Guide · Belongings
What happens to donated, recycled, and discarded items
Knowing where things go makes it easier to let them go. Here’s what happens to belongings after they leave the house, what donation centers usually won’t take, and how personal information is protected along the way.
Where items go
- Keep
- Stays in the home, in a place where it can be found and used.
- Hold
- Packed into labeled boxes, stored where you choose, with a date to review them.
- Give: family and friends
- Set aside and labeled with the person’s name for collection.
- Give: donation
- Taken to local charities that accept items in that condition.
- Recycle
- Cardboard, paper, metal, and electronics go to programs that accept them, which vary by county.
- Household hazardous waste
- Paints, solvents, batteries, pesticides, and similar products go to local collection programs, not the trash.
- Medications and sharps
- Kept separate. Medications go to take-back programs; sharps go in puncture-resistant containers for disposal according to local rules.
- Discard
- Taken to a licensed transfer station or landfill.
Donation, realistically
Donating feels better than discarding, and we try to donate whatever we reasonably can. But charities have to be able to use or sell what they receive, and their standards change. Items that are often turned away include:
- Mattresses and box springs
- Upholstered furniture with stains, tears, or odor
- Anything with mold, water damage, or signs of pests
- Car seats, cribs, and other safety items that may be expired or recalled
- Older televisions and some large appliances
If you’re counting on something being donated, ask us before the work starts. We’d rather tell you up front than have something you care about end up somewhere unexpected.
Recycling and hazardous waste
What can be recycled depends on local programs, and they differ from one county to the next. The same is true of household hazardous waste: the EPA lists used oil, paints, solvents, batteries, fluorescent lamps, garden chemicals, cleaning products, and pesticides among the items that need special handling, and many counties run collection days or drop-off sites.
These items take extra time to separate. If your project includes a garage, shed, or workshop, expect it to be one of the factors in your estimate.
If you need records
Executors, property managers, and families sometimes need to show what happened to belongings. Tell us at the start. We can note what went to donation, recycling, and disposal, and pass along any donation receipts that charities provide.
Helpful sources
Related
- GuideWhat not to throw away during a cleanoutDocuments, valuables, and keepsakes that turn up in almost every home, and where they hide.
- ServiceEstate CleanoutsClearing a loved one’s home with care: documents found, keepsakes kept, deadlines met.
- ServiceHoarding CleanupClearing, sorting, and cleaning an overcrowded home, starting with safety and moving at your pace.
Whenever you’re ready
Ask a question. Just a question.
You can ask anything without starting a project: what a first visit involves, whether we work in your area, what happens to a certain kind of item. We’ll answer the way you choose, and that’s the end of it unless you want more.
- 1A real person calls you backWe listen first. Share only what you’re comfortable sharing.
- 2A private walkthrough, if you want oneWe look at the home with you and ask what matters to keep.
- 3A written plan and estimateNothing starts, and nothing leaves, without your yes.
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