Junk removal costs in Hartford

Hartford used to burn its trash right in the city. The trash-burning plant in the South Meadows stopped burning garbage on July 19, 2022. In a 2023 draft update to the state's waste plan, Connecticut's environmental agency estimated the state was poised to export about 40 percent of the trash it generates. That update is still a draft. The agency now lists the Hartford plant as still permitted but no longer operating.

Your old couch still gets picked up, though. The city's Department of Public Works handles bulky waste for buildings of one to six units, by appointment. Call on a weekday between 7:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., and know that you don't have an appointment until the city confirms a date. Anything you didn't describe on the call counts as illegal dumping. DPW won't take hazardous or toxic waste, and it names motor oil, asbestos and lead paint chips specifically.

The timing is strict. Nothing can hit the curb before 4 p.m. the day ahead, and everything has to be out by 7 a.m. pickup morning. Set things out sooner and you can expect a warning, then fines.

Each property gets two collections a year, up to five items each, and the count is literal: a mattress and its box spring are two of your five.