What Size Dumpster For A Roof Tear Off?
Tear It Off. Toss It.
Shingles are the densest thing most homeowners will ever throw away. That single fact decides your bill, and it is why the size of the container matters far less on this job than people expect.
20Yard
Any Of The Three. Then Take The 20.
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The 10, 15 and 20 all handle a residential tear off. All three cost the same to deliver and none of them will run out of room on a normal roof. Volume is genuinely not your problem here.
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Weight is. Shingles are heavy enough that what you pay is decided almost entirely by what comes off the roof, not by which container it lands in. Put the same roof in a 10 or a 20 and the invoice is identical.
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So take the 20 for the practical reason rather than the pricing one. You are throwing bundles down from height and a bigger opening is a lot easier to hit. If the driveway is tight, take the 10 or the 15 instead and the bill will not change.
Tight driveway? The 10 yard and 15 yard hold a tear off just as well and the invoice comes out the same.
What A Tear Off Produces, And What It Weighs
Work in squares, not guesses
A square is 100 square feet of roof. Architectural shingles run about 425 pounds a square and three tab closer to 250. Every figure below uses the architectural number, so if you are stripping three tab your bill lands under these, never over.
| Roof size | Layers | Estimated weight | Estimated total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 squares | 1 | 2.13 tons | about $498 |
| 15 squares | 1 | 3.19 tons | about $646 |
| 20 squares | 1 | 4.25 tons | about $795 |
| 25 squares | 2 | 10.63 tons | about $1,688 |
The bottom row is the one worth reading twice. A two layer tear off at 25 squares comes to 10.63 tons, which is more than one container can legally haul. If you have two layers, say so when you book and we will plan the second run rather than discovering it on the day.
What A Tear Off Costs
A typical job on this page comes to about $421.
That is the number everybody wants first, so here is where it comes from rather than a figure you have to take on trust:
Delivery is $200 and covers 1 day, which is about how long a tear off runs. no tonnage included and none wasted, so the shingles cross a certified scale and get billed at $140 a ton. On a roof that is the whole invoice: the container price is fixed and the shingles decide everything after it.
Full breakdown on the cost page.
What Goes In With Shingles, And What Does Not
Goes in
- Asphalt shingles, architectural or three tab
- Underlayment, felt and ice shield
- Flashing, drip edge and vents
- Rotten decking and sheathing
- Ridge cap and starter strip
Never goes in
- Rain soaked shingles, which gain weight fast
- Household trash bagged in with the tear off
- Concrete, brick or any fill material
- Solvents, old paint and roofing tar drums
- Tires, batteries and electronics
The full list, including the items that carry a disposal fee, is on what can go in a dumpster.
Roof Tear Off Questions
What size dumpster do I need for a roof?
Any of the metered sizes will do it. The 10, 15 and 20 yard all hold a typical residential tear off and all three cost $200 to deliver, so the container is not what decides your bill.
Weight is. Work out your squares, allow about 425 pounds each for architectural shingles, and price from there. A 20 square roof runs roughly 4.25 tons and lands around about $795.
How many squares of shingles fit in a dumpster?
Comfortably more than a normal house has. A 20 yard takes a 25 square tear off on volume without complaint. What stops you is weight, not room.
At about 425 pounds a square for architectural, 25 squares is over five tons in a single layer and more than ten if there are two.
How much does it cost to get rid of shingles?
Work from the roof, not the container. Delivery is $200 and then every ton crosses a certified scale at $140.
A 20 square single layer tear off is roughly 4.25 tons, so about about $795 all in. The table above runs the other common roof sizes.
Can a two layer tear off go in one dumpster?
Usually not, and it is better to know that now. Two layers on a 25 square roof is about 10.63 tons, which is more than one container can legally leave your property carrying.
Tell us it is two layers when you book. We will plan the second run rather than turning up on the day and stopping halfway.
Where should the dumpster go for a roof job?
As close to the eaves as the drive allows, on the side you are stripping first. Shingles are easier to aim at than to carry.
If the only workable spot is the street rather than the driveway, check the permit rules for your city before the crew arrives.
Roofing Across Middle Tennessee
Tear offs handled right across Middle Tennessee. Dropping the container on the street rather than the drive? Check the permit rules before the crew shows up, because they vary by city. Full list on the service areas page.
Not A Roof?
Different work wants a different container. The sizes hub lays all four out side by side, or start from the main rental page.