Where To Place Garbage Can? What You Need To Know!
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Where to Place Garbage Can
Garbage is certainly not the most pleasant thing to have around the house. No one likes garbage. No one likes talking about garbage. But garbage is a fact of life! So like it or not you have to tackle the issue. Now, if you can figure out where to place the garbage can, that would be a step forward.
You can place the garbage can on the patio or deck outside the kitchen, in the backyard, on the side of the house, in the front yard near the fence, in a corner of the garden, in the outdoor storage shed or in the garage. Your garage is possibly the best place to store the garbage cans.
Compared to the other spots, there are several benefits when you place the garbage cans in the garage. But the choice comes with disadvantages too!
Garbage cans are smelly, unhygienic and can be an open invitation to pests & critters to take over your garage. What you need to know is how to keep the garbage cans and the surrounding area clean & odorless.
You also need to comply with the state laws & local regulations.
Garbage Disposal Laws
Garbage Disposal Laws may differ somewhat from state to state and local municipalities may have additional restrictions. Generally speaking the law would require you to segregate the garbage (municipal solid waste) in following categories:
- Regular Trash – such as food waste,
- Recyclables – such as paper, plastic, aluminum cans, glass bottles etc.
- Bulk Garbage – such as furniture, carpets, appliances, car parts etc.
- Compostables – such as grass clippings, leaves, tree branches etc.
- Medications – generally needs to be dropped off at collection centers
- Electronics – such as computers, phones, printers, TV etc.
The above is for the state of New Jersey (NJ) as per HomeTown Waste & Recycling Services
Regular Trash & Recyclables must be in strong sturdy garbage bags which are properly tied and will not spill or fail. The filled garbage bags must be placed inside of their designated trash bins.
Most New Jersey communities have one regular garbage pickup day per week. The Trash cans or bins must be placed outside your home within four feet of the street the morning of your pickup day or after 5:30 p.m. the evening before.
Once your bins have been emptied, they need to be removed from the curb within 12 hours.
Over 50% of the garbage will end up in landfills, 35% will be recycled and the balance converted to energy.
Trash Can Rules of HOA
Of course every HOA (Home Owners Association) has its own rules and regulations regarding trash cans. Sometimes they may not make sense but you have to comply. In all fairness the HOA has formulated those rules out of experience and for the common benefit of the community.
Generally speaking an HOA will have rules regarding how, where, and when the trash cans and recycle bins go to curb and get put away. While making the rules HOA will take into consideration:
Aesthetics – Look & Feel
Trash cans and garbage bags are not the prettiest of sights. They are pretty much an eyesore.
HOA tries to minimize the eyesore by putting restrictions on when they can go to the curb and where they can be when it isn’t trash day.
The trash rules set out by the HOA can help ensure curb appeal is consistent, no matter the size or location of the community.
Pest & Animal Control
HOA is very much concerned about pest & animal control, in some cases even wild animals. The trash can rules set out by the HOA are directly related to the health & safety of the community.
The trash rules and regulations ensure that trash cans are kept in secure areas so that pests, critters, and animals have limited, if any, access to them. Scavengers such as opossums, seagulls, and raccoons thrive on food in garbage cans.
You can get rid of common pests like flies, mosquitoes, spiders, moths and roaches from your garage. I have a blog post on each of these pests that you can check out at https://garagemadesimple.com/category/space/
Recommended Product Atomic Zapper from BulbHead. This powerful device is a 2-in-1 ultrasonic pest repeller and bug zapper. It uses ultrasonic soundwaves to drive rodents crazy but doesn’t bother you and your pets. Atomic Zapper™’s blue light technology attracts and zaps flying insects.
Identity Theft
You may not have thought about it, but there are thieves who will steal sensitive information about you from the trash you throw away. They can go after personal information like bank statements, credit card offers, medical bills.
HOAs understand this risk and this is one of the reasons they encourage that trash cans are kept in secure locations such as your garage or a garden shed.
Source of Information: Communities Network Association
Possible Places to keep Garbage Cans
It would seem that there are quite a few places to keep garbage cans. Let us consider the various options and see if they are in fact practical.
Patio, Deck, Backyard
The advantage of placing your garbage cans on the patio, deck or backyard behind the house is that they are not visible from the street and are unlikely to violate the “aesthetic” rule of your HOA.
However, the trash cans are exposed to the elements. The heat, rain and pests will have easy access to the garbage cans. Bad smell will follow.
Since you generally use the patio, deck or backyard for relaxation & entertaining, unsightly garbage cans, especially smelly ones, maybe somewhat of a mood dampener.
The solution is to keep the trash cans in attractive horizontal weather resistant storage sheds. HOMSPARK has just the product for you.
Blow Molded HDPE resin panels, weather resistant, UV-resistant, durable & colorfast, won’t rust or decay. It is easy to clean and needs little maintenance. Perfect for storing two – 32Gal trash cans
Outdoor Storage Sheds
Maybe you already have a garden or a tools shed in your backyard. You may want to place your garbage cans there till garbage collection day. After all you do not use the shed so often, so even if the trash raises a bit of a stink it should be OK.
The only problem is that it may not be very convenient. A lot of folks like to take out trash from the kitchen and place it into the bigger garbage bin, every night after dinner.
Makes sense. You want the kitchen to be clean and smelling nice each morning.
Now imagine trudging from the house to the garden shed at night and possibly in inclement weather, to take out the trash. Not a pleasant thought!
Hauling the larger garbage bags or the big trash bin from the shed, in the backyard, to the curbside, on trash pickup day, is another pain in the neck.
However, if your garden shed is conveniently located, go ahead and store the garbage cans in the garden shed. If you do not have one, you could order Suncast 7′ x 7′ Cascade Outdoor Storage Shed from Amazon.
- OUTDOOR STORAGE SHED: Provides 322 cubic feet of versatile storage for your lawn tools, tools, bikes, and more
- DURABLE CONSTRUCTION: Reinforced floor and wall panels are built to last with a resin material that won’t fade or decay
Front Yard
It would be very tempting to place the garbage cans in the front yard or next to the driveway. It would be very convenient to take out the trash to the curbside on the garbage collection.
However, it is highly unlikely that your HOA will permit that. Not even if you hide it in storage sheds or behind a fence.
You would also not like it from the aesthetics point. Garbage cans in the front will certainly bring down the curb appeal of your house a few notches
Garage
Your garage is possibly the best place to store garbage cans. Most HOA and local bodies recommend this. The benefits of using the garage are:
Convenience
It is very easy to take the trash out from the kitchen to the garage, especially in the case of attached garages. Even if your garage is detached, chances are that it is connected to the house by a covered walkway.
Covered Space
The garage is a covered and enclosed space. So it is much easier to ensure that the garbage cans will not be ravaged by critters such as opossums or raccoons. While pests like roaches and flies can still be a menace.
The garbage cans will also be protected from sun & rain. Heat & damp hastens the decomposition of food waste causing bad smell.
Compliance
By keeping the garbage cans in the garage you will be in compliance with the rules & regulations of your HOA as well as garbage disposal laws of the state.
Cost
There is little additional cost if you place garbage cans in your garage. The other options that involve keeping the garbage cans outdoors are costly.
The garbage cans in the garage can be a magnet for all kinds of pests, small & big. Some of them, like flies, can carry diseases too!
Bad Smell?
You have to make sure that the garbage bins in the garage do not stink. So how to keep garbage cans from smelling in the garage? You can do this by
- Giving the bins a good hosing down after the trash day so that no garbage residue is left sticking to the bins
- Placing old newspapers sprinkled with baking soda powder to absorb the odor.
- Using sturdy garbage disposable bags that can be closed tight with no possibility of leakage.
- Use many small garbage bags rather than a few bigger bags so that you can seal the bags sooner.
- Making your garage climate controlled. Lower temperatures & better ventilation will reduce the rate of waste decay which is the reason garbage smells.
You may find my blog post How To Make Sure You Eliminate Bad Smell From Your Garage interesting and useful too!
Bottom Line
The bottom line is that you can place the garbage outdoors provided you comply with the rules and regulations of your HOA and the garbage disposal laws of your state.
Your HOA makes the rules keeping in view aesthetics, health & safety and protection from identity theft.
Possibly the best place to store garbage cans, is your garage. However, if you do not take the right protections, your garage may be infested with pests and smell awful!
Thank you very much for reading the post. I do hope you found it informative and useful.
