01The short answer
If you are on Hillsborough County trash service, you can drop off 10 cubic yards of bulky waste and appliances and 12 tires a year for free at five Community Collection Centers, open Monday to Saturday, 7:30 AM to 5 PM. Bring photo ID with your county address and a copy of your current tax bill. City of Tampa residents use the McKay Bay scale house instead, where furniture, mattresses and up to two appliances are free with an active city account. Over those allowances you pay by the ton.
Everything below comes from hcfl.gov and tampa.gov, checked on 2 October 2026, the day after new rates took effect at both. Hillsborough County Solid Waste answers on (813) 272-5680 and Tampa on (813) 274-8811.
02Which site is yours
| You live in | Drop-off | Bring |
|---|---|---|
| Unincorporated Hillsborough, New Tampa included | The five Community Collection Centers | Photo ID with your county address and the current tax bill |
| City of Tampa | McKay Bay scale house | ID and a utility bill in the same name |
| Temple Terrace or Plant City | No city drop-off site; use the city's yearly free pickup | The county's hazardous waste days and electronics drop-off are open to every county resident with photo ID |
03The five Community Collection Centers
| Center | Address | Vehicle limit | Also has |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alderman's Ford | 9402 County Road 39, Plant City | 23 ft | |
| Hillsborough Heights | 6209 County Road 579, Seffner | 35 ft | Hazardous waste, 3rd Saturday |
| Northwest County | 8001 W. Linebaugh Ave, Tampa | 35 ft | Yard waste site, free mulch |
| South County | 13000 US Hwy 41, Gibsonton | 35 ft | Yard waste site, hazardous waste, 2nd Saturday |
| Wimauma | 16180 W. Lake Drive, Wimauma | 23 ft |
The rules at the gate
- Households only. Businesses may not use the centers, and the bulky waste, appliance and tire allowance is for county solid waste customers.
- You unload it yourself, by hand. Staff do not help, and you need to be able to lift everything about 4 ft to clear the bollards and chain.
- No dump trailers.
- Separate the load. A mixed load is treated as trash and charged.
- Closed-toe shoes.
The yearly allowance
- 10 cubic yards of bulky waste and appliances: furniture, mattresses and box springs, refrigerators and other appliances, emptied first.
- 12 tires per household.
- Electronics: five intact household items a month, any county resident with photo ID.
- Paint: up to 10 one-gallon and 5 five-gallon containers a month.
- Yard waste: brush, leaves, trimmings and untreated wood at the Northwest and South County sites only, where the county allows up to two tons a household.
Over the 10 cubic yards, the county sends you to its transfer stations or the Southeast County Landfill at the standard disposal rates below. Over 12 tires, to the landfill at the tire rate.
04McKay Bay, for Tampa residents
The McKay Bay scale house is at 114 S. 34th St. It is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 7 AM to 5:30 PM, Wednesday and Saturday 7 AM to 3:30 PM, and closed on Sunday. An older city page still lists noon closing, so call (813) 274-8811 before a long drive.
| Free with an active city account | Charged, card only | Not taken |
|---|---|---|
| Furniture, mattresses, up to two appliances a visit, grills with the tank off, yard waste in paper bags or jute-tied bundles | Construction debris (tile, plywood, roofing, fencing, drywall), carpet, large car parts, household garbage, mixed loads, anything in a commercial vehicle | Hazardous waste, electronics, tires, liquids, bricks, rocks, dirt, wet drywall mud |
Paid loads are $130 a ton from 1 October 2026, up from $115 a year ago, and waste from outside Hillsborough County pays double. The city sends tires to private recyclers or the county's Southeast landfill.
05Southeast County Landfill and the transfer stations
The Southeast County Landfill is at 15960 County Road 672, Lithia, open Monday to Saturday 7:30 AM to 5 PM, with no hand unloading after 4:30. Its roads are unpaved and get muddy after rain. It takes non-burnable waste such as broken furniture, scrap metal including appliances, and tires. It refuses construction and demolition debris, concrete and asphalt included, as well as yard waste, liquids and anything hazardous.
The Northwest and South County transfer stations, at the collection centers of the same names, are mainly for commercial haulers, though apartment and condo residents can self-haul bulky items there for a fee. The Resource Recovery Facility on Falkenburg Road is not open to residents at all.
| County rate | From 1 October 2026 |
|---|---|
| Burnable (processable) waste | $148 a ton |
| Non-burnable waste | $109 a ton |
| Tires without rims | $13 each |
| Tires on rims | $27 each |
| Loads of 200 lb or less | 10% of the rate |
| Mixed loads | Double the rate |
06Household hazardous waste
The county's household hazardous waste collection runs on Saturdays, 8 AM to 2 PM, rotating between three sites:
- First Saturday: Sheldon Road collection center, 9805 Sheldon Rd, Tampa.
- Second Saturday: South County, Gibsonton.
- Third Saturday: Hillsborough Heights, Seffner.
It is open to every county household, renters and apartments included, with a state photo ID showing a county address, and Tampa and Temple Terrace residents can use it too. It takes paint, cleaners, pool and lawn chemicals, automotive fluids, lead-acid and power-tool batteries, propane (five 30-lb tanks at most), fluorescent tubes (ten at most), mercury devices, flares, ammunition and cooking oil. It does not take electronics, which go to the collection centers, or alkaline batteries, medication, biomedical or commercial waste. The City of Tampa no longer runs its own collection day.
07Holidays
All county solid waste sites close on New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas, and close at 2:30 PM on Christmas Eve.
08When hauling it yourself stops making sense
The centers suit a car or pickup of household items you can lift over a 4 ft chain. They do not suit a remodel, which the Southeast landfill refuses outright, a load over your 10 yards, or a business. That is the work we do across Tampa, Plant City, Thonotosassa and the rest of the county.
- Junk removal. We load it, haul it and sweep up. How it works.
- A roll-off. From $425 with disposal and a weight allowance included. Dumpster rental in Tampa.
09Questions people ask
What are the Hillsborough County dump hours?
The five Community Collection Centers and the Southeast County Landfill are open Monday to Saturday, 7:30 AM to 5 PM, and closed on Sunday.
Is the Hillsborough County dump free?
For county trash customers, up to 10 cubic yards of bulky waste and appliances and 12 tires a year are free at the collection centers. Over that, the county charges its standard rate by the ton.
What do I need to bring to a Hillsborough County collection center?
Photo ID showing your county address and a printed or digital copy of your current tax bill.
Where can Tampa residents dump furniture?
At the McKay Bay scale house, 114 S. 34th St. Furniture, mattresses and up to two appliances a visit are free with an active city solid waste account.
Where can I dump construction debris in Hillsborough County?
Not at the Southeast County Landfill, which refuses construction and demolition debris. McKay Bay takes it from Tampa residents for a fee. For a remodel, a roll-off is usually the simpler route.
How much is it to dump tires in Hillsborough County?
Twelve a year are free for county households at the collection centers. At the Southeast landfill, $13 a tire without a rim and $27 with one.
More reading: the Polk County dump guide, what can't go in a dumpster, construction debris and all our guides.