ways people book. Whether a same-day slot is open on any given day comes down to how much capacity your local crew has left, so booking earlier in the day gives you the best chance of one.
Can I change or cancel my appointment?
Yes. Let the team know as early as you can so the slot can be reallocated. Late cancellations and no-access visits — where a crew arrives and cannot get in — may carry a charge, since the truck and crew have already been dispatched.
Do you work weekends or after hours?
Weekend availability varies by market. After-hours and overnight work is common for commercial jobs, particularly retail, medical and occupied office space, and is scoped into the quote when you raise it.
What if it rains?
Most jobs go ahead. Severe weather that makes the work unsafe — lightning, ice, high winds during an exterior job — is a reason to reschedule, and the team will contact you rather than leave you waiting.
Topic 5
Apartments, condos and access
Can you collect from an apartment or condo?
Yes. Tell the crew the floor level and whether there is an elevator when you book, since it materially affects the labor time. Some buildings require an elevator reservation or restrict which entrance a vendor may use — check with your building and pass that on.
Can you take items from a third or fourth floor with no elevator?
Yes. Stair carries are routine. They take longer and are scoped as such, which is why the floor level matters at booking.
Do you need a parking space?
The truck needs somewhere legal and reasonably close to park. If your street requires a permit, has restricted hours, or the building has a designated loading zone, mention it when you book.
Can you get into a back yard?
Usually — but gate width is the constraint. Measure the narrowest point if you are unsure, and let the crew know if the only access is through the house.
Does my building need a certificate of insurance?
Many managed buildings require one on file before a vendor is permitted on site. Tell us the building's requirements, including any specific wording, at quote stage so it can be arranged before a crew is scheduled.
Topic 6
Commercial and large jobs
Do you work with businesses?
Yes, and commercial work is a core part of the business rather than a sideline. Offices, retail, warehouses, apartment communities, construction sites, property managers and real estate professionals all use it.
Can we set up recurring service?
Yes. Property managers, facilities teams and contractors frequently need scheduled removal rather than one-off bookings. Recurring work is quoted as a program rather than job by job.
How is commercial work invoiced?
Against a purchase order or account reference so it moves through your normal accounts payable process. Confirm your billing requirements at quote stage.
Can you handle multiple locations?
Yes. Multi-site work is coordinated centrally through the Junk Koala national office with the local crew in each market carrying out the job.
Can you clear an entire house or building?
Yes. Whole-property cleanouts are standard work, including attics, basements, garages, sheds and storage units. Larger properties take multiple truck loads and are usually scheduled across more than one day.
Do you handle estate and foreclosure cleanouts?
Yes, and both are handled with the specific care they need. Estate work goes slower and flags anything personal for the family. Foreclosure and REO work is documented before and after, because preservation clients require that record to close out a work order.
Topic 7
Quotes and photos
Do you need photos to give a quote?
Not always, but they help enormously. Volume is very hard to describe in words and very easy to show. For anything larger than a few items, photos are the difference between a quote and an estimate.
What photos are most useful?
A wide shot of the whole space, close-ups of anything oversized or unusual, and a shot of the route out — the doorway, the stairs, the gate, and where a truck could park. Access is the thing most often underestimated.
Is a quote binding?
A quote reflects the job as described. If what the crew finds on site matches that, the price holds. If the job is materially different, they re-quote before starting rather than after.
Can someone come and look at the job?
For large or complex jobs — full estates, commercial scopes, warehouse clear-outs — an on-site walkthrough is usually the more accurate route and is arranged through the local crew.
Topic 8
Disposal and recycling
Where does everything go?
Loads are sorted where local facilities allow it. Usable furniture and household goods go to donation partners, metal to scrap processors, electronics to e-waste recycling, clean green waste to composting, and refrigerant appliances to certified recovery. What remains goes to a transfer station or landfill.
Do you actually recycle, or is that just marketing?
It depends heavily on what is in the load and what facilities exist locally. Metal and clean green waste are reliably diverted almost everywhere. Mattress recycling depends on whether a facility serves the market. Mixed household loads are the hardest to divert. Junk Koala does not publish a diversion percentage, because a national figure would not be a real number.
Will my furniture be donated?
Where a local partner accepts it. Donation organizations apply strict standards to upholstered furniture in particular — no tears, stains, odors or structural damage — and many decline sleeper sofas outright. It is assessed piece by piece rather than promised in advance.
What happens to old refrigerators?
They go to a facility that recovers the refrigerant under EPA Section 608 requirements before the metal is processed. That step is a legal requirement and is why refrigerant appliances carry a separate fee and are usually excluded from municipal bulk collection.
Can you provide recycling documentation?
Where a project requires diversion records, ask at quote stage so disposal is tracked from the start. It has to be built into the process — it cannot be reconstructed after the loads have gone.
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