Trash Can Cleaning Service: How It Works, What It Costs, Is It Worth It

A trash can cleaning service comes to your curb on pickup day, after the hauler has emptied your bins, and washes them inside and out. We use 200°F high-pressure water, finish with a deodorizer, and keep all of the dirty water in the truck. Plans start at $30 for a cleaning every four weeks, with two bins included.

That is the short version. Below is what actually happens during a cleaning, what it costs, how it compares with scrubbing the cans yourself, and who gets the most out of it.

How a curbside trash bin cleaning service works

Most customers never see the cleaning happen, and that is part of the appeal. On a typical visit:

1. Your hauler empties the cans. We clean on your collection day, so the bins are already empty and already at the curb. Nothing gets dragged out twice.
2. Hot water does the heavy lifting. The inside of each bin gets 200°F high-pressure water. Heat is what breaks down the greasy film and dried-on residue that a garden hose slides right over.
3. Outside, lid and handle. We wash the exterior too, including the handle, which is the part you actually touch every week.
4. Deodorizer. A deodorizer goes on before the bin goes back where it was.

The wastewater goes into the truck. It does not run down your driveway, across the sidewalk, or into the storm drain at the end of the street. I'll come back to why that matters.

What you get from a professional cleaning

• A bin that is clean, not just rinsed. The bottom corners and the underside of the lid are where the smell lives.
• Less odor between pickups, which you notice most in July and August.
• Fewer flies around the can, and less to draw in raccoons and bears. Our guide to keeping bears and pests out of your trash covers the rest of that problem.
• No dirty water on your property.
• Nothing to do except leave the cans where the hauler left them.

How much does a trash can cleaning service cost?

Here are our current residential plans:

Extra bins can be added to any plan. A household with a trash cart, a recycling cart and a food scrap bin doesn't have to pick which one gets cleaned. You can see the details and choose a start date on the booking page.

Which plan makes sense comes down to what goes in your cans. Pet waste, diapers and meat packaging push you toward monthly. A two-person household that bags everything tightly can usually go quarterly. A bin that sits in full sun on a south-facing driveway will smell sooner than one parked in the shade of the garage. If you want to think it through by season, I wrote a separate piece on how often to clean trash bins through a Vermont year.

DIY vs. a garbage can cleaning service

You can clean a trash can yourself. Plenty of people do, usually once or twice a year when it gets bad enough. The routine goes something like this:

1. Wait for a warm, dry day after pickup.
2. Drag the can somewhere it can drain.
3. Scrape out whatever is stuck to the bottom.
4. Scrub with a long-handled brush and a cleaner, rinse, and tip it over to dry.

It mostly works. The problem is the water. Whatever comes out of a trash can (rotten food, grease, bits of meat packaging, pet waste) ends up on your lawn, your driveway, or rolling down the street toward a storm drain. The Lake Champlain Basin Program points out that water running off roofs, driveways and sidewalks goes into the storm drain system and then to the nearest waterway, picking up sediment, nutrients and other pollutants on the way (Lake Champlain Basin Program, "Reduce Runoff"). The EPA describes stormwater the same way: runoff collects trash, chemicals, oils and dirt from hard surfaces and carries them into rivers, streams and lakes (EPA NPDES Stormwater Program).

Is a trash bin cleaning service worth it?

Honest answer: it depends on your trash and your nose.

It is usually worth it if:

• You can smell the can from the porch on a warm afternoon.
• You've had maggots, or you're tired of a cloud of flies every time you lift the lid.
• Bears or raccoons have been through your trash, or your neighbors'.
• You don't have a good place to wash bins. Condos, apartments, and driveways that slope straight to the road all fall in this group.
• You manage a rental and want bins that don't greet the next tenant or guest with a smell.

It is probably not worth it if:

• Very little food waste goes in your trash and the can stays dry.
• You already wash your cans regularly and have a spot where the rinse water can't reach a storm drain.

The one-time deep clean at $65 is a low-risk way to find out. If the cans still smell fine three months later, quarterly is all you need. If the smell is back in three weeks, go monthly.

Questions to ask any bin cleaning company

Whoever you hire, these are fair questions:

• Where does the wastewater go?
• Is the water heated, and how hot?
• Do you clean the outside, lid and handle, or just the inside?
• What happens if the hauler runs late or skips a week?
• Can I add a bin, or pause for a month when I'm away?
• Are you insured? Ask any company that works on your property for proof.

Before your first cleaning

There isn't much to do, but a few details help the first visit go smoothly:

• Tell us your pickup day and roughly when the hauler usually comes. If the truck runs late on your street, we'd rather know.
• Count your bins. Trash, recycling, food scraps, a second trash cart for a big household. Each one you want cleaned should be on the booking.
• Leave the bins where the hauler leaves them. We clean them at the curb and put them back.
• Mention anything odd. A cracked lid, a missing wheel, a can that lives behind a gate. We'll work around it.

After that, the schedule runs on its own. You'll notice the difference the first time you lift the lid.

Trash can cleaning service near you

We're based at 131 State St in Rutland and work in towns across Vermont, including Rutland City, Castleton, Killington, Manchester and Middlebury. The full service details are on our trash bin cleaning page. If you manage a property with a row of carts, we also work with HOAs and apartment buildings.

Getting started

If you want to try it, pick a plan or a one-time clean on the booking page, or call me at (802) 558-3533, Monday through Saturday, 7am to 5pm. Not sure which plan fits? Call and ask. If quarterly will do the job, I'll tell you.