FAQ

Tips & Guidelines
Did you know food scraps, uncoated food-soiled paper and yard waste can be composted into a nutrient-rich soil amendment?  Finished compost creates a valuable product used in parks, farms and gardens.  Approximately 30% of all material that ends up in the landfill could have been composted instead.  When you keep food scraps, food-soiled paper and yard waste separate from your garbage, you extend the life of our landfills and conserve resources.

Materials Collected

More information about what goes in your food and yard waste cart is available using Seattle’s Where Does It Go tool.

If you can’t reduce, recycle!

The following materials are accepted in your recycling cart.  All containers must be clean and empty.

Recyclable Materials List

More information about what goes where is available using Seattle’s Where Does It Go tool.

Household hazardous wastes (HHW) are products that contain toxic materials that can be harmful to humans and the environment if disposed of improperly.  Hazardous waste is not accepted in curbside garbage, recycling, or organics carts. Look for a label that may say CAUTION-WARNING-DANGER-POISON to determine if a product is hazardous. Empty containers may go in the garbage, with the exception of propane tanks.

Household hazardous waste items include, but are not limited to: toxic household cleaners, paint thinners, pesticides, mercury-containing fluorescent bulbs and tubes, electronic waste and car batteries.

Download the Small Business Hazardous Waste Disposal flyer.

Hazardous Waste Drop Off Locations

The King County Solid Waste Division operates two facilities that accept household hazardous waste from residents: the Wastemobile and the Factoria Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off Service.  The City of Seattle operates two additional sites within Seattle.  Wastes collected at these sites will be recycled or disposed of properly.

Wastemobile
Site Hours: Check King County webpage for hours and availability
Address & Location: The Wastemobile travels throughout King County.  Check the Wastemobile schedule for the next date near you.

Factoria Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility
Site Hours: Tuesday – Friday, 8:00am – 4:00pm, Saturday and Sunday, 9:00am – 5:00pm.
Closed: Mondays, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day
Address: 13800 SE 32nd Street, Bellevue

North Seattle Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility
Site Hours: Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, 9:30am – 4:30pm *No appointment necessary.
Closed: July 4, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day
Address: 12550 Stone Ave N, Seattle

South Seattle Hazardous Waste Facility
Site Hours: Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 9:30am – 4:30pm *No appointment necessary.
Closed: July 4, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day
Address: 8105 Fifth Avenue S, Seattle

Accepted items: For a complete list of what to bring and what not to bring, visit the King County webpage.

For comprehensive hazardous waste disposal information, call King County’s Local Hazardous Waste Management Program at 206-296-4692 or visit www.HazWasteHelp.org.

BUSINESSES

Visit the City of Seattle’s hazardous waste disposal information.

Please visit the City of Seattle’s Where Does it Go page.

Electronic waste, or e-waste, including computers, monitors, and televisions, are not allowed in the garbage because they contain toxic materials that can be hazardous to human health and the environment. There are several options for safe disposal of these items.

Please use Seattle Public Utilities Where Does It Go Tool for electronic waste disposal information.

Customers may email seattle@recology.com or call 206.250.7500 for bulky item information.

Visit the City of Seattle’s Where Does it Go page. 

Use the City of Seattle’s Where Does it Go tool for information on textile recycling.

Use the City of Seattle’s Where Does it Go tool for information on Styrofoam™ disposal.

Visit the City of Seattle’s Where Does it Go page for information on scrap metal recycling.

Visit the City of Seattle’s Where Does it Go tool for information on clean wood disposal.

Use the City of Seattle’s Where Does it Go tool for information on shredded paper.

You don’t. You take them back next time you go to the dry cleaners. That’s reuse which is even better than recycling. Please do not put wire or plastic hangers in your blue recycling bin; hangers jam equipment at the recycling plant. Recycling bins are for bottles, cans, paper, cardboard, and hard plastics, such as plastic cups and molded plastic packaging.

As of 2020, plastic bags and wrap are no longer accepted in curbside recycling bins. Please check with your local grocery store to see if they offer a take-back program. Many stores have such programs and offer easy drop off near the check-out counter. You can also visit https://www.plasticfilmrecycling.org/ to view a list of drop-off locations.

Seattle customers may select from several different garbage container sizes.

• View Residential rates 
• View Commercial rates

Need a large container? Learn more about drop box services. 

Residential Collection Calendars

• Visit Seattle Public Utilities Website to view your collection calendar.

Commercial Collection Calendars

• Login or register online to access your collection calendar.

Holiday Collection Schedule
Recology CleanScapes operates regularly on all holidays except for Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day.  If your collection day falls on or after one of these three holidays, your collection will be one day later that week.

For example, if your regularly scheduled collection day falls on Thanksgiving Day, Recology CleanScapes will collect your material on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.  If your regularly scheduled collection day is Friday, your materials will be collected on Saturday.

• Residential Customers
  
  • Visit Seattle Public Utilities Website or call 206.684.3000.
• Commercial Customers
  
  • Call 206.250.7500 to report missed collections.

Residential customers

• Contact Seattle Public Utilities to request a vacation hold.

Commercial customers

• Call Recology Customer Service at 206.250.7500.  You will not be billed for stopped collections if the request is made at least one week prior to the affected collection day.

The maximum allowed weight is 14,000 lbs due to safety concerns.  If the debris box weighs more than 14,000 lbs, the container will be off-loaded at the customer’s expense.  Materials such as dirt, concrete, bricks or other heavy materials add tremendous bulk and weight to the container.

View the Debris Boxes and Construction Services page to find container sizes, FAQs, and service brochures.

Use our online form to Request a Debris Box.

Residents who generate minimal garbage, or landfill bound materials be able to save money by reducing their garbage service level. Call your Recology company to see how they can “right size” your service based on material type and volume.

Residential Customers:
Visit Seattle Public Utilities Website or call 206.684.3000 to:

• Sign Up for Service
• Add or Change Service Level
• View Rates
• Report a Missed Collection
• Manage Your Account and Pay Bills

Commercial Customers:
Call 206.250.7500 or submit the following online forms:

Modify Service Levels Form
Open a New Account

Residential Customers:
Visit Seattle Public Utilities Website or call 206.684.3000 to:

• Sign Up for Service
• Add or Change Service Level
• View Rates
• Report a Missed Collection
• Manage Your Account and Pay Bills

Commercial Customers:
Login or register online to:

• Access your collection calendar
• View your invoices
• Order Clear Alley bags
• Pay your bill with a credit card, debit card or e-Check

Residential customers:

• Visit Seattle Public Utilities or call 206.684.3000.

Commercial Customers:

If you have not yet registered a username and password with Recology CleanScapes, you will need to do so to place online orders, view electronic invoices or make electronic payments.  Registration only takes a moment.  Follow these simple steps:

1. Locate your account number:
Your account number can be found on your Recology CleanScapes invoice. If you do not have an invoice handy, call customer service at 206.250.7500 to determine your account number.

2. Click “Login” at the top of this page:
Use your username and password to login to your Recology CleanScapes account. If you do not have a username and password follow the instructions below.

3. Register your account:
If you have not registered for a username and password, click on “sign up now if you have not registered before.” At the bottom of the registration form you will need to enter either an invoice number or the phone number we have on file. If you need to update the phone number, call 206.250.7500. When you have completed the form, click “submit.”

4. Check your email:
A confirmation email will be sent to your email. Open the email and click on the hyperlink to confirm your registration.

5. Login:
You can now return to the login page and use your newly registered username and password to login to your account. To place a new bag order, select the “Order Items” tab.

Residential Customers:
Visit Seattle Public Utilities Website or call 206.684.3000

Commercial Customers:

Payment Options

• Pay by e-Check or credit/debit card
• Pay by check
• Pay by automatic deduction

Pay by e-Check or credit card online or by phone:

Call 206.254.9950 or visit our online payment center to pay with a check or with a credit/debit card. Visa, MasterCard, and Discovery Card are accepted. Credit or debit card payments are subject to a transaction fee of 2.9%. Payments made by e check are not subject to a fee. Whether paying online or by phone, you will be asked to provide the following account information: Recology account number, invoice number, method of payment and payment amount.

Pay by check:

Mail your check and invoice payment stub to:

Recology CleanScapes, Inc.
P.O. Box 34260
Seattle, WA 98124-1260

Pay by automatic deduction:

Automatic payment makes paying your bill easy. By enrolling in this service, your bill will be paid automatically from your checking account. Each billing period you will receive your bill via regular mail or, if you receive e-Billing, you will receive an email notification that your bill is ready to be viewed (see Billing Options, below). Ten days after your invoice or email notification is sent, your bill will be paid by automatic deduction from your bank account.

To sign up for this service, download and submit the request for automatic payment form and fax or mail the completed form as indicated on the form. Requests received by the 20th of the month will take effect on your next bill.

Billing Options

• • You can receive your bill through regular mail or you can sign up for “e-Billing.”
  • If you sign up for “e-Billing,” you will receive notification via email that your invoice is ready for payment. The email will contain a link to your Recology account where you can view your bill and pay online using e-Check or credit card.
  • To sign up for e-Billing, download and submit the request for paperless billing form.

Additional Information About Your Account

Past Due Accounts:  An account is past due if payment is not posted by the due date on the invoice. Payments received on weekends and holidays will be posted on the next business day. A 1% finance charge per month will be applied to any past due amount. Failure to pay invoices by the specified due date can result in the suspension or cancellation of services and the submission of your account to an external collection agency. Recology reserves the right to remove containers if service is suspended for non-payment and you may be required to pay a cart/container redelivery fee to resume service. In order to restart ended services on a delinquent account, all charges must be paid in full, and you may be required to make a prepayment in order to resume service.

Returned Payments:  If a payment is rejected due to incorrect information or insufficient funds, you will be charged a returned payment fee of $25.00.

Property Owners: Property owners and tenants are both equally responsible for timely notification of changes in occupancy and/or property ownership. The property owner is ultimately responsible for these charges unless he or she notifies Recology of a change in occupancy within ten (10) days of a tenant’s move-out date.

Billing Disputes:  If you have questions and/or disputes about your bill or service, please call Customer Service at 206.250.7500 to speak with a representative.

Billing, Taxes, and Surcharges: Your bill includes all required taxes and surcharges.

Other Questions: For questions or comments about your service, please email us at seattle@recology.com or call our Customer Service center at 206.250.7500.