Almost everyone has unwanted junk cluttering up their homes, but few people manage to find the time to remove it. The cost of renting a dumpster service may be prohibitive for a single home and many people don't enjoy throwing out trash. Why not lower the cost and make junk removal fun by hosting a neighborhood cleanup party? Have several neighbors agree to split the cost of renting a dumpster and turn cleaning into a social event! Here's how to go about organizing one.

Discuss Hosting a Cleanup Party With Your Neighbors to Get an Idea of the Required Dumpster Size

The first step is to talk to your neighbors and see who is interested in sharing a dumpster rental along with how much junk they need to throw out. This will help you determine what size dumpster you need to rent. Generally, you'll have to get a large dumpster (30 or 40 yards) when throwing out household junk – furniture and clothes take up quite a bit of space in a dumpster. If you have extra space left over once all of your neighbors have finished throwing their trash into the dumpster, you can always try to recruit more neighbors into your cleanup party until it's full.

Find the Dumpster Rental Company Offering the Lowest Price and Have Your Neighbors Sign a Written Agreement

Once you've found some willing neighbors and agreed to a size, call several dumpster rental companies in the area to see which one will give you the lowest price on a short-term dumpster rental. With a price in hand, have all of the neighbors participating in your cleanup party sign a written statement agreeing to pay their share of the costs. While it's unlikely that anyone will refuse to pay their share, this gives you some measure of protection if someone skips out on the bill.

Inform Your Neighbors of the Dumpster's Weight Limit and Which Items Cannot Be Put in the Dumpster

Make sure all of your neighbors are aware of the dumpster's weight limit before they begin throwing their junk into your rented dumpster. The dumpster rental company will charge you overage fees if you exceed the weight limit. While household junk doesn't weigh very much and should not exceed the weight limit as long as you don't fill the dumpster past the brim, you and your neighbors should be wary about anything heavier than wooden furniture. If one of your neighbors wants to throw old concrete pavers into the dumpster or large tree branches, you should remind him or her about the weight limit. Concrete in particular is extremely heavy and can quickly cause a dumpster to exceed its weight limit.

Your neighbors also need to be aware of which items are prohibited from being put in the dumpster. Anything that can't go into a landfill and requires a special method of disposal cannot be placed in a dumpster. This includes batteries, motor oil, chemical solvents and pesticides. Your local regulations may include more prohibited items – for example, many cities prevent electronics from being placed in a dumpster. Ask your chosen dumpster rental company for a full list and make sure all of your neighbors follow the guidelines.

Once you're finished with the above, all that's left is to pay for the dumpster, wait for delivery, and begin throwing out junk. You'll find that junk removal goes a lot faster when you have several neighbors working together. If you're interested in hosting a neighborhood cleanup party, you can start by contacting a dumpster rental company to discuss potential prices – having a price ahead of time and a good idea of what each neighbor's share will be can make it easier to get more neighbors interested in your cleanup party. 

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