Junk removal costs in Chicago

A Chicago basement or attic cleanout starts with a call to your ward. City sanitation rules say to arrange a bulk pickup with your ward's Streets and Sanitation superintendent before you put out any large item or an extra load of trash. The city's own example is the pile you make after cleaning out a basement or attic.

Electronics need their own plan. Illinois bans TVs, computers, monitors, printers and game consoles from landfills, and the ban covers households, not just businesses. That box of old electronics has to go to a recycler.

The city's Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility on North Branch Street takes oil-based paint, solvents, cleaners, compact fluorescent bulbs and computers, during set hours only. It won't take latex paint, appliances, tires or anything holding refrigerant. Latex paint can be dried out with kitty litter or sawdust and thrown away once it's solid.

That city pickup is for houses and buildings of four units or fewer. A bigger building arranges private collection. And if you're remodeling, the city puts the old building materials on you to remove, which is what a rented dumpster is for. One more rule from the city: an old fridge or freezer goes out with its doors or lid taken off.