The pile in the driveway: getting rid of wet carpet, drywall and furniture in Lexington
Drying a house produces a heap of things that cannot be dried. Lexington's city pages list three ways to get rid of it, and each one draws its own line between a ruined sofa and a ripped-out wall.
Referral service, not a contractor. Your request goes to an independent Lexington-area restoration company. We do not do the drying or repairs.
Which one fits your pile
TakesMattresses and box springs on your regular collection day. Water heaters, washers, dryers, stoves, refrigerators and freezers by special pickup.
CostNo charge for households with city waste collection. Special pickups are requested through LexCall, 311 or (859) 425-2255.
TakesA 10-cubic-yard container at your house. The accepted list includes carpet, plaster and drywall, lumber, windows and furniture.
Cost$90 per weekday for Fayette County residents inside the urban service boundary, paid when you schedule.
TakesLoads you haul yourself to 1505 Old Frankfort Pike.
CostBy weight. The gate rate posted as of March 1, 2026 is $137.70 per ton, with a minimum charge of $75.11 per load, before fees and surcharges.
All three from the City of Lexington's bulky items, Loan-a-Box and trash pages, read November 9, 2026. They are Lexington-Fayette services. In Nicholasville, Georgetown, Versailles, Richmond and the other towns, ask your own city or hauler.
What the green cart and the curb will not take
The everyday rules explain why a tear-out needs its own plan. Lexington's trash page says everything in the green cart has to be bagged, and that a cart which will not roll has passed its 200-pound limit and will be left. It also lists building material among the things that cannot go in the cart at all. A few squares of soaked drywall weigh more than they look.
Bulky pickup helps with the furniture side. The City says most bulky items can simply be set at the curb on collection day, with mattresses and box springs laid flat beside the carts. Appliances are different: a flooded water heater, washer or dryer needs a special pickup, and the City says those are normally made within five business days of the request. Appliances that contain Freon are accepted at the curb, and the City recycles what it collects.
What the curb does not cover is electronics. Televisions, microwaves, computers and printers are not collected, and the City points residents to its Electronic Recycling Center instead. Humidifiers are refused at both.
Loan-a-Box: the one made for tear-outs
For carpet, pad, baseboard and sheetrock from a finished basement, the Loan-a-Box is the closest fit among the city options. The container is 10 feet long, 6 feet wide and 4 feet high. The City delivers on weekdays between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. and collects it the next morning, unless you book more days. A box dropped on a Friday stays until Monday morning for the single-day fee.
Three conditions catch people out. The program is for residents, and the City states it is not for businesses or private contractors, so it suits a homeowner clearing out, not a hired crew's job waste. Nothing may stick up over the sides. And concrete or masonry cannot fill more than a quarter of the box. Refrigerators, air conditioners and anything else that may hold Freon are on the refused list, along with paint thinner, wet paint, motor oil, fuel and car parts.
The program runs all year, first come, first served. LexCall takes questions on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The transfer station on Old Frankfort Pike
The Bluegrass Regional Transfer Station is run as a partnership between Lexington and Republic Services. It charges by weight, and wet material is heavy. Under the rates posted as of March 1, 2026, the gate rate is $137.70 per ton, with a minimum charge of $75.11 per load. The City notes that every rate also carries a Kentucky environmental remediation fee of $1.75 per ton plus fuel and other surcharges and sales tax.
Appliances have their own prices there: $32 for one without refrigerant and $167.29 for one with it. For a flooded washer or water heater, the curbside special pickup costs a city-collection household nothing, so it is worth asking LexCall first.
From time to time Lexington also holds a trash disposal day at the same site for Fayette County residents, from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m., with no charge for up to one pickup truckload of non-hazardous household waste. Mattresses and furniture are accepted on those days. Asbestos, liquid paint and other hazardous waste, liquids of any kind, batteries and anything containing mercury or Freon are not. Dates are posted on the City's trash page; do not let wet carpet sit for weeks waiting for one.
What tends to go and what tends to stay
The EPA sorts flood-wet belongings by whether they absorb water. Hard materials that do not take water in can usually be washed and dried. Absorbent ones that cannot be cleaned and dried are the ones to discard. It adds that wood, drywall, carpet and furniture can start growing mold once they have stayed wet beyond 24 hours, which is the reason the heap appears so early in a job.
When the water sat below the main floor, finished basements give up carpet, pad and the lower courses of drywall. Crawl spaces give up fiberglass batts that hung wet between the joists. The pages on basement flooding and crawl space water explain what a crew removes and why, and the drying and mold page covers the readings that decide when a wall can stay.
Two habits save trouble. Photograph each room and then the heap before anything is hauled. And ask whoever does the tear-out, at the start, whether haul-off is in the price. The cost guide has the other questions worth asking.
Bluegrass Dry-Out Referral does not haul, clean or dry anything. It is a referral service: a callback request is passed to an independent restoration company when one that serves your area is taking work, and disposal arrangements are between you and that company.
Debris questions
Will Lexington pick up wet carpet at the curb?
The City's bulky items page names mattresses, box springs, appliances, grills and tires; it does not name carpet. Carpet is on the accepted list for the Loan-a-Box. For a small amount, ask LexCall at 311 how it should be set out before you put it at the curb.
How much is a Loan-a-Box in Lexington?
$90 per weekday, which the City says covers delivery, removal and landfilling. It is open to Fayette County residents inside the urban service boundary, the fee is paid when the box is scheduled, and a Friday delivery stays through the weekend for the one-day fee.
Can drywall go in the green trash cart?
No. Lexington lists building material among the items that cannot be placed in the green cart, and carts over 200 pounds are not collected. Plaster and drywall are accepted in a Loan-a-Box or by weight at the transfer station.
What does the transfer station charge for a pickup load?
Under the rates posted as of March 1, 2026, the minimum is $75.11 per load and the gate rate is $137.70 per ton, plus a $1.75 per ton state fee and other surcharges and tax. The station is at 1505 Old Frankfort Pike.
My water heater flooded the basement. Who takes the old tank?
If you have city waste collection, request a special appliance pickup through LexCall; water heaters are on the City's curbside appliance list. A plumber fitting the new one may haul the old tank away, so ask.