Pricing
What it costs, and how we work it out
You pay for the room your load takes up on the truck. Not per item, not by the hour, and not by a number someone guessed down the phone. The minimum is $187–$207. Everything above that depends on how much of the truck you fill and how hard it is to get to.
How the price is worked out
We charge by how much of the truck your load fills, in eighths. Tap a size to see roughly what fits — then we confirm the real number with you on site, before anything goes on.
1/4 load. About a bedroom's worth: mattress, frame, a dresser and the odds and ends.
Tap a size above.
The minimum is $187–$207. That covers the labor, the vehicle, the fuel and the disposal, which cost the same whether the load is small or large.
There is no price list above that, because two loads the same size can be an hour apart depending on stairs, parking and what is in them. We look, we tell you the number, and it does not move once you have agreed to it.
Why we will not give you an exact number on the phone
We will give you a range, gladly. What we will not do is invent a firm number for a job nobody has seen, because that number always gets revised on the day and you are the one standing there when it happens.
A photo does not show how much a pile compresses once it is lifted, how far it has to be carried, how many stairs are between it and the truck, or how much of it is something that has to be handled separately. Those four things are most of what a job costs. We look, we tell you the number, and it does not move once you have said yes.
What decides the price
Nobody can quote this trade honestly without seeing what they are looking at — the same reason a mechanic will not price a repair over the phone. But there is no mystery to what is being priced.
Space, not weight
You are paying for room on the truck. A pile of empty boxes can cost more than the same-sized pile of concrete.
How far it has to be carried
At the curb is quicker than an upstairs back bedroom, and the price follows the work.
Stairs and tight turns
A sleeper sofa down a staircase is a different job from one on a driveway.
Anything needing special handling
Paint, chemicals, tires and some electronics cannot ride in a general load.
Flattening boxes and stacking things tightly genuinely reduces what you pay. It is the one bit of prep worth doing.
Questions about the money
How do you work out the price?
By how much of the truck your load actually fills once it is on — an eighth of a load through to a full one — plus access, stairs or lifts, the labor time, and the disposal fees on anything that carries them. We confirm the volume with you before anything is loaded, so the number you agree to is the number you pay.
Can you give me an exact price over the phone?
A rough range, yes. An exact number, no. Photos do not show compression, true weight, how far something has to be carried or how many stairs are in the way, and a number given without those is a guess that gets revised on the day. We would rather be right than fast.
Why do you want to come and look first?
Because it is the only way to give you a price that holds. Volume, access and labor time are what a job costs, and all three have to be seen. It takes a few minutes and it means nothing changes once the work starts.
Is the labor included?
Two hours of labor come with a full load. On anything smaller the labor is part of what we price when we look at the job, so it is in the number rather than sitting on top of it. Either way you hear that number before anything goes on the truck.
Is there a minimum charge?
Yes — the minimum runs $187 to $207. It covers the labor, the vehicle, the fuel and the disposal, all of which cost the same whether the load is small or large. Where a job lands in that range depends on access and what is in it.
I am up three flights with no elevator. Does that change things?
Basic stairs are part of the job. Several flights, a long walk to a slow elevator, or a lot of repeated trips add labor time, and labor time is part of what the price is made of. It gets talked about when we look at the job, not after.
Does it matter how far away you can park?
It does. A long carry from the truck to your door is labor in exactly the way stairs are, and on a big load it is the difference between a few trips and a lot of them. If parking where you are is awkward, say so when you call and it goes into the number.
Do you take concrete, dirt or tile?
Concrete yes, within weight limits. Dirt in limited amounts — ask first. Heavy materials like these get priced on weight rather than the space they take up, because a quarter load of rubble and a quarter load of flattened boxes are not the same job.