Hauling it to the dump yourself vs. hiring a crew in Dallas

With free entry, a pickup and a spare morning, a dump run is the cheapest way to clear junk. The catch: each site sets its own rules on residency, vehicles and refused items, and a load turned away costs you the trip. A crew's price is published: we price a load by the space it takes in the truck, from $129 for a single item.

Where can you dump junk yourself in and around Dallas?

Each site below is free only to the residents it names, for waste from their own home.

Dallas: McCommas Bluff Landfill and transfer station hours

Dallas transfer station hours are the trap: Fair Oaks and Westmoreland take weekday loads only from 7 to 9 a.m., and the city posts temporary closures on its landfill and transfer station page, so check it before you load up. Of the Dallas sites, only McCommas Bluff takes a refrigerator, once the refrigerant is out. Or skip the trip: junk removal across Dallas neighborhoods.

Garland: the Hinton Landfill and Commerce Street

Residents unload at Hinton's Citizens' Convenience Center, though fencing, dirt and brick go to the working site; large appliances go to the Commerce Street recycling center's scrap-metal area. More on junk removal in Garland.

Mesquite: the convenience center on Lawson Road

It takes furniture, lumber, fencing and appliances, but households with water-only city service aren't eligible. More on hauling in Mesquite.

Richardson: NTMWD's Lookout Drive station

Richardson belongs to the North Texas Municipal Water District's solid waste system. The district says its free program isn't for home-improvement waste or contractors; loads outside it pay $80 a ton, one-ton minimum, card only. More on Richardson junk removal.

Farmers Branch: Camelot Landfill

The city owns Camelot but posts no vehicle limits or refused-item list, so check before hauling anything unusual. More on Farmers Branch junk removal.

Addison: no landfill or transfer station

Addison runs no landfill or transfer station, and its Clear the Clutter events take shredding, recycling and household chemicals. Its free bulk pickup serves single-family homes only, by request; residents who haul their own pay by weight where non-residents are accepted, such as Garland's transfer station or NTMWD's. More on Addison junk removal.

How to haul junk yourself without being turned away

1. Confirm the site takes you, and check its page the morning you go for closures.
2. Bring a valid driver's license and a recent utility bill; Mesquite and NTMWD want matching addresses.
3. Pull out anything refused. Paint and chemicals go to the Dallas County Home Chemical Collection Center at 11234 Plano Rd (what it takes and who gets in free).
4. Load heavy, flat pieces first, low against the cab, with nothing above the sides.
5. Tarp the load and tie the cover down at the front and back.
6. At the scale, keep children and pets in the cab: McCommas Bluff bars under-16s and pets from its disposal areas, Hinton keeps under-12s in the vehicle, and both ban scavenging.
7. Unload by hand, then sweep the bumper: state law requires residue on parts that don't carry the load to be removed before you're back on a public road.

Do you have to tarp your load in Texas?

Usually, yes. Texas Transportation Code chapter 725 applies to any vehicle or trailer on a public road carrying loose material, refuse included. Under §725.021 the load must be covered, the cover secured at the front and back, unless it is completely enclosed or does not blow from or spill over the top of the bed. A violation is a misdemeanor with a fine of $25 to $500.

Sites post their own charges for an uncovered load: $40 at McCommas Bluff, $50 at Hinton and $20 at Garland's transfer station, where every load must be tarped. NTMWD requires each load to be secured.

What does a DIY dump run really cost?

At a site you qualify for, the gate is free; the rest isn't. Figures appear only where an operator publishes one.

When is hauling it yourself the better deal?

More often than junk removal companies admit. With free entry and your own pickup, the real costs are fuel and a morning, and no crew price beats that when the load fits in one or two runs, holds nothing refused and has no deadline.

Dallas residents who can wait have a cheaper option still: the city's free monthly brush and bulky collection, up to 10 cubic yards from the curb, compared in Dallas bulk trash pickup vs. junk removal.

When does a crew work out cheaper?

Once you'd pay at the gate, rent a truck or make several runs, the gap closes fast:

• You'd pay at the gate anyway. Addison households, and anyone taking remodeling debris to NTMWD, pay by weight: at least $50 at Hinton or Garland's transfer station, or $80 plus tax at NTMWD, before the truck or your time.
• You don't own a pickup. We price a single bulky item from $129 and a small pile from $149, and removing one oversized piece includes the carrying.
• It won't fit in one run. A packed two-car garage is often a half truck, from $419, and a whole house a full truck, from $699 (how each load size is priced); booking online takes up to $20 off jobs above the minimum.
• The load holds what free sites refuse, like a fridge at a Dallas transfer station. We take appliances and renovation debris, pricing concrete, tile, soil and roofing by weight.
• You want it sorted, not buried. Our loads are sorted as they're loaded: usable items to donation or resale, metal, electronics and cardboard to recycling, mattresses too wherever a facility accepts them, and only the rest to landfill.