Local Rules

Florissant's 210 Gallon Limit, and What To Do About It

Most people meet the limit for the first time in the middle of a clear-out, which is the worst possible moment to find out about it.

What the limit actually is

Residential collection in the City of Florissant is contracted out to Gateway Disposal, and it comes with a cap that catches people out.

Two separate things there, and the second one is what causes the trouble. The overage is not simply a matter of putting more out and paying more. It has to be arranged in advance.

Gateway Disposal can be reached on (314) 900-2070, and they are the right people to ask about your own account, your pick-up day and current rates.

How much is 210 gallons, really

Nobody thinks in gallons, so here is the translation.

A standard wheeled cart is typically 65 or 95 gallons. A kitchen bag is roughly 13 gallons; a large outdoor bag is around 30 to 33. So 210 gallons is broadly two to three carts, or somewhere near six or seven large bags.

For ordinary household waste that is generous. For a week's normal rubbish from a family, you will not get close to it.

Where it stops being generous is the moment a project starts:

• A single bedroom clear-out can produce four or five large bags before you have touched the furniture.
• A basement — and nearly every house in this area has one — will produce many times the limit.
• Bathroom demolition puts you over in an afternoon, and tile is heavy enough that bags split.
• A garage clear-out is usually several weeks of limit in one weekend.

The 24 hour rule on extras

Worth its own section, because it is the part people miss.

If you know you are going over, the extra has to be scheduled with the office 24 hours before your collection day. That means a Sunday evening decision to put six more bags out for a Monday collection is too late.

The practical consequence: on a project of any size, either you plan the overflow a day ahead every single week, or you accept that the material sits somewhere for another seven days. On a two or three week renovation that becomes a pile in the garage, then a pile in the driveway.

Everything also has to be at the curb by 6:00 a.m., which is earlier than most people assume, and does not leave room for a morning of loading.

Recycling and yard waste run a day early

A local scheduling quirk that trips up new residents constantly.

So if your trash is collected on a Thursday, your recycling and yard waste go out for Wednesday. Put them out on Thursday with the trash and they sit for another week.

The recycling itself is a free service for residential houses, provided by the hauler, so there is no reason not to use it. Separating cardboard alone makes a noticeable difference to how quickly you reach 210 gallons — flattened boxes are one of the biggest volume savings available in an ordinary household week.

Yard waste is genuinely separate here, and it matters for more than scheduling. Even the regional landfill keeps it out of the general stream — see our piece on Missouri yard waste rules for why.

The senior discount worth asking about

Not widely advertised, and worth a phone call.

Florissant residents who are 60 years of age or older may be eligible for a substantial discount on their trash bill, including a reduced per-bag rate on overages. Gateway Disposal on (314) 900-2070 can tell you whether you qualify.

We mention it because a great deal of our estate and downsizing work involves older residents or their families, and it is the kind of thing that goes unclaimed for years.

When the limit stops working

Being straight about this: for normal weekly household waste, the city service is fine and a container would be a waste of your money. We turn down work on that basis regularly.

The limit stops working when one of these is true:

• The volume is many times the weekly cap. A basement, a garage, a full house.
• The material is not household trash at all. Drywall, timber, tile, roofing, concrete, carpet and cabinetry are not what a cart service is designed for, and much of it will not be taken.
• The weight is the problem. Tile, plaster and concrete split bags and are refused by weight regardless of volume.
• You need it gone this week, not spread across two months of scheduled overages.
• You are selling, letting or settling an estate and working to a date.

Where a container takes over

The honest comparison, because both routes have a place.

The crossover point in practice is roughly a weekend's worth of serious work. Below that, use the cart and the free recycling. Above it, a container almost always costs less than accumulating per-bag charges across several weeks — and it is finished in one go.

Doing this the cheap way

• Use the free recycling properly. Flatten cardboard; it is the single biggest volume saving in an ordinary week.
• Put yard waste out the day before, with the recycling, not on trash day.
• If you are 60 or over, ask about the discount. It goes unclaimed constantly.
• Schedule overages 24 hours ahead or they do not get taken.
• Everything at the curb by 6:00 a.m.
• For anything project-sized, price a container against several weeks of per-bag charges before assuming the cart is cheaper.
• Separate the heavy material. Tile, plaster and concrete are a weight problem wherever they go — sizing guide here.