Garden Clearance Guide
2. Reduce bulkiness of garden waste as much as possible
Waste removal companies charge on the basis of volume, in other words, according to how much space your waste takes up. The greater the volume, the greater the fee, so our advice is to try to reduce the space your waste takes up as much as possible by cutting up bulky items like branches and placing heavier items on top to push them down. Equally, leaves and grass cuttings should where possible be bagged, as this helps reduce the volume and also assists with loading (see below)
3. Reduce labour fees of a man & van clearance company
Man and van clearance companies charge by the amount of waste removed and the time it takes to remove it. Help reduce their loading time by placing your garden waste as close as possible to where they are likely to park their van. Equally, even though plastic cannot be included in green waste, if you store the waste in garden bags or bin liners, it will make their loading job much faster. The clearance crew will simply empty the contents of the bags into the truck and then return the bags to you for reuse.
4. If you use a skip, order the largest skip you can
Assuming you have quite a lot of garden waste, it is sensible advice to order as large a skip as you can because larger skips cost less per cubic metre or cubic yard of waste than smaller ones. Bear in mind, however, that most councils will not allow a skip larger than 8 cubic yards on a public road. So despite the economies of a larger skip, unless you have the space off road, you may well be constrained by the council from ordering anything larger than 8 yards. More information can be found in our skip size guide.
5. Logs can be sold
Despite the need for smokeless fuel in many parts of the country, a lot of people have wood burning fires or stoves. So if you have had a tree cropped or cut down, it’s worth asking the tree surgeons to cut it into logs and place it at the front of your property. A small sign ‘Logs for sale’ or ‘Please help yourself’ will normally result in the logs disappearing within days!
6. Don’t forget to compost
Yes, it does require a little bit of effort and you may need to invest a few pounds in creating an enclosed area for your compost, but creating your own compost heap is definitely the most cost-effective and environmentally responsible way of disposing of garden waste.
You can make your own compost for free using garden waste such as leaves, grass trimmings and bark. Grass trimmings also provide nutrients when left on the surface of the grass to decompose.
For further tips and advice visit RecycleNow or GardenOrganic.
7. Incinerators and bonfires
Incinerators work well for burning garden waste such as weeds, lawn cuttings, leaves, twigs and hedge trimmings. They’re also a safer option than bonfires as they burn the waste at a much higher temperature and produce less smoke.
Although bonfires aren’t our first choice, plenty of people burn their garden waste in bonfires. It is legal to have a bonfire in your garden provided they don’t cause any nuisance. Make sure to check if your local authority has any time restrictions on when you can light a bonfire. To reduce bonfire smoke, make sure the garden waste is as dry.
