What size of skip do I need for bathroom clearance?

24th Sep, 2020

When you’re getting started with your own bathroom renovation, one of the first things you’ll need to consider is the best way to efficiently dispose of all the waste produced from the process. That’s exactly where we can help here at Skip Hire Network. We offer a wide range of skip hire sizes, so that you’ve always got plenty of options when it comes to picking the best one for any household renovation.

We generally recommend hiring a builder’s skip for bathroom clearances, as it’s large enough to accommodate all the bulky waste and fittings that need to be disposed of, but not so large as to take up unnecessary space on your driveway. Here, we’ve summed up a few useful things to know before you begin in earnest.

What bathroom waste can I put in a skip?

A skip provides a useful way to get rid of a huge range of solid bathroom waste, some of which includes stuff that you might struggle to dispose of in any other way. Some examples of the sorts of items you can put in your skip include:

• Building rubble
• Ceramics (such as sinks and toilets)
• Furnishings
• Non electrical fittings
• Hard core materials (i.e. aggregates such as quarry waste, tiles, concrete, bricks, crushed rock and gravel, etc)
• Metal
• Plastic
• Packaging including cardboard, plastics, polystyrene
• Solidified paint

Now, we know it can be tempting to just chuck anything and everything into your skip, and indeed some people do. Unfortunately, contrary to what those people think, there’s definitely some stuff you can’t use it for.

Putting the wrong type of waste in your skip means that the skip hire provider may well refuse to take it, which potentially means a lot of extra hassle and expense for you to fix the problem. Even worse, it could end up posing a physical danger to someone else, so it’s worth making sure you’re up to speed just in case!

What type of bathroom waste can’t I put in a skip?

To protect human health and the environment, here are some of the things you can’t put in a skip:

• Clinical and medical waste, such as dressings and syringes
• Fluorescent tubes
• Hazardous and toxic materials
• Liquids
• Paint/paint tins or solvents
• Asbestos
• Batteries

Don’t forget about what you can recycle

Your bathroom contains a huge range of items that you can recycle. For bottles and containers, it’s worth giving them a quick rinse out before you do so, and crushing any bottles into smaller shapes before you put them in for recycling. It all makes things easier for the people processing your waste later on.

• Shampoo and conditioner bottles
• Shower gel and bubble bath bottles
• Cardboard boxes e.g. toothpaste or soap boxes and toilet roll tubes
• Bathroom cleaner and bleach bottles (even the spray dispenser can be recycled)
• Cans of deodorants and shaving foam
• Moisturiser bottles

It’s also worth remembering that you can also recycle hand soap bottles, but not the pump dispenser. While we’re on the topic of bathroom waste, at this stage it might be a good idea to start thinking about how you’re going to keep your new bathroom tidy once it’s finished.

One of the most popular ways is to use a second bin (or even a repurposed box or basket) to store your recycling, helping to keep the place tidier and more efficient. As a bonus, it can often help stop your main bathroom bin from filling up quite as quickly, too. Alternatively, you can go for an even simpler option, like a bag hung on the inside of the bathroom door handle. It can certainly help visitors and family members to ensure they’ve left the room tidy before they leave – but let’s be honest, it doesn’t have quite the same sense of charm as a wicker basket, does it?

Of course, here at Skip Hire Network we take care to recycle as much of all this waste as we can anyway, but doing part of the job yourself can help give us a very welcome kickstart! We’re committed to providing you with the greenest way to dispose of your waste, and we’re ultimately committed to achieving a 100% recycle rate. You can find out about other reasons to choose us here, or if you’re all ready to hire a skip already, all we need is your postcode to give you an instant online quote!