A refrigerator at the curb in the city of Orlando and a refrigerator at the curb five minutes away in Orange County have two completely different fates. One gets picked up on the next collection day. The other sits there until someone hauls it away, because the county won’t touch it. Same appliance, same metro area, different rulebook, and that one detail says everything about how Orlando’s bulk item pickup program actually works.
The City of Orlando runs its own large item program. Unincorporated Orange County, which surrounds the city and covers far more households, runs a separate one. Kissimmee and Sanford each have their own on top of that. Most people assume “Orlando” means one system the way it does in a lot of cities, but here it depends entirely on which side of an invisible line your address falls on.
The part that actually surprises most residents: both major programs are more generous than what you’d find in most American cities. The real catch isn’t how much they’ll pick up, it’s what each one refuses to take.
This guide walks through how both programs work, the refrigerator rule at the center of it all, and what to do when neither one covers what you’re trying to get rid of.
In this guide:
- City of Orlando large item pickup: free, weekly, no scheduling
- Orange County Utilities bulk item pickup rules
- Does Orange County pick up refrigerators?
- City of Orlando or Orange County? How to tell which serves your address
- Kissimmee and Sanford bulk item pickup: Metro Orlando’s other programs
- When to call a private hauler
City of Orlando large item pickup: free, weekly, no scheduling
The City of Orlando’s large item program is one of the most generous in Florida. Every week, on your regular yard waste day, the city will haul away up to two large items at no charge. No phone call, no online form, no waiting for an assigned month. You just put items at the edge of your property and the truck handles the rest.
What qualifies for free pickup
| Item | Accepted? | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Standard appliances (refrigerators, dishwashers, washers, dryers) | Yes (up to 2/week) | Refrigerators and freezers: doors must be removed before setout, for child safety |
| Furniture (sofas, chairs, dressers, TV consoles) | Yes (up to 2/week) | Hand-loadable items only |
| Mattresses and box springs | Yes (up to 2/week) | Counts as one of your 2 free items |
| Toilets, sinks, and similar household items | Yes (up to 2/week) | Must be liftable by hand into the truck |
| Big or heavy items needing a claw truck | Yes, cost varies | City will notify you to call 407-246-2314 and schedule |
| More than 2 items in one week | No (as free pickup) | Request a roll-off dumpster or dumpster bag through the city instead |
| Construction and demolition debris | No | Use a roll-off dumpster or dumpster bag, or a private hauler for smaller loads |
| Household hazardous waste (paint, chemicals, batteries) | No | Not accepted in curbside large item pickup; requires separate disposal |
How to set items out
- Find your yard waste day at orlando.gov
- Place items at the edge of your property, before the curb
- Keep the area clear of the street, sidewalk, mailboxes, trees, poles, fire hydrants, storm drains, and overhead utilities
- Remove refrigerator and freezer doors before setout
- No scheduling needed for hand-loadable items; the truck comes on your regular yard waste day
Missed pickup? Report it online or call 407-246-2314.
Skip the schedule confusion entirely. BOOK AN ORLANDO PICKUP ❯
Orange County Utilities bulk item pickup rules
If your address is in unincorporated Orange County, not the City of Orlando, you’re on a separate program with its own set of rules. It’s still free and still weekly, but it works by volume instead of item count.
- Limit: 3 cubic yards per household per week, about the size of three stoves
- Collected: Same day as your regular garbage pickup
- Setout window: No earlier than 6 PM the night before, no later than 6 AM on collection day
| Item | Accepted? | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Furniture | Yes | Counts toward the 3-cubic-yard weekly limit |
| Mattresses and box springs | Yes | Counts toward the 3-cubic-yard weekly limit |
| Standard appliances (non-Freon) | Yes | Ovens, small appliances without refrigerant |
| TVs | Yes | Counts toward the 3-cubic-yard weekly limit |
| Passenger car tires | Yes (max 4) | Passenger vehicles only |
| Refrigerators and freezers | No | Freon-containing devices excluded entirely; see next section |
| Items that fit in your garbage cart | No | Goes in the cart with regular trash, not curbside as a large item |
| Construction debris | No | Not part of the standard large item program |
Orange County’s new collection schedule (as of December 2025)
Orange County Utilities rolled out a new curbside collection schedule on December 29, 2025. Garbage and large items are now typically picked up on a different day than recycling and yard waste. Under the old system, those often ran together. Some areas, including fast-growing communities like Horizon West, now have a new hauler: GFL Environmental Services, recognizable by their lime green trucks. If you haven’t checked your schedule since the switch, it’s worth a look at ocfl.net/CollectionSchedule.
Questions about eligibility? Call the Solid Waste Hotline at 407-836-6601.
Does Orange County pick up refrigerators? The rule that splits it from Orlando
This is the single most useful thing to know if you’re not sure which program serves you: the City of Orlando accepts refrigerators and freezers as part of free weekly pickup, as long as the doors are removed first. Orange County Utilities does not accept them at all.
The official reason, straight from the county: “Freon-containing devices such as freezers and refrigerators are not included in the curbside collection program.” That’s not a limit or a fee tier. It’s a flat exclusion.
Orange County’s own suggested workaround is simple: when you replace an air conditioner, freezer, or refrigerator, have the delivery company remove your old one. If you’re not buying a replacement, that option is off the table, and the county has no curbside fallback for these appliances. A private hauler is the practical answer for Orange County residents with a Freon appliance and no new one coming to replace it.
Orange County also runs periodic free Household Hazardous Waste and Electronic Waste Community Collection Events at rotating locations, useful for electronics, paint, and chemicals. Appliances usually aren’t part of what gets accepted there. Check newsroom.ocfl.net for upcoming event dates and locations.
Looking for junk removal in Orange County? BOOK A PICKUP ❯
City of Orlando or Orange County? How to tell which serves your address
The City of Orlando and Orange County run separate programs with separate rules, so knowing which one applies to you matters before anything goes to the curb.
- Use the City’s own tool: “Do I Live in City Limits?” at orlando.gov
- Check your cart. City of Orlando and Orange County Utilities carts look different and are labeled differently.
- Try the Orange County schedule lookup at ocfl.net/CollectionSchedule. If your address returns a result there, you’re a county customer, not a city one.
If you recently moved to metro Orlando, don’t assume either program automatically applies. Confirm it before your first collection week.
Kissimmee and Sanford bulk item pickup: Metro Orlando’s other programs
Metro Orlando spans several counties, and each runs its own program separate from both the City of Orlando and Orange County.
Kissimmee (Osceola County)
The City of Kissimmee has its own trash, recycling, and bulk item schedule, separate from the surrounding unincorporated county. There, Waste Management handles collection under a county contract, and hazardous materials, electronics, and automotive parts are not accepted curbside. Contact Osceola County Solid Waste at 407-742-7750 for current rules, or check kissimmee.gov for the city-specific schedule. For private hauling, LoadUp serves Kissimmee.
Sanford (Seminole County)
The City of Sanford runs free bulk trash pickup through its exclusive franchise with Waste Pro, plus an annual free Community Clean-Up Day. Piles must be manageable by two people, capped at 20 cubic yards, with individual items under 50 lbs. Appliances and tires (up to 8) require a call to 407-688-5089 to schedule. Residents outside Sanford city limits should contact Seminole County directly at 407-665-2260.
Unincorporated Seminole County residents get large item collection by appointment rather than automatic weekly pickup. Items too large for standard containers can also be dropped at the Central Transfer Station. For private hauling, LoadUp serves Sanford as well.
The pattern across metro Orlando: every city and county runs its own program, with its own hauler, its own limits, and its own exclusions. A search for “Orlando bulk trash” doesn’t tell you which one applies. Check your specific address before you put anything at the curb.
When to call a private junk removal service
Sometimes the answer isn’t finding the right program. It’s realizing neither one was built for your situation.
Booking junk removal with a private hauler might be a better fit if:
- You’re in Orange County with a refrigerator or freezer and no replacement appliance coming to trigger a delivery take-back
- You have more than 2 items a week (City of Orlando) or more than 3 cubic yards a week (Orange County)
- Items need to come out from inside your home. No program in metro Orlando will enter your house or garage.
- You have construction or renovation debris, or a full yard debris cleanup after storm season
- You need same-day or next-day removal and your scheduled collection day is too far out
When the city or county program doesn’t fit, LoadUp provides junk removal and bulk item pickup across Orlando and the surrounding metro with same-day and next-day availability. No weekly item caps, no cubic yard limits, no requirement that items be at the curb first. Loaders carry items from inside the home, whether that’s a Freon appliance stuck in a kitchen or a garage that’s been filling up since the move-in truck left.
LoadUp runs 20-30% below what most junk removal companies charge for comparable work in metro Orlando, and offers a price match guarantee for any written quote for the same service.
Have junk the city won’t take? BOOK A PICKUP TODAY ❯
