R∙e∙f∙u∙s∙e is normally collected on Wednesday mornings, except on Thursdays after holidays. Fairfax County requires that refuse be discarded only in the gray rolling bins for general waste and blue carts for recycled material. ⚠️ Each cart may not weigh more than 100 pounds loaded.
KEEP OUR NEIGHBORHOOD SIGHTLY
Don't place trash outside earlier than 6 p.m. the evening before pickup.
Retrieve your trash bins on the evening of collection day.
Remove strewn bits of refuse that escaped pickup.
Store your bins out of public sight in the rear of your home.
For full details on what is acceptable trash, what is recyclable, and what requires special handling, visit the Fairfax County Recycling & Trash website. Here's a summary:
RECYCLING
Fairfax Country encourages recycling of certain types of paper, cardboard, plastic, glass, and metal. Place them in the blue rolling carts.
Mixed Paper & Cardboard: Recycle any clean paper that tears. Cardboard should be no larger than 3x4 feet, flattened, and tied together. Do not include cardboard with food residue or wax-coated paper. Milk and juice cartons are acceptable, but not styrofoam, food takeout containers, clamshell containers, or pizza boxes.
Plastic, Cans, & Foil: After rinsing, include plastic bottles, milk jugs, pails, buckets, tubs, lids, and caps; metal food and beverage cans; foil baking trays and wrap; and empty aerosol cans. Do not include glass, dishes, pottery, mirrors, light bulbs, pots and pans, or scrap metal.
UNACCEPTABLE TRASH
In additon to items listed above, the weekly collection will not take glass, plastic grocery bags, car batteries, commercial waste, cans with paint, construction debris, large amounts of animal waste, dead animals, explosives, live ammunition, weapons, hazardous household waste, gas powered lawn equipment with fuel in it, propane-oxygen-helium tanks, or tires on rims. Fairfax County's recycling website explains how to dispose of these.
YARD DEBRIS
Fairfax County collects grass clippings, leaves, plants, weeds, mulch, bark, straw, and similar material less than 6 feet long and under 6 feet in diameter weekly between April 1st and December 24th. They must be set out in brown paper yard debris bags, which may not weigh more than 50 pounds each. Do not include poison ivy, dirt, rocks, sand, concrete, brick, asphalt, or insect nests.
SPECIAL PICKUP OF BULK TRASH & OVERSIZED BRUSH
Fairfax County offers special collections for large brush (tree branches, logs, etc.) and bulky oversized material such as furniture, appliances, fencing, and metal. However, free special pickups are limited to 2 cubic yards of freon, brush, bulky waste, electronic waste, and metal. There will be a charge to remove piles greater than 2 cubic yards. To schedule a special pickup, call (703) 802-3322 or fill out this online form.
⚠️ Don't set these items out until the night before collection
