What Can’t Go in a Dumpster in Frederick County, MD

Published 2026-09-30 by Monocacy Dumpster

Why the list exists

Most of what comes out of a house or a job site goes straight into one of our containers: furniture, wood, drywall, roofing, carpet, concrete, brick, plaster. A short list is kept out by Maryland law, Frederick County’s landfill rules, or both, and a load that includes them causes trouble at the scale house. Here is what stays out and where it goes instead.

Yard waste

Frederick County Code § 1-11-43 bars yard waste from the landfill’s refuse disposal area, whether it arrives on its own or mixed with other waste, and sends it to the County’s composting and mulching area instead. The County defines it as leaves, grass clippings, plants, shrubs, prunings and trimmings up to 8 feet long and 6 inches across. Since July 2025 residents can drop five 30-gallon paper yard-waste bags a day free at Reichs Ford Road; other yard-waste loads pay a $10 minimum and $25 a ton. Our yard-waste page explains how we keep it separate.

Tires

Maryland’s 1991 Scrap Tire Recycling Act banned tires from landfills, and anyone who hauls or disposes of more than five scrap tires a year needs a state licence. The County takes up to five tires a year per business or resident at its normal rate, charges more beyond that, and adds a $25 handling fee per tire found mixed in with other waste. Keep them out of the container.

Appliances and electronics

The City of Frederick will not collect appliances at the curb (it arranges a paid special pickup on 301-600-1680), and refrigerants have to be removed under federal and state rules. The County’s drop-off centre at 9031 Reichs Ford Road takes refrigerators, stoves, washers, air conditioners and water heaters free, empty and free of contaminants, Monday to Saturday 7 am to 4:30 pm. Computers, monitors and TVs go to the County’s electronics recycling there too, charged by weight and limited to ten TVs or monitors per year; retailers and manufacturer take-back programmes are the other routes.

Liquids, paint and household chemicals

The County facility is permitted for solid waste only, with no liquids of any kind, and hazardous material there carries a civil penalty of up to $10,000. Motor oil (up to five gallons a day), antifreeze, filters and lead-acid batteries go to the County’s drop-off centre. Pesticides, solvents, fluorescent bulbs and similar items go to the County’s free household hazardous waste drop-off events for residents, held in the spring and fall (information: 301-600-1848). House paint, primers, stains and varnish now go to a PaintCare drop-off: Maryland’s PaintCare programme started in April 2026 with more than a hundred year-round sites in the state.

Mattresses

Mattresses and box springs are accepted at the County facility for a fee: residents get six a year at the residential rate, and loads brought by a contractor are charged $28 a unit. They can go in a roll-off, but we price them in, so tell us how many.

Asbestos

Asbestos never rides in a mixed load. Maryland’s Department of the Environment requires written notice at least ten working days before regulated asbestos is removed, and ten working days’ notice before the demolition of a regulated facility even if there is none, with licensed contractors under its rules. Older homes in downtown Frederick and the county’s historic towns are the ones to have tested before a gut renovation.

What the curb will not take

The City of Frederick lists construction and demolition waste as prohibited for curbside collection: asphalt, blocks, bricks, concrete, drywall, fencing, metals, plaster, rock, soil, stone and wood. It no longer runs a city-wide bulk pickup. Walkersville’s twice-yearly bulk days exclude construction and demolition debris, Myersville’s exclude shingles, siding, carpet, windows, cabinets and fixtures, and Emmitsburg’s curbside takes no construction materials at all. Everything on those lists is what a roll-off is for.

What does go in

Household junk, furniture, carpet, wood, drywall, plaster, roofing shingles, concrete, brick, tile, siding, windows, cabinets and fixtures. Which is nearly everything. Call (301) 835-2468 if you are unsure about a specific item and we will tell you before you load it.

Monocacy Dumpster · Frederick, MD · (301) 835-2468, answered 24/7.