DumpsterPriceIndex

Deck Removal and Outdoor Demolition Waste

· Ryan Muniak

Pressure-treated lumber, concrete footings and old hardware each go somewhere different, and separating them can lower the bill.

Treated lumber is heavier than it looks

Pressure-treated boards hold moisture, and a 400 square foot deck comes to roughly two tons with framing included. It also can't be burned or chipped, so it goes to the landfill as general construction debris.

Footings are a separate problem

Concrete footings are dense enough that a handful of them can shift a load into overage. Some haulers want them out of the wood load entirely. Ask first — if they'll take clean concrete at a separate rate, pulling the footings into their own pile is worth the effort.

Pull the hardware if you can

Joist hangers, brackets and railing posts are scrap metal, and scrap yards pay for them rather than charging. On a large deck that's a real offset against the rental.

Size it by volume, not weight

Deck boards are bulky. Most removals need a 20-yard for space long before weight becomes the constraint — the opposite of a roofing job.


For current pricing see the Dumpster Price Index, last checked 2026-07-30.