It’s bulk trash pickup week in the Centre Region. What will and won’t be collected?

Matt Hymowitz
·3 min read

If spring cleaning has left you with piles of items to get rid of, the week you’ve been waiting for has arrived.

It’s bulk waste collection week for residential customers with curbside collection in the Centre Region Council of Governments regional refuse and recycling program. The COG program serves Benner, College, Ferguson, Harris and Patton townships. State College borough residences and complexes with dumpsters are not part of the collection.

Bulk waste will be picked up on residents’ regular collection day between May 22 and 26.

What to know

  • Place all bulk items by the curb by 7 a.m.; they will not be collected at the door.

  • Place smaller items in a container, such as a trash bag or can (leave a note on the can if you don’t want it to be taken — items near the bulk waste pile such as wheelbarrows, flower pots, tarps and bicycles will be collected); loose piles will not be collected.

  • Use multiple containers; overfilled containers will not be collected.

  • Keep electronics, appliances and tires separate from other bulk waste and regular trash. They will be collected by different trucks.

What will be collected?

  • Furniture: as long as it can be lifted safely by two workers

  • Bedding: as long as it’s dry

  • Appliances: remove the doors; limit one of each type

  • Electronics: limit of two televisions

  • Lumber: cut to 4 feet in length, tie in bundles or place in can

  • Tires: limit of six; 20-inch diameter from passenger cars, remove rim

  • Carpet: if it’s dry, rolled and tied and cut in 4-foot lengths

  • Glass panes: they should be taped up or sealed in box

What won’t be collected?

  • Loose piles (such as of wood, leaves or grass)

  • Anything too large for two workers to lift

  • Anything that is too big for the truck or will damage it (such as pianos, hot tubs, furnaces, boats or canoes)

  • Liquid paints and solvents

  • Car/boat/motorcycle batteries

  • Concrete, bricks or stones

  • Railroad ties

  • Propane tanks

  • Dead animals

  • Tires bigger than 20 inches in diameter; more than six tires

  • Material generated by contractors

  • Electronics, appliances or tires buried beneath or behind the bulk pile

  • Anything longer than 6 feet

  • Items from other properties, on trailers or in truck beds

Giving & getting

If you’ve got household goods that have outlived their use to you but are still in good shape, Centre Region COG suggests donations to these local groups: CentrePeace, St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store, Interfaith Human Services, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, Goodwill, FaithCentre or State College Woman’s Club.

There are also online communities where people trade items for free so they can be reused and kept out of landfills. Try Freecycle as well as Buy Nothing groups on Facebook. These groups focus on neighborhoods and are often private. Centre Co Free is a public Facebook group where residents can post things they’re seeking for free or are looking to give away.

Refuse & recycling reminders

  • There will be no collection May 29 because of the Memorial Day holiday. Pickup will be delayed one day for the rest of the week with Friday collection on Saturday.

  • Also, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, collection will begin an hour earlier at 6 a.m.