Yes, you can throw tile flooring in a dumpster. Ceramic tile, porcelain tile, and even natural stone flooring can generally be disposed of in a dumpster.
But before you order a dumpster and start tearing up your floors, there is a bigger question you should ask:
What else are you throwing away?
After handling tile flooring disposal for homeowners, contractors, and remodeling projects, we have learned that the best dumpster for a tile project depends on more than the amount of tile you are removing. The square footage, type of tile, other renovation debris, and even how you plan to complete the project can affect which option makes the most sense.
Sometimes separating tile into its own dumpster can save money. Other times, putting everything into one mixed construction dumpster is easier and may even be the better value.
Here is what we have learned from actual tile removal and dumpster rental jobs.
What Type of Flooring Tile Can Go in a Dumpster?
Most flooring tile can go into a dumpster, including:
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Ceramic tile
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Porcelain tile
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Marble and other natural stone tile
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Tile with thinset or mortar still attached
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Small amounts of concrete that may come up during tile removal
Tile can also usually be mixed with other construction and remodeling debris.
For example, if you are remodeling a house and removing ceramic tile from the living areas, carpet from the bedrooms, baseboards, trim, laminate flooring, and other construction materials, you don’t necessarily need separate dumpsters for every material.
You can often put everything into one mixed construction dumpster.
That can be particularly helpful for homeowners trying to complete a renovation over a weekend. Waiting to have one dumpster removed and another delivered can slow down a project unnecessarily.
Why Is Tile Flooring So Heavy?
One thing homeowners sometimes underestimate is just how heavy flooring tile becomes when hundreds or thousands of square feet of it are sitting in a dumpster.
Ceramic, porcelain, and marble are heavy materials by themselves.
Then there is the thinset or mortar attached to the back of the tile. During demolition, you may also pull up pieces of concrete along with the flooring.
A couple of pounds here and there doesn’t sound significant. Multiply it across an entire house and it becomes a very different situation.
We have picked up dumpsters from remodeling projects where the amount of tile inside resulted in considerably more disposal weight than either we or the customer anticipated.
That is why one of the first things we ask someone planning a tile removal is approximately how many square feet of flooring they are removing.
How Much Tile Fits in a Dumpster?
There isn’t one answer that works for every house.
We have seen this firsthand.
A 1,400-Square-Foot Whole-House Remodel
One of our customers remodeled a house that was approximately 1,400 square feet.
They used a 20-yard dumpster and filled it with a combination of tile, wood, and other demolition debris.
This is a good example of why knowing the total size of the house doesn’t necessarily tell us how much dumpster space the flooring will require. The dumpster wasn’t filled with tile alone. It contained the debris generated by the overall renovation.
A 2,000-Square-Foot Home With Tile and Carpet
Another customer was renovating a home of approximately 2,000 square feet.
About 800 square feet of the home had ceramic tile in the main living areas. The remainder had carpet.
They were able to use a 15-yard dumpster for the tile and carpet removal.
Two homes can therefore have very different dumpster needs depending on the flooring being removed and what else is going into the container.
This is why we would rather ask a customer a few questions about the project than simply say, “You have a 2,000-square-foot house, so you need this dumpster.”
Should You Use a 15-Yard or 20-Yard Dumpster for Tile Flooring?
For larger household renovations, we often recommend considering a 20-yard dumpster because it gives you more room for the other debris that tends to come with a remodel.
There is a tradeoff, though.
Our 15-yard dumpsters have lower sides, which can make it easier to throw material over the side. A 20-yard dumpster has taller sides, so loading heavy tile over the top isn’t as convenient.
Fortunately, our dumpsters have a rear door.
For heavy flooring debris, you can open the back and use a wheelbarrow to move the material into the dumpster rather than repeatedly lifting tile over the side. Some customers create a small ramp using plywood to make moving a loaded wheelbarrow into the dumpster easier.
When you are dealing with hundreds of square feet of broken tile, that can make a substantial difference.
How Should Tile Be Loaded Into a Dumpster?
Where you put heavy debris inside a dumpster matters.
If you are mixing tile with lighter remodeling debris, we recommend placing the heavier material toward the front of the dumpster and lighter materials toward the rear.
We have seen customers do the opposite. They load regular remodeling debris first and then put a large amount of heavy tile near the dumpster door.
Think about loading a truck. You don’t want all of your heaviest material concentrated at the back. The same basic idea applies when loading a dumpster.
If the entire dumpster contains tile, the weight will naturally be distributed more evenly.
You should also never load debris above the dumpster’s maximum fill line.
If you run out of room, call us. Getting another dumpster is a much better option than creating an overloaded container that cannot be safely hauled.
Can Tile Be Mixed With Other Remodeling Debris?
Yes.
For many residential renovations, this is actually what we recommend.
Flooring tile can generally be mixed with materials such as:
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Carpet
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Laminate flooring
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Vinyl flooring
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Baseboards
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Trim
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Wood
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General construction and demolition debris
We don’t generally recommend mixing flooring tile with large amounts of concrete, pavers, dirt, and similar heavy materials.
Those materials have different disposal considerations, and there may be a more cost-effective way to handle them separately.
Can Separating Ceramic or Porcelain Tile Save Money?
Sometimes, and this is where talking to us before ordering the dumpster can pay off.
We have an option for qualifying clean ceramic and porcelain tile where we can provide a 10-yard dumpster at a flat rate of $450.
There are important restrictions.
The load needs to contain qualifying ceramic or porcelain tile ONLY. A little mortar remaining on the back of the tile is acceptable, but natural stone cannot be included.
Why?
It has to do with where we take the material.
The facility that accepts these clean loads processes the material using crushing equipment so it can be repurposed for roadway material. Because of how the facility processes it, they have specific requirements for what can be accepted.
That is different from taking a mixed construction load to a landfill.
Is a Clean Tile Dumpster Always Cheaper?
No, and we wouldn’t tell a customer that it is.
If you are removing 800 square feet of ceramic tile, for example, we know from our experience that approximately that amount of tile can potentially fit into one of our 10-yard dumpsters.
But that doesn’t automatically mean a separate clean-tile dumpster is your best option.
Let’s say you are replacing that tile and also have carpet, baseboards, trim, packaging, and other renovation debris to dispose of.
You could rent a flat-rate dumpster for the ceramic tile and then need another dumpster for everything else.
Depending on the project, it might only cost a few hundred dollars more to put everything into one mixed construction dumpster. You eliminate the need for two separate containers and keep the renovation moving.
For a homeowner trying to finish a project in a day or two, I may recommend mixing everything together.
For a commercial project removing several thousand square feet of qualifying ceramic or porcelain tile, separating that material could make much more sense.
Our goal is to look at the entire project rather than automatically selling someone multiple dumpsters.
Why You Need to Be Honest About What’s Going Into a Clean Tile Dumpster
If you order a dumpster specifically for clean ceramic or porcelain tile, it needs to remain a clean load.
This matters because the disposal facility charges us differently for that material.
When we arrive at the facility, they can see what is inside the dumpster when we unload it. We can see it too.
If materials that aren’t allowed have been mixed into the load, the facility will reject it. That can mean loading the material back into our dumpster and transporting it to another facility where it can be properly disposed of as mixed waste.
That creates additional disposal costs, driving time, labor, and handling.
Good communication between the customer and dumpster company prevents that situation.
If you’re unsure whether something can go into your clean tile dumpster, ask us before putting it in.
How Is the Weight of a Tile Dumpster Determined?
Customers sometimes wonder how dumpster companies determine how much debris was actually inside their dumpster.
For mixed construction loads, we don’t simply look inside the dumpster and estimate the weight.
When we arrive at a landfill, our truck and loaded dumpster are driven onto a scale.
The first measurement is the gross weight. That includes the truck, dumpster, and everything inside it.
After we unload the material, we drive back onto the scale.
The empty measurement is the tare weight.
The facility subtracts the tare weight from the gross weight to determine the net weight of the debris we disposed of.
That net weight determines the disposal charge from the facility, which is why heavy materials such as tile can have such a large effect on the final disposal cost.
Clean ceramic or porcelain tile loads can work differently. At the facility we use for qualifying clean tile, we pay based on the dumpster size rather than weighing the loaded dumpster in and out. That allows us to offer the flat-rate option when the material meets the facility’s requirements.
Our Experience Removing Tile Flooring Ourselves
I’ve been on both sides of this.
Before being in the dumpster business, we removed tile flooring from one of our own homes.
The flooring had been down for around 30 years, and we quickly discovered that removing old tile wasn’t nearly as simple as breaking it up and carrying it outside.
We aren’t professional flooring installers or demolition contractors, so we went to Home Depot and rented the equipment we needed to get the tile up.
Then came the part people don’t always think about: moving it.
We were living in a condo at the time and couldn’t have a dumpster there. We were bagging the broken tile and carrying those heavy bags to a central part of the house.
Eventually, we hired someone to pick up the material and dispose of it.
After going through that experience myself, if I were removing a significant amount of tile flooring from a house today, I would pay a professional to do it.
A professional who is properly licensed and insured for the work already has the equipment and experience. More importantly, they have people who are accustomed to moving this type of heavy material.
Breaking tile loose is one part of the job. Moving hundreds of square feet of broken tile from inside your house, loading it into wheelbarrows or containers, and getting all of it into a dumpster is another.
It’s hard physical work.
Should You DIY Tile Removal?
You certainly can.
But don’t make the decision based solely on the idea that removing tile looks easy.
Consider:
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How many square feet of tile you are removing
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How long the flooring has been installed
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What equipment you will need to rent
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How you will move the broken tile out of the house
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How far the debris needs to travel to reach the dumpster
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Whether you have people available to help
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How quickly you need the old flooring removed
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What you are installing afterward
If you are already spending significant money on new flooring, paying an experienced professional to handle the demolition may be worth it simply to keep the project moving.
Having done it ourselves, that is the route I would personally take on a large tile removal project.
What Should You Tell a Dumpster Company Before Removing Tile?
Before we recommend a dumpster, there are two things I especially want to know.
First, approximately how many square feet of tile are you removing?
Second, what else are you throwing away?
Those two answers can completely change our recommendation.
If you have a smaller amount of tile along with carpet or laminate flooring, one mixed dumpster may be the easiest and most cost-effective solution.
If you’re doing the renovation in phases, separate dumpsters might make more sense.
If you’re removing thousands of square feet of qualifying ceramic or porcelain tile from a commercial property, a dedicated clean-material dumpster may provide a better option.
There isn’t one answer that works for every project.
What Would We Recommend for 800 Square Feet of Ceramic Tile?
If someone called us tomorrow and said, “I’m removing about 800 square feet of ceramic tile. What dumpster do I need?” I wouldn’t immediately give them a dumpster size.
I’d ask what else they’re getting rid of.
If the project is primarily qualifying ceramic tile, our experience tells us that approximately 800 square feet can potentially fit into a 10-yard dumpster, making our flat-rate clean tile option worth discussing.
If they are remodeling the rest of the house and also disposing of carpet, laminate, wood, trim, baseboards, and other materials, I would look at the project differently.
One mixed dumpster may make more sense.
I would rather help a customer figure that out beforehand than have them pay for a clean-tile dumpster and then discover they need another dumpster for everything else.
So, Can You Put Tile Flooring in a Dumpster?
Yes.
Ceramic, porcelain, marble, and other flooring tile can generally be disposed of in a dumpster. Tile can also be mixed with other remodeling debris when using the appropriate mixed-waste dumpster.
The bigger question is how you should dispose of it.
For a typical household remodel, mixing tile with your other flooring and construction debris may be the simplest option.
For larger amounts of clean ceramic or porcelain tile, separating the tile may provide an opportunity to use a flat-rate dumpster and potentially reduce disposal costs.
Before ordering, know approximately how many square feet of tile you’re removing and make a list of everything else you expect to throw away.
Then tell us what you’re actually doing.
At Chickadee Dumpster Rental, we’d rather ask a few questions about your project and help you choose the option that makes sense than put you into a dumpster that costs you more than necessary.