What a garage cleanout costs in Pittsburgh

The short answer

A Pittsburgh garage cleanout is priced by how much of the truck the contents fill, or by item when only a few big things are going. A one-car garage with moderate clutter is often a quarter truck at $241. A packed one-car or a busy two-car garage is often a half truck at $431. A full truck is $732. Per item, a snow blower is $71, a lawn mower $65, a propane grill $123 and a set of four tires $87.

Pittsburgh garages come in three types

Garage cleanouts here depend a lot on which era the house is from. In the post-war suburbs and City neighborhoods such as Brookline, Penn Hills, Bethel Park and Baldwin, the standard is a one-car garage, often tucked under the house or at the end of a short, steep driveway, plus a basement that absorbed the overflow. In the older City neighborhoods, garages are rarer. Shadyside is known for limited garage space because of how its streets were laid out, and many rowhouse blocks in Lawrenceville and Bloomfield have detached garages off a back alley, if they have one at all. In the 1990s and newer subdivisions of Wexford, Cranberry Township and Peters Township, the garage is two or three cars wide, attached, and governed by HOA rules about what can sit in the driveway. Each type needs a slightly different plan, but the flat pricing works the same way for all of them.

What usually comes out

Most Pittsburgh garages hold the same mix. There is lawn and yard equipment: mowers, trimmers, blowers and a wheelbarrow with a flat tire. There is winter gear, because real winters mean snow blowers, shovels and bags of rock salt. There are old tires, often a set of snow tires that wore out. There are bicycles the kids outgrew, sports equipment, a grill that rusted through, a broken freezer, half-full paint cans, scrap lumber and boxes nobody has opened since the last move. Some of it the City curb will take within the two-items-a-week limit. Some of it, such as tires, auto parts and anything with freon, the City refuses outright. Hazardous chemicals, batteries and light bulbs are refused too. Paint is something JunkRabbit accepts, at $30 for a 1-gallon can and $52 for a 5-gallon bucket. Other chemicals are case by case, so ask first.

Per-item prices for garage regulars

A typical seasonal clear-out of a mower, a snow blower and a set of tires is $65 + $71 + $87 = $223. Add a workbench and metal shelving and it is $223 + $100 + $71 = $394, at which point a half truck at $431 may also cover boxes and bags.

Truck tiers for full cleanouts

When the garage is full of mixed things, truck share is usually simpler than counting. A one-car garage where you can still open the door but cannot park often fits a quarter or 3/8 truck. One where the car has not been inside in years is more often a half truck or more. A two-car HOA garage before a corporate relocation from Cranberry or Southpointe can reach 3/4. Photos decide the tier, and you see it before booking.

Driveways, alleys and HOA rules

Getting a garage's contents to the truck has its own Pittsburgh quirks. Many South Hills and East End driveways are steep, and in winter they can be icy, so a morning window after salting is often better. Rowhouse garages off back alleys can be narrow, and the truck may need to stop at the alley mouth rather than at the garage door. Parked cars on narrow two-way streets limit where a truck can wait. In HOA subdivisions in Wexford, Cranberry or Peters Township, associations commonly have rules about piles at the curb or in the driveway, so staging everything outside for days before collection is a bad idea. A scheduled pickup avoids that, because items go straight from the garage to the truck. There is no extra charge for any of this. The flat price includes carrying items from wherever they sit, loading them and disposal.

When to book it

Garage cleanouts follow the seasons. Spring is redd-up season in Pittsburgh, from March through June, when garages and basements get cleared after winter and before yard work starts. Late fall is the other natural window, after the mower is done and before the snow blower needs space. Relocations and house sales happen year-round, especially in the North Hills and the Cranberry area. Whenever you book, JunkRabbit works 7 days a week from 8am to midnight, with same-day pickup when you book by 4 PM, and you choose a 2-hour arrival window. There are no volume discounts and no recurring pickups, but there is also no stairs fee, no same-day surcharge and no sales tax line on hauling in Pennsylvania. Snap a wide photo of the garage from the door, and one of anything heavy, to get your price.

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