Junk removal costs in Atlanta

Who takes your old furniture in Atlanta depends on where your trash service comes from, and the rules change at county and city lines. DeKalb County shows how different they can be.

If DeKalb County Sanitation serves your house, the items go to the curb first and the request comes after. Send it online, by email or in person. Staff come out within one to three business days to look at the pile and decide whether it's a regular bulky pickup or a prepaid special collection. Regular bulky items get picked up within 10 business days.

Furniture, mattresses, toilets and most appliances count as regular bulky items. A fridge or freezer has to be empty, with the doors off. What turns a pile into a special collection: construction and demolition debris, old fencing or decking, contractor waste, a landlord's eviction cleanout, a big load of yard trimmings, or a mixed pile. Tires go to the county's Seminole Road Landfill. Concrete, liquids and hazardous materials aren't taken at all.

That assessment step is worth knowing before you set anything out. A couch and a mattress can be a regular county pickup. A garage of mixed junk with old deck boards in it becomes a prepaid special collection.