The short answer
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Construction debris | $120 |
| Concrete / masonry debris (per 1/4 truck) | $219 |
| Contractor bag | $41 |
| 10 bags of debris | $132 |
| 15 bags of debris | $196 |
| 20 bags of debris | $259 |
| 25 bags of debris | $322 |
| 30 bags of debris | $385 |
| 40 bags of debris | $449 |
| 50 bags of debris | $575 |
And by volume, for a mixed strip-out: quarter truck $241, three-eighths $338, half $431, five-eighths $513, three-quarters $587, seven-eighths $661, full $732. Visit minimum $75.
Volume, not weight — and why that matters here
Pricing is by the space a load occupies, not by what it weighs on a scale. For most trades that is a straightforward win, and in Richmond it is a substantial one, because the debris coming out of this city's older housing stock is unusually dense.
A Fan, Museum District, Church Hill, Oregon Hill or Jackson Ward house built between the 1890s and the 1920s has lime plaster over wood lath on every interior wall and ceiling. When that comes off, what hits the floor is sand, lime and horsehair — extraordinarily heavy for its bulk, far heavier than the equivalent volume of modern drywall. A single room stripped to the studs produces a pile that looks modest and weighs a great deal.
Add old brick, the mortar rubble from a chimney breast opening, and the tile bedded in a mortar float in a 1920s bathroom, and the weight climbs further.
None of that changes your price. The truck tier is set by how much room it takes up.
What comes out of a Richmond renovation
Predictable enough to plan the load from the scope.
Bathrooms. Cast iron bath $185 — genuinely common in Fan and Northside houses and a real two-person item. Fiberglass bath $90. Toilet (detached) $64. Bathroom vanity $69. Plus the tile and mortar bed, which is where the weight is.
Kitchens. Laminate countertop per section $56, stone or granite per section $111, drop-in cooktop $71, dishwasher $109, electric range $134, gas range $137, refrigerator $164. Cabinetry goes in as construction debris or as part of a truck tier.
Floors. Carpet rolled $68, carpet removal per room $71.
Heating conversions. Cast iron radiator $123. These come out of Fan, Museum District and Church Hill houses regularly and they are heavy, awkward, and mostly recoverable as scrap metal.
Masonry. Concrete and masonry debris at $219 per quarter truck — patios, walkways, chimney rubble, old steps.
Access, by Richmond neighborhood
The debris has to get out, and in this city that is frequently the constraining factor rather than the volume.
Fan and Museum District. No driveway on most blocks. Material either comes down the staircase and out the front onto a narrow sidewalk, or out the back through the rear yard to an alley. If the alley takes a truck, use it — it is dramatically faster for bulk debris than a front-hall carry. Confirm the alley's width, overhead clearance and whether residents park in it.
Church Hill and Union Hill. Raised basements and long exterior steps. Everything ends with a descent.
Oregon Hill and Jackson Ward. Tight blocks, narrow doorways, very limited parking.
Scott's Addition and Manchester. Converted buildings with freight elevators, booked windows and usually a certificate-of-insurance requirement before a contractor can use them.
Henrico and Chesterfield. Driveway, garage, level access. Fast.
There is no stair charge and no walk-up fee anywhere in the pricing.
Bag it or pile it?
Both work and the arithmetic decides.
Bagged debris is priced by count: 10 bags $132, 15 $196, 20 $259, 25 $322, 30 $385, 40 $449, 50 $575. A single contractor bag is $41.
Bagging makes sense for plaster dust, small rubble and anything that would otherwise scatter, and it is close to mandatory if the material has to travel down a staircase through finished rooms. Use proper contractor bags and do not overfill them — a bag of wet plaster that splits at the landing turn is a bad afternoon in a house with original stair treads.
Above roughly twenty bags, price the job as a truck tier instead and take the lower number. A half truck at $431 beats 40 bags at $449.
Worked Richmond jobs
- A Fan bathroom, full strip: cast iron bath $185 + toilet $64 + bathroom vanity $69 + fifteen bags of debris $196. The addition: $185 + $64 + $69 + $196 = $514. A five-eighths truck is $513, so the ladder edges it.
- A Church Hill kitchen gut: refrigerator $164 + gas range $137 + dishwasher $109 + two laminate countertop sections at $56 each = $112 + construction debris $120. The addition: $164 + $137 + $109 + $112 + $120 = $642. A seven-eighths truck is $661 and a three-quarter is $587 — item pricing at $642 sits between them, and you are quoted the lower option that fits.
- A Northside heating conversion: four cast iron radiators at $123 each = $492 + construction debris $120. The addition: $492 + $120 = $612. A three-quarter truck is $587.
- A Chesterfield patio removal: concrete / masonry debris, one quarter truck, $219.
What we cannot take
Be clear with your contractor before the job starts, because these hold up a load.
Paint and solvents, adhesives in liquid form, fuel, pesticides, propane cylinders and pressurised tanks, automotive batteries. Household hazardous waste goes through your county's own arrangements, and Richmond city, Henrico and Chesterfield each handle it differently and change it periodically — check your current one.
Asbestos and lead paint are their own matter and require a licensed abatement contractor. This is worth naming plainly in Richmond, where a large share of the housing predates the relevant changes in building materials. If a renovation in an older Fan, Church Hill or Northside house turns up suspect material, stop and get it assessed rather than bagging it.
For contractors
The practical advantage of published pricing on a renovation is that you can put a disposal line into a client quote before the job starts, from the scope, without guessing.
Staged removal costs the same as one visit. Each load is quoted at its own tier — quarter $241, half $431, full $732 — so clearing after demolition and again after fit-out does not penalise you. Disposal is inside the price, so there are no gate receipts to reconcile against a job budget, and each visit gets its own invoice.
If the site is a Scott's Addition or Manchester conversion, sort the building's insurance-certificate requirement and its elevator booking once, early, rather than per visit.
Frequently asked questions
How much does renovation debris removal cost in Richmond?
Construction debris is $120, concrete and masonry is $219 per quarter truck, and bagged debris runs from $132 for 10 bags to $575 for 50. A mixed strip-out is usually priced by truck tier — $241 quarter, $431 half, $732 full.
Do you charge by weight?
No, by volume. That matters in Richmond, where plaster and lath from older Fan, Church Hill and Northside houses is far heavier than the same volume of modern drywall.
Is bagging cheaper than a truck tier?
Up to about twenty bags, often yes. Above that the ladder usually wins — a half truck at $431 beats 40 bags at $449 — and you are quoted whichever is lower.
Can you take asbestos or lead paint debris?
No. Those require a licensed abatement contractor. It is worth watching for in Richmond's older housing stock — if suspect material turns up, stop and have it assessed rather than bagging it.
Can you collect in stages during a renovation?
Yes, and each load is priced at its own tier, so clearing after demolition and again after fit-out costs no more than doing it once.
What about a cast iron bath or radiators?
A cast iron bath is $185 and a cast iron radiator is $123, including the carry. Both are common in Fan, Museum District and Northside houses and both are largely recoverable as scrap metal.