How much does a 20-yard dumpster hold?

The 20-yard dumpster is perfect for a wide range of projects including residential and commercial dumpster placements. However, if you’re a homeowner, realtor or commercial facility manager, you need to know how much junk that can be loaded in a 20-yard dumpster in order not to exceed the state or county weight limits.

At Starr Dumpsters, we offer a variety of dumpsters suited for all your needs. We are focused on offering four convenient sizes of well-maintained dumpsters – 12, 15, 20 and 30 yards dumpsters. Nevertheless, in this piece, our readers will get all the information about the 20-yard dumpster so they could make the right choice.

The typical 20-yard dumpster

Generally, the 20-yard dumpster is equivalent to six pickup truck loads and can accommodate different types of junk or debris. The popular dimensions are:

(L x W x H) 11ft. x 8 ft. x 6ft

(L x W x H) 22ft. x 8 ft. x 4.5ft

The 20-yard dumpster is unique and useful for medium-sized projects like:

• Clean up of large basement or garage
• Residential home renovation
• Carpeting or flooring removal
• Shed or deck renovation
• Office or home decluttering project
• Kitchen and bathroom renovation

20-yard dumpster acceptable weight

There are so many considerations when it comes to the minimum and maximum weight a 20 dumpster could accommodate. As professionals, we consider, dump cost, truck hauling capabilities, weight limits and load restriction and other factors. Ideally, the average weight limit for a 20-yard dumpster is 4 tons or 8,000 Ibs. Though there are dumpster companies that may offer as low as 2-ton weight allowance at Starr Dumpsters, our weight allowance is above average.

Additionally, the weight allowance can be considered based on the type of debris you want to generate. If you have lightweight trash like green waste, plastic, and other household items, the dumpster might be filled to the brim. For items like concrete, wood, metal or drywall, we will have to apply due diligence to avoid exceeding the weight limits.

Tolerable waste materials for the 20-yard dumpster

The following materials can be accommodated by the 20-yard dumpster:

• Inert materials
• Dirt
• Sand
• Concrete or bricks
• Materials from construction and demolition sites
• Household debris and nonhazardous materials 

Heavy and dense materials like concrete and other demolition materials are not allowed to be filled to the top because of landfill cost per ton. Therefore, you can call our customer service lines if your junk is from the construction or demolition site.

So how much debris can a 20-yard dumpster hold?

Since the average 20-yard dumpster could accommodate about 4 tons or 8,000 Ibs. In other words, a 20-yard dumpster is appropriate to 6 truckloads of junk. Therefore, we expect you (our customer) to do a rough estimation or get an approximate weight of the junk their project might generate. 

At Starr Dumpsters, we offer various weight allowances, and you can call to get further information

Other considerations

We try as much as possible to educate our customers to eliminate trip charges and overweight fees. Our drivers and professionals will let you know the maximum legal road weights as well as other loading instructions.

Our dumpster rental periods are also flexible, and all our services are the most affordable you can find in town, give us a call now.