Dumpster Overage Fees: How Weight Over the Limit Is Billed

A dumpster overage fee is what you pay for weight above the allowance in your rental. It's charged per ton, worked out from the scale ticket at the disposal site, and the exact rate is written in your quote. It's billed after pickup, and if you know what's going in, you can usually see it coming before the box arrives.

How overage is measured: the scale ticket

When the hauler collects the full box, the truck drives onto the disposal site's scale and is weighed loaded. It's weighed again empty after tipping, or the truck's recorded empty weight is used, and the difference is the net weight of your debris. The ticket shows the gross, tare and net weights, the date and time, and the truck or container number.

That net weight is compared with the allowance in your quote. With a 2-ton allowance and a ticket that reads 2.6 tons, the overage is 0.6 tons at your quote's per-ton rate. Under our policies, usage charges are billed after pickup once the ticket is in, and you get the breakdown on one invoice per job.

How full the box looked doesn't come into it. A 20-yard that looks half empty from the street can already be past a 2-ton allowance if that half is drywall or shingles.

Typical per-ton rates and why they vary by landfill

The per-ton rate tracks what the disposal site charges the hauler, plus handling. Landfill gate rates vary a lot from one region to the next, which is why per-ton rates differ so much from one area to another. Your quote states the allowance and the exact rate over it, so you see both before you book. The pricing page lists overweight with the other charges that can sit on top of a delivered price.

Clean loads of a single material can go the other way. Clean concrete, dirt or yard waste is often recycled instead of landfilled, so it is frequently priced lower.

Three scenarios: shingles, a wet cleanout, and mixed concrete

These are illustrations built from typical weights, not quotes. Weights per cubic yard come from the EPA factors in our weight limits guide.

Scenario 1: a 25-square roof in a 20-yard. One layer of architectural shingles weighs about 200 to 250 lb per roofing square (100 sq ft), three-tab a little less, and the underlayment and nails that come off with it add more. Allowing 300 lb a square to be safe, twenty-five squares is 7,500 lb, or 3.75 tons. With a 2-ton allowance, the overage is 1.75 tons at your per-ton rate. On our 20-yard, with 3 tons included, the same roof goes over by only 0.75 tons. Either way, tell us it's a roof, because roofing dumpsters are sized by weight, from the roof size and the number of layers coming off.

Scenario 2: a garage cleanout that gets rained on. Mixed household junk runs 250 to 300 lb per cubic yard, so even a full 20-yard of it is 2.5 to 3 tons dry, more than a 2-ton allowance. Take a 20-yard filled about two-thirds, roughly 1.8 tons dry, on a 2-ton allowance, left uncovered through two days of rain. An inch of rain falling into an open 20-yard is roughly 100 gallons of water, a bit over 800 lb, and carpet, padding, cardboard and particleboard soak up much of it. If the ticket comes back at 2.4 tons, the overage is 0.4 tons at the per-ton rate. A tarp would have avoided it.

Scenario 3: a kitchen remodel with a little concrete. A 15-yard with a 1.5-ton allowance takes cabinets, drywall, flooring and the old countertop, about 1.4 tons. Then about a cubic yard of broken concrete from a back step goes in on top, roughly 860 lb loose, which brings the total to 1.83 tons. The overage is 0.33 tons at the per-ton rate. A mixed load with concrete in it can also be rerouted or reclassified by the disposal site, and that cost gets passed on too. Concrete belongs in its own 10-yard heavy-debris box.

Is overage prorated or rounded up?

Truck scales used for trade are tested and certified under state weights-and-measures rules, so the ticket itself is reliable. How the overage is billed from it is up to the hauler. Many prorate it exactly from the ticket, to the pound or the hundredth of a ton. Some round to the nearest tenth, and a few round up to the next half ton or full ton, which can turn 0.1 tons over into a full ton's charge.

Ask which method applies when you request a quote, and look for it in writing next to the per-ton rate. A line that gives the per-ton rate and adds "prorated from the scale ticket" is clear. If the quote only gives the rate, ask how partial tons are billed.

How to ask for the weight ticket

It's reasonable to ask to see the number you're being charged on. When an overage shows up on your invoice, ask for the scale ticket for your container, by date and container number. Haulers get it from the disposal site, and many attach it to the invoice without being asked. Under our policies, we send you the breakdown with the usage charges. If the net weight on the ticket doesn't match the invoice, or the date doesn't match your pickup, raise it before you pay.

Loads that go over most often

• Roof tear-offs, especially two layers, in a box with a standard allowance.
• Bathroom and kitchen demolitions with tile, mortar bed, plaster or a cast-iron tub.
• Drywall-heavy renovation loads. A 20-yard filled with drywall alone is around 4.7 tons.
• Any cleanout left uncovered in rain, or a flood job where the debris is already wet.
• "A little" concrete, brick, dirt or sod added to a general load.

How to stay under

The simplest way to avoid overage is an allowance that fits the load from the start. So describe the load as it really is, including shingle layers and squares, tile and plaster, anything wet and anything masonry, and we size the allowance to the job. The how much debris weighs guide lets you estimate your own tonnage first.

After that, keep heavy material in a 10-yard of its own and tarp the box when rain is forecast. The how to save money on dumpster rental guide covers the rest. Overage is one line in the full cost breakdown, and the hidden fees to ask about guide lists the charges that can appear next to it.

Frequently asked questions

What affects the price of a dumpster overage fee?

The per-ton rate follows local landfill rates, so it changes from area to area, and your quote states the exact figure before you book. With us, the overage starts after the included 3 to 5 tons, depending on size. The weight itself comes from the disposal site's scale ticket.

What is the weight allowance on a typical dumpster?

Most quoted rentals include 1 to 2 tons on a 10, 15 or 20-yard and 3 to 4 tons on a 30 or 40-yard, though it varies by hauler and area. Ours include 3 tons on the 10, 15 and 20-yard, 4 tons on the 30-yard and 5 tons on the 40-yard.

When is the overage charged?

Overage is billed after pickup, once the hauler has the scale ticket from the disposal site. It goes on the same invoice as any other usage charges, such as extra days or item fees, with a breakdown.

Can I avoid an overage by renting a bigger dumpster?

Not by volume alone. A 30-yard does come with a bigger allowance than a 20, but a bigger box full of heavy material is still heavy. For dense debris, the better options are a bigger allowance written into the quote, a second box, or a 10-yard heavy-debris load.

Tell us what's going in, and we'll size the allowance to the job before you book. Get my price.