If you live in unincorporated Alachua County, your curbside trash service changed on October 1, 2026. That's when the residential part of the county's agreement with GFL Solid Waste Southeast took effect. It is the first entirely new collection agreement for the unincorporated county since 2009. The routes were redrawn, so your pickup day may have moved. And for the first time there's a weekly cap on how much yard trash and bulky stuff the truck will take.
Here's what changed, what still works the same, and what to do when your pile is bigger than the limit.
Who this applies to: homes in the county's curbside program in unincorporated Alachua County. If you live inside Gainesville city limits, the City runs its own collection (see the section below). If the county's address map doesn't find your home, you're either in a city or in an area served by the Rural Collection Centers.
What changed on October 1
| Item | The new rule |
|---|---|
| Collection day | Routes were rebalanced. Search your address on the county's interactive map to see if your day changed. |
| Yard trash | Up to 2 cubic yards a week, about 10 reusable containers or paper lawn bags. Anything over waits for the next pickup. |
| Bulky items | Up to 2 cubic yards a week. Furniture, mattresses and other items too big for the cart count. |
| DIY remodel debris | Interior construction and demolition material from do-it-yourself projects is collected as a bulky item and counts toward the same 2-yard cap. |
| Large appliances | Up to 3 white goods per household per week (refrigerators, washers, dishwashers). Tape doors shut or remove them. |
| Same day for everything | Garbage, recycling, yard waste, bulky items and appliances all go out on one collection day. |
| Customer service | GFL now handles most collection issues: 1-844-351-0622 or AlachuaCountyCustomerService@gflenv.com. For cart size changes, call the county at 352-374-5213. |
One more change that started a year earlier: since October 20, 2025, GFL no longer picks up large electronics at the curb (Alachua Chronicle). That covers TVs, tower computers, large printers and light fixtures with ballasts. Drop them at the county's Hazardous Waste Collection Center or at any Rural Collection Center instead.
How big is 2 cubic yards?
Picture the bed of a full-size pickup truck, filled level with the rails. That's roughly 2 cubic yards. For a weekend of yard work, it's about 10 full lawn bags. For a living room cleanout, a sofa, a recliner and a mattress set can fill it.
If you're ripping out a bathroom or a kitchen yourself, the debris adds up fast. Old cabinets, a vanity and a few sheets of drywall can hit the weekly limit on the first day.
Set-out rules that get loads skipped
The county's set-out guidelines spell out a few things that will keep the truck from taking your pile:
- Limbs: no piece longer than 5 feet, thicker than 8 inches or heavier than 40 pounds.
- Loose yard waste: leaves and clippings must be in a reusable container (35 gallons max) or a paper lawn bag, each under 40 pounds. Soggy, broken bags may be left behind.
- Land clearing: material from clearing land isn't collected at all.
- Spacing: keep each type of material 4 feet away from the others and from mailboxes, hydrants and utility boxes.
- DIY debris: bag or box small pieces like broken tile (under 40 pounds per container), and pull or bend over nails and screws.
- Garbage cart: the lid has to close. No tires, propane tanks, pressurized cans, lithium batteries or hazardous materials in the cart. They can't go in a dumpster either; see our list of prohibited dumpster materials.
Bulky items and appliances can take longer to collect. They aren't considered missed until noon the day after your collection day.
Holiday weeks
Only six holidays affect county curbside service, and two are coming up: Thanksgiving and Christmas. If your pickup falls on or after the holiday that week, it slides one day later. If it falls before the holiday, nothing changes.
If you live in the City of Gainesville
The 2-yard caps above are the county's rules for the unincorporated area. Gainesville runs its own curbside program through its Solid Waste Division. Bulk items like furniture are collected weekly on your regular garbage day at no extra cost. Set them out by 7 a.m., at least 4 feet from your cart. Appliances and electronics need an appointment. City customer service is 352-334-2330.
What to do when you're over the limit
The cap is per week, so the slowest option is to put out 2 yards at a time and wait. For a big cleanout or remodel, that can mean a month or more of piles at the curb. Here are the faster options:
- Haul it yourself. County residents can take household trash, yard waste and bulk metal to one of the five free Rural Collection Centers. Our Gainesville dump guide and High Springs dump guide list hours, fees and what each site takes. Remodel debris goes to a C&D facility, not the collection centers. Our drywall, metal and concrete disposal guide lists them by county.
- Book junk removal. We load it and haul it in one trip, with no curb pile and no weekly limit. See junk removal in Gainesville.
- Rent a dumpster. Our smallest roll-off holds 12 cubic yards, six weeks' worth of the county's bulky-item limit. It sits in your driveway for 7 days at a flat rate:
| Size | Price | Weight included |
|---|---|---|
| 12 yard | $400 | 2 tons |
| 15 yard | $425 | 2 tons |
| 20 yard | $525 | 3 tons |
| 30 yard | $725 | 4 tons |
Remodel debris, furniture, yard waste and cleanout junk can all go in the same can. See dumpster rental in Gainesville, or which size you need.
- Land clearing or storm debris. Since the county won't collect land-clearing material, a roll-off or our grapple truck is the way to move big piles of limbs and brush.
Quick answers
How do I find my new collection day? Search your address on Alachua County's Residential Curbside Collection page.
What happens to items over the 2-yard limit? They're left at the curb for your next scheduled collection day.
Does the limit include remodel debris? Yes. Interior construction and demolition material from DIY projects counts toward the 2 cubic yards of bulky items.
Who do I call about a missed pickup? GFL at 1-844-351-0622. For cart size changes, call the county at 352-374-5213.
Can I put a TV out at the curb? Not in the county program. Large electronics go to the Hazardous Waste Collection Center or a Rural Collection Center.
Need it gone this week instead of over the next month? Call or text TrashHelp North Florida at (352) 448-0809 or book a dumpster online. We're based on US 441 in High Springs and deliver same-day or next-day across Alachua County.
Rules and contacts are from Alachua County's announcements as of October 2026. Sources: Alachua County news release, Residential Curbside Collection guidelines, City of Gainesville Bulk Item Collection. Check the county's page for the latest.