Baltimore, Maryland, is no stranger to hurricanes and tropical storms. Since 1950 there have been one-hundred and eighteen hurricanes, tropical storms, or tropical depressions that have impacted the state of Maryland. With these come yard cleanups with enough debris that they equal a home cleanout or a spring clean out. Storm debris is more than just an ordinary yard clean up. It is thousands of sticks that may not have come from your trees, and regarding trees, your trees may be felled by a storm and require being cut up and thrown away. In Baltimore County, just getting rid of debris from a backyard cleanup is a challenge. Trash collection won’t pick up poison ivy, poison oak, sumac, giant hogweed, lumber, food scraps, garden hoses and the final thing on that list “etcetera” which means shingles from your roof or a neighbor’s roof, torn of gutters, or trash can lids. They do pick up grass, leaves, vines, twigs, shrubbery trimmings, and branches or limbs. What they pick up is not merely thrown into a garbage truck as they move on to the next stop. Here are the rules for yard debris pickup in Baltimore County:
Grass and leaves must be placed in paper or plastic lawn bags.
Branches and limbs cannot be bigger than three inches in diameter and no longer than three feet and tied in bundles.
Bags and bundles cannot weigh over thirty pounds.
You can not place yard debris in waste containers or on the street.
Another consideration, as homeowners in other states have found out, is how long it takes for waste services to remove storm debris. In Florida and Texas, it took months, after hurricanes in 2017, to remove storm debris from in front of people’s homes. Their lawns were killed where the trash sat, and in some cases, wildlife such as possums and rats took up residence in the waste. To avoid complications if you experience a storm in the coming months or years in Baltimore, you should rent a dumpster and clean up your own yard waste. Let’s take a look at how you can take charge of getting rid of storm debris.
First, contact us at Dumpster Maxx for an affordable dumpster rental. We can provide you with waste containers or roll off dumpsters in the sizes and numbers you want. Our friendly and knowledgeable staff can tell you precisely what you need and in what sizes to perform a storm cleanup. After securing the waste container you need, it is time to devise a plan of attack.
Safety should always come first with a storm cleanup. Survey the scene to make sure there are no downed power lines. Even if the power is out while you are cleaning up, you have no way of knowing when power will be restored and a downed power line can cause serious bodily harm or death. After you have ensured, there are no downed power lines near your yard, put on a thick pair of work gloves. Loose shingles may have unseen nails or staples that can cause deep gashes in your hands. Likewise, the edges can be sharp and cut just like broken pieces of glass or plastic you may find. You may want to bag shingles that have multiple nails or staples to keep from losing them in your yard or cutting yourself on them, this is also true of broken glass. Look under and around larger debris to find roofing materials, but do not climb under large limbs that are barely attached to a tree or leaning against something, these could possibly fall on you and cause serious injury.
Next, put on safety glasses or goggles before cutting up downed trees or large limbs with a chainsaw. Make sure to cut the pieces small enough so you can carry them to the dumpster without injuring yourself. Finally, use rakes and blowers to clear your yard of small storm debris and place them in the dumpster you rented.
With a little planning and common sense, you can clean up your yard, so it looks like a storm never happened. Contact us for rates and availability on our dumpsters and waste receptacles, we look forward to serving you!