Trash (Household Garbage)
The Solid Waste Division provides weekly trash collection service for household garbage to homes with four or fewer units within the limits of the City of Gainesville. Each resident’s monthly refuse charge is based on their trash cart size (20, 35, 64, or 96 gallons) and service type (curbside or backyard). Be sure to Right Size Your Trash Cart to fit your household’s needs appropriately.
FIND OUT YOUR COLLECTION DAY
Collection Guidelines for Trash Carts
- ✅ Place your trash cart curbside for collection by 7 a.m. on your scheduled collection day. Remove your trash cart from the curb between collection days (remove by 9 p.m. on the day collection has occurred). Repeat offenders not removing carts, bins or containers from the curb can be issued a $35 service charge per occurrence.
- ✅ Allow at least 4 feet of clearance on all sides of your cart. Obstructions such as recycling bins, yard waste, official yellow bags, bulk items, mailboxes, cars, poles, or other obstacles may prevent the automated truck from emptying your cart.
- ✅ Bag your trash. All household waste should be securely tied in bags when placed inside your trash cart. Pet waste and cat litter should be double-bagged.
- ✅ Trash cart lids should be fully-closed when setting out your cart out for collection. Excess trash must be placed in Official Yellow Bags and set out for collection curbside near your trash cart. ❌ Do NOT overfill or overload your trash cart.
- ✅ Your trash cart is for regular household garbage only. ❌ Do NOT place unacceptable items in your trash cart, such as yard waste, recyclables, bulk items, electronics, appliances, hazardous waste, dead animals, hot ashes, or flammable liquids.
- ✅ Set your trash cart curbside for collection near the edge of the street with the front of the cart facing the street. Trash carts should never be placed in the street, block the driveway of your neighbors, or interfere with the path of vehicles.
- ✅ Take care of your cart by periodically washing it out with soap and water, or bleach when needed for bug infested carts. If your cart is damaged or in need of repair, contact the Solid Waste Division at (352) 334-2330.
Excess trash must be placed in Official Yellow Bags and set out for collection curbside near your trash cart by 7 a.m. on your scheduled collection day. Each Official Bag holds approximately 30 gallons of trash and has a weight limit of 40 pounds per bag. Excess waste set out in personal containers, boxes or non-official yellow bags will ❌ NOT be collected.
You can purchase Official Yellow Bags at all local Publix and Ace Hardware stores. Look for the yellow bags in the trash bag aisle or ask for them at the customer service counter. Official Yellow Bags sell for $11.25 per pack and each pack includes 5 bags.
Residents are encouraged to make less waste and save money by selecting the trash cart size that best fits their needs. New residents have 30 days after initiating services at a home to request a trash cart size change without being charged an additional fee. After 30 days, there will be a $13.50 service fee for changing cart size. Please contact the Solid Waste Division at (352) 334-2330 to request a trash cart size change.
Monthly cart rate based on cart size and service type:
|
Mini-cart (20 gallons)
|
1 kitchen-sized bag per week
|
$18.50 |
$31.25 |
|
Small (35 gallons)
|
2 to 3 kitchen-sized bags per week
|
$24.00 |
$36.25 |
|
Medium (64 gallons)
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4 to 5 kitchen-sized bags per week
|
$29.75 |
$44.00 |
|
Large (96 gallons)
|
6 to 7 kitchen-sized bags per week
|
$37.00 |
$54.00 |
Request Disabled Services
Residents with a disability and unable to set out carts or bins curbside for collection, should contact the Solid Waste Division at (352) 334-2330. Documentation from your physician will be required to receive backyard collection services at no additional charge (same charge as standard monthly curbside collection rate).
Moving or Cancelling Services
Residents are required to leave the trash cart, and recycling bins behind when moving as each trash cart has a serial number that is assigned to a specific address. Residents may be charged additional fees for missing trash carts or cart sizes that don't match up to billing records. To ensure proper billing, always check to make sure the number on your trash cart matches the number printed on your GRU utility bill. The first number of the cart serial number indicate the size (gallons) of your cart ("2" = 20 gal., "3" = 35 gal., "6" = 64 gal., "9" = 96 gal.).
Vacation Credit Request
To request a vacation credit, residents should contact the Solid Waste Division at (352) 334-2330 prior to their vacation or extended leave. Homes must be vacant for more than 90 days to be eligible for a vacation credit, and the Solid Waste Division must be notified in writing at the begging and end of the vacation period to apply for this credit.