Garage clearance: what happens from the first photo to a swept floor

A garage clearance is usually a single visit: you send us photos of the garage, we come back with a price, and on the day we carry everything out to the van, load it and sweep the floor. Most garages hold much the same mix. There are old bikes, broken tools, shelving, boxes nobody has opened since the last move, a dead lawnmower and a few things that need a word before they go anywhere. This guide walks through what comes out, why the council and the tip often cannot take it, and how the job runs from the first photo to an empty floor.

What usually comes out of a garage

Most garages fill up over years with things that had nowhere else to go. When we open the door on a garage clearance, the load tends to fall into a few groups.

• Furniture that was moved out of the house and never moved back: chests of drawers, tables, old chairs, a spare mattress.
• Bikes, scooters and children's toys that have been outgrown.
• Broken tools, old paint tins, half used bags of compost and garden equipment.
• Metal shelving, racking and storage boxes, often full.
• Electricals such as old fridges, chest freezers, washing machines and TVs.
• Offcuts of wood, carpet and plasterboard left over from jobs on the house.

Most of that can go on the van. The exceptions are a short list of things that need special handling, which we come to further down. Our household rubbish removal page lists everything we take from homes, garages included.

Why the council collection rarely fits a garage

Most people look at the council first, and for a few large items that is a fair place to start. Epping Forest District Council runs a special collection for bulky household items. As published on 20 October 2026, it costs £34.80 for 1 to 3 items, £52.80 for 4 to 7 and £69.60 for 8 to 10, with a limit of 10 items per address in 6 months.

The catch for a garage is in the conditions. The council will not collect items from garages or covered storage. Everything has to be on your boundary, in the open, by 6.30am on the day, and nothing can need more than 2 people to carry. The council also says the service cannot be booked for house, garage or property clearances, and it refuses garden waste, building waste, carpet, fixtures and fittings, paint and glass. You can read the full list on the Epping Forest District Council special collection page.

So if you have 2 or 3 pieces of furniture and the strength to get them to the front by dawn, the council may be the cheaper route, and we will tell you so. A full garage is a different job. It is a clearance, and most of it sits inside a covered space the council will not collect from.

Taking it to the tip yourself

The other option is the recycling centre. Essex County Council runs these through Love Essex, and they take a wide range of household waste, including scrap metal, wood, paint, batteries, engine oil, tyres and small electricals. The rules that catch people out are about the vehicle and the type of waste.

The Chigwell centre is close to Loughton and Buckhurst Hill. As read on 20 October 2026, Love Essex says Chigwell does not allow vans, pick ups or trailers with more than 1 axle, even privately owned ones, and you need to book a slot in advance. It also does not take DIY waste such as soil, hardcore, plasterboard, tiles or kitchen units. Love Essex points people with vans or limited DIY waste to the Harlow and Brentwood centres instead. You can check the details on the Chigwell recycling centre page.

All Essex County Council centres are for household waste only, so anything from a business or a trade job is turned away. For a garage that only needs a couple of car loads, the tip works well if you have the time. For a garage that would take a whole weekend of trips, a single visit with the van is usually the simpler choice.

The things we ask about before we come

A small number of items cannot simply go on the van with the rest of the load. When you send your photos, tell us if any of these are in the garage, and we will advise before the day.

Gas bottles

Patio heater and barbecue gas bottles are not accepted at Essex recycling centres, and Love Essex lists gas cylinders as something it cannot take. The supplier is usually the best route. Calor, for example, says its bottles can be returned through a local Calor Centre or a retailer, and asks you to call ahead before travelling. If you have a bottle from another supplier, check their own return scheme.

Chemicals, sprays and solvents

Love Essex lists chemical waste among the things its recycling centres cannot take, and the council collection refuses hazardous and chemical waste. Do not mix them or pour them away. Leave them where they are, point them out in your photos and we will talk through the options.

Anything that might contain asbestos

Some older garages have sheets or panels that need checking before anyone moves them. If you think something might contain asbestos, do not break, drill or move it yourself, and tell us first. Love Essex recycling centres do not accept asbestos either.

Paint

Paint is refused by the council collection, though Love Essex lists paint among the things its recycling centres accept from households. If you have a shelf of old tins, mention roughly how many when you send the photos.

How a garage clearance runs on the day

The job itself follows the same pattern every time, whether it is a single garage or a double with a loft above it.

1. You send the photos. Take 2 or 3 shots from the door so the whole space is in view, with something for scale such as the car or a wheelie bin. Tell us your town and postcode and whether anything is in the roof space.
2. We send a price. We look at what is there and come back to you with a price for the job. Nothing is loaded until you have agreed it.
3. We agree a day. If you will not be there, tell us how we get in, such as a side gate or a code, and what must stay behind.
4. We carry it out and load the van. We do the lifting and keep the drive and the path clear for you and your neighbours while we work.
5. We sweep up. When the last load is on, we sweep the floor and the drive where the pile stood.

You do not need to drag anything out to the kerb first. Half the point of booking a clearance is that the heavy lifting is ours to do. If something has to stay, such as the car tyres or the good ladder, put a bit of tape on it or tell us when we arrive.

What sets the price of a garage clearance

We do not work from a fixed list, because 2 garages that look alike in a photo can be very different to empty. These are the things that move the price.

• Volume. How much of the van the load fills. A few bags and a bike take a small part of a load; a packed double garage takes most of it.
• Weight. Rubble, soil, tiles and plasterboard are heavy for their size and cost more to tip than the same space of boxes or bedding.
• What it is. Fridges, freezers, mattresses and upholstered chairs have to be kept apart from the general waste and taken where they can be dealt with properly, so they are priced on their own.
• Access. A garage that opens onto the drive loads quickly. One at the bottom of a long garden, or with a loft space above it, takes longer.

The more of this you can show us in the photos, the firmer the price. Our rubbish removal prices page explains how a price is built in more detail, and it sets out the council bulky waste charges in the towns we cover. If the garage is full of old appliances, our electrical waste disposal page covers how those are handled.

Checking who takes your rubbish away

Whoever clears your garage, the law puts a duty on you as well. Under section 34(2A) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, householders must take reasonable steps to check that anyone other than the council who takes their household waste is authorised to carry it. If your waste turns up dumped and is traced back to you, the council can fine you for not checking.

The check takes a minute. Ask for the collector's waste carrier number and look it up on the Environment Agency public register before anything is loaded. Ours is CBDU525129, so you can look us up. Thinking about a skip instead? Our skip hire alternative page compares a skip on the drive with a van collection.

Garage clearance questions

Do I need to be at home?

It helps if you are there when we arrive, so we can agree what goes and what stays. If you cannot be, say so when you book. We will talk through access before the day and agree how you want to mark anything that is staying.

Do I have to bring everything outside?

No. We carry it out of the garage ourselves. Make sure we can reach the door, and mention anything in a loft space above or at the back behind the car when you send the photos.

Where does the waste go?

To waste sites that are allowed to accept that type of waste. If you want to know where your load went, ask us and we will tell you.

Getting a price for your garage

Take a couple of photos from the garage door, add your town and postcode, and send them through our quote form or on WhatsApp to 07834 527 855. We will come back to you with a price for the job, and once you have agreed it, we do the rest.