Mattress disposal in San Antonio, Texas

Rules

Curbside allowed

Yes

Appointment required

No

Limits

The curbside page says brush and bulky item collection is provided twice for each per year. It does not state a numeric cap on mattresses. A bulky pile must be no more than eight cubic yards and placed within eight feet of the curb. The code-enforcement page says the City provides two free collections of brush and bulky items per year for each resident, and that brush and bulky items are not allowed to be mixed. Drop-off limits bulky items to four cubic yards. The current curbside page and the 2017 services guide both list mattresses and do not mention box springs. The 2017 guide says collections are usually completed within the week and that trucks drive through the area only once. The current curbside page says collections can take up to a week and does not say the truck comes only once.

Preparation

• My Collection Day page: do not set out brush or bulky items until you receive a door hanger. The curbside page says customers are notified of their collection week 7-10 days before collection via a door hanger. If you have questions or have not received a door hanger, call 3-1-1 (311) or 210-207-6000.
• Curbside page: the date on the door hanger states when the pile should be set out. It is not the actual day of collection. Collections can take up to a week to complete.
• Curbside page: the pile should be ready for pickup no later than 7 a.m. on the Monday of the scheduled collection week, no more than eight cubic yards, and placed within eight feet of the curb. Even if garbage is serviced in the alley, the brush or bulky pile must be placed at curbside in front of the house.
• Curbside page: piles should not be obstructed, in front of parked cars, or under low hanging tree limbs. Do not place any material on vacant lots or on top of water meters.
• Code-enforcement page: allowable materials may only be placed at the curb after a collection notice has been received, and brush and bulky items are not allowed to be mixed.
• Curbside page, for an extra pickup: request an out-of-cycle collection online or by calling 3-1-1 (311) or 210-207-6000. The fee is based on the size of the pile. A staff member will provide a free estimate. After the fee is paid, the collection will be made within two working days. The 2017 services guide says the department will send a representative to determine a cost estimate and will collect within two business days after the fee is paid.

How to schedule

1. Wait for the door hanger. The My Collection Day page says not to set brush or bulky items out before it arrives. Use Find My Collection Day for an estimated timeframe. The curbside page says notice comes 7-10 days before the collection week, and that the hanger date is the set-out date, not the collection day.
2. By 7 a.m. on the Monday of that week, put the mattress at the curb in front of the house, within eight feet of the curb, even if the garbage cart is collected in the alley. Keep the bulky pile at or under eight cubic yards. Leave it clear of parked cars, low limbs, water meters, and vacant lots, and do not mix brush into the pile.
3. The code-enforcement page says items may go to the curb only after a collection notice, and that placing furniture or other items at the front curb outside a City-scheduled collection is a code violation. It lists out-of-cycle brush or bulky items among violations that can be cited without a prior notice.
4. For a pickup outside the twice-yearly week, request an out-of-cycle collection by calling 3-1-1 (311) or 210-207-6000. The curbside and rates pages also say to request it online and do not print a form URL. A staff member provides a free estimate. After the fee is paid, the curbside page says collection is within two working days. The rates page lists one item at $50, up to 4 cubic yards at $50, and each additional four cubic yards, or any portion, at $25.
5. Or take the mattress to a bulky waste collection center. Bring a recent CPS Energy bill showing payment of the Environmental Fee and a photo ID. The drop-off page accepts mattresses and does not accept mattresses with blood stains or bed bugs. On a published Free Landfill Day, a solid waste fee rate payer can also take a mattress to one of the two listed landfills with a picture ID, a recent CPS Energy statement showing payment of City Services for Solid Waste Fee, and a tarp on the load.

Phone, app, or portal

• Door hanger: Do not set brush or bulky items out until a door hanger arrives. Questions, or no hanger: 3-1-1 (311) or 210-207-6000.
• Find My Collection Day: https://www.sa.gov/Directory/Departments/SWMD/Brush-Bulky/My-Collection-Day
• Out-of-cycle collection: Call 3-1-1 (311) or 210-207-6000. The curbside and rates pages also say to request an out-of-cycle collection online. Neither page prints a separate form URL.
• Missed collection: Report a missed collection online or call 3-1-1 (311) or 210-207-6000. The curbside page does not print a separate report URL or a reporting deadline.

Fees

Curbside

The code-enforcement page says the City provides two free collections of brush and bulky items per year for each resident. The 2017 services guide says curbside bulky collection has no additional fee. The current Rates & Fees page does not repeat either sentence. For an extra brush or bulky collection it lists one item at $50, up to 4 cubic yards at $50, and each additional four cubic yards (or any portion) at $25.

Notes

The bulky drop-off page says the visit is free if you pay the City's environmental fee, and it requires a recent CPS Energy bill showing payment of the Environmental Fee plus a picture ID. The Free Landfill Day page says the four bulky waste collection centers are free and open year round, Tuesday through Saturday, and it says Free Landfill Day is a chance to get rid of unwanted bulky waste for free. The 2017 services guide says the four bulky drop-off centers have no additional fee for customers who pay the environmental fee through their CPS Energy account. It lists the same out-of-cycle amounts: one item $50, up to four cubic yards $50, and each additional four cubic yards or any portion $25. The curbside page says the out-of-cycle estimate is free and that collection follows within two working days after the fee is paid.

Drop-off locations

Four bulky waste collection centers take mattresses during the hours on the current drop-off page. That page does not say the centers close for holidays. The Solid Waste Management Department services guide still posted on sa.gov, footer mark SW-B01032 and 09-2017, gives the same Tuesday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, 8 a.m. to noon, hours and adds except holidays. That guide names the southeast site Rigsby Avenue Bulky Drop Off Center at 2755 Rigsby Avenue, 78222. The current page names it Rigsby Road Bulky Waste Collection Center at 2755 Rigsby Road, San Antonio, TX 78222. The current page refuses mattresses with blood stains or bed bugs; the 2017 guide's drop-off unaccepted list does not. The two landfill rows are only the dated Free Landfill Days, not a weekly schedule. The Free Landfill Day page says the four bulky centers are free and open year round, Tuesday through Saturday.

What's not accepted

• Mattresses with blood stains or bed bugs, at the bulky waste collection centers. The same page still lists mattresses as accepted. The curbside accepted list says mattresses and does not state this exclusion. The 2017 services guide's drop-off unaccepted list does not name blood stains or bed bugs.
• In a curbside bulky pile: brush, leaves, and yard waste; concrete; construction or demolition material; glass and mirrors; household hazardous waste; roofing material; soil and rocks.
• A bulky pile that contains brush, is obstructed, or is set out after crews have passed. The curbside page says that can bring a fine of up to $2,000 per day, plus a collection and disposal fee.
• The 2017 services guide also calls a bulky pile a City Code Chapter 14 violation if it contains brush, construction or remodeling debris, hazardous materials, mirrors or glass, vehicle parts, or electronics, or if it is obstructed or set out after crews have passed. That guide, and the current curbside page, list TVs (up to 3) as accepted bulky items. The guide's collection notice says violations can result in fines of up to $2,000 a day and/or collection costs invoiced to the property owner.
• Household trash at the bulky centers, and materials from commercial waste haulers.
• At Free Landfill Day: brick, brush, commercial waste, construction materials or waste, dirt, industrial waste, lumber, roofing materials, and sheet rock. That page lists mattresses as accepted and does not mention blood stains or bed bugs.
• Furniture, appliances, or other items placed at the front curb outside a City-scheduled collection. The code-enforcement page calls that illegal dumping. It also names out-of-cycle brush or bulky items as a violation that can be cited without a prior notice.

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