What can I put in a skip? / What can't I put in a skip?
You can get rid of a pretty wide range of stuff using a skip, but certain items are restricted because of the risks they pose to human or environmental health. You can find a comprehensive list of what can and can't go in a skip just below.
What can go in a skip:
• Bricks
• Building rubble
• Domestic waste, food and food packaging
• Furniture
• Furnishings
• Fittings (non-electrical)
• Foliage
• Gas cookers
• Hard core
• Metal
• Plastic
• Packaging, including cardboard, plastics, polystyrene
• Soil (that's not been contaminated with asbestos or oil)
• Solidified paint
• Wood
What can't go in a skip:
• Air conditioning units
• Asbestos
• Batteries
• Clinical and medical waste, such as dressings and syringes
• Electrical equipment and appliances (WEEE)
• Fluorescent tubes
• Fridges / freezers
• Gas bottles & cylinders
• Hazardous and toxic materials
• Liquids
• Mattresses
• Paint/paint tins
• Plasterboard
• Oil / petrol / diesel
• Solvents
• Toxic waste
• TVs / computer screens
• Tyres
And we should say: whatever you're planning on putting in a skip, it's important to make sure that you don't overfill it. That means the waste can't be piled higher than the side walls of the skip - any more than that, and the skip can become too heavy to be safely handled. This often means that your provider will refuse to take it, which generally means you've then got the unpleasant job of getting in there and having to dig some of it out again.
Where can I put my skip?
You can place your skip anywhere on your own private property. Most people simply use their driveways. However, it's worth making sure that your own driveway is up to the job, as the weight of a heavy skip - especially when it's full - has been known to damage vulnerable or expensive paving stones.
Can you put a skip on the road?
A skip can be placed on a public road, but only as long as you've got a valid skip hire permit from your local council. The costs for permits vary from area to area, so you'll need to take that into account when you're working out your overall skip hire cost.
Even with a valid skip hire permit, your skip can't cause any obstruction or access issue for others. That means you still can't place your skip on a pavement, as you're liable to get fined quite heavily if you do.
You also can't block any entrances or exits to driveways and properties, unless explicit permission has been granted by the owners. Your skip can't cover any utility access points, such as manhole covers, and generally speaking you can't place it within 15 metres of a junction.
If you're planning on placing your skip on double-yellow lines, or in a pay-and-display bay or other type of restricted parking space, you'll need a parking suspension or parking permit.
Do I need a permit for a skip?
You'll need a skip hire permit if you plan on putting it on a public highway or road, or anywhere that's not your own private land. You can get a permit from your local council, and they're normally valid from anywhere between one week to a full month.
The costs will vary depending on where you live. For example, it will be significantly more expensive to get a skip hire permit in a major city like London or Bristol than it would be in a smaller town like Blackburn or Oldham.
If your skip will be placed in a car park or restricted parking area - such as a residents' parking area, commercial car park or double-yellow lines - you'll also need a parking suspension in addition to your skip hire permit, so you'll need to factor that into the overall cost of your skip.
How much does a skip cost?
This depends on where you are, what size of skip you're hiring, and how long you're planning on hiring it for. One of the most popular types of skip is an 8 yard builder's skip, which generally costs between £200 and £250, and holds between 80 and 90 rubbish bags.
We have a range of skip sizes right here at Skip Hire Network. The smallest of these is a 4 yard skip, with prices starting at £70 - the very definition of cheap skip hire!
Moving gradually up the scale, the price for hiring a 6 yard skip starts at about £90, whereas prices for 8 yard skips, as we've covered briefly above, start from about £200. This goes all the way up to a massive 40 yard skip, with prices starting at £440. However, it's worth noting that most of our customers won't need a skip this large, as it's mainly used to get rid of exceptionally large volumes of waste.
There are a couple of factors which affect the cost of skip hire in the UK, including:
• Where you live (some places are more expensive than others)
• How long you intend to hire the skip
• Who you choose to hire the skip from
• Whether or not you need a skip hire permit or parking suspension
What size skip do I need?
That largely depends on your individual circumstances, but we tend to find that an 8 yard builder's skip is more than adequate for most of our customers. It's a highly versatile skip that's spacious enough to accommodate substantial amounts of domestic and commercial waste, but also compact enough to fit on most driveways and other areas of private land. (That helps you save money on skip hire permits!)
What types of skips are there?
Various companies in the UK have varying definitions, but skips generally come in four main types; mini, midi, small builder's skip, large builders skip, and large maxi skip.
• Mini skips is the term used to refer to the very smallest size of skip, generally between 2 yards and 3 yards.
• Midi skips are the next size up from mini skips, measuring in at 4 yards to 6 yards.
• Small builder's skips are the most popular and versatile types of skip, and generally measure between 6 and 8 yards.
• Large builder's skips are popular for commercial businesses, and have decent capacity for bulky builders waste. They measure between 8 and 12 yards.
• Large maxi builder's skips are exactly what you need if you've got a massive pile of household or commercial waste, and you want it gone. They measure between 14 yards to a staggering 40 yards, so there's very little they can't handle!
