Got Junk? Not any more!

We've had junk in the carport for a long time. And outside my office window. And even some by the basement door left from replacing the corroded plumbing. Then there's the stump that Edis and I dug out ages ago. Katarina has been very patient with living in a construction zone, but the piles of junk were starting to get to both of us. To top it off, the pile in the carport meant we couldn't get to the shed where our bikes are stored. Warm weather and $4 a gallon gas has us thinking about riding again.

Given my upcoming Habitat trip to Biloxi and ongoing recovery from tendinitis, bronchitis, and rhinitis (allergies), Katarina suggested hiring someone to haul the junk away. The cheapest option would be renting a truck, hauling the junk myself, and driving it to the transfer station and unloading, but by far the most work. I did some checking, and for the same price as a 14-yard dumpster (the smallest they said I could put construction debris in) from Waste Management where I hauled everything up to it, I could get a 3-yard truck from 1-800-got-junk? where they did all the work. A no-brainer decision...assuming I had 3 cubic yards or less of stuff. I knew I had about that much in the carport, but there was also the old drywall outside my office and the stump. I decided to go for it, and see how much was left afterwards.

The service from 1-800-got-junk? was great. Easy to book on their website and choose a 2-hour window on the day of my choice, and they said they'd call about 30 minutes before arriving. Given how well various utilities and delivery services do with time windows, I had low, nay, rock-bottom expectations on the timing. I was shocked to have the phone ring exactly 30 minutes before the expected window, saying they'd be there in 25-30 minutes. Which they were. Listening, SBC/AT&T?

Per their website, I just pointed at what I wanted hauled away, and they did the work. Well, except for the stump. I suspected it might be too heavy for them to move up to the carport (that's why it'd been sitting there), and it was. So my work consisted of taking an ax and a construction bar to it to break it up into manageable pieces. It'd been sitting there long enough (12+ years in the ground, 2+ years on the front path) that I could break it into 4 easier pieces.

Not the cheapest option, but great service, and they recycle what can be recycled (generally up to 60% of what they haul; probably less than that of our load because I'd already recycled most of what could be). I highly recommend them if you can't haul stuff yourself.