Debris & haul-off
City piles, hazardous waste, haulers, donations, dumpsters, and illegal dumping.
Home / Debris & haul-off
Status, maps, and claim portals change by the hour. Open the org site. Do not trust a screenshot from last night.
- City of Houston 311 Debris rules, water, and non-emergency city services. Not a substitute for 911. Outside the city, this is the wrong desk.
- Houston Solid Waste City debris and household hazardous waste in normal times. Disaster piles get a separate notice. Do not invent a pickup day.
- Harris County Flood Control District Bayou context and project pages. Not a rescue line and not an evacuation order.
- Texas AG consumer complaint Contractor and FEMA-impersonation patterns. Keep contracts, texts, and plates.
Avoiding illegal dumping fines in Harris County
If it is not your dumpster and not an official pile, it is dumping. The fine outlives the flood.
Commercial dumpsters for multi-unit buildings
Order a real dumpster, say what is going in it, and do not let tenants fill it with the whole block.
Documenting haul-off for your claim
Photo the item, the serial, the pile, and the empty room, or the adjuster will call it a story.
Donation vs trash: what salvage charities will not take
If floodwater touched it, charities will not want it. Dry, clean, and actually usable, or it is trash.
Hazardous household waste sitting in flood mud
Do not curbside paint, chemicals, or propane. Keep them closed, labeled, and on a dry-ish pad.
Hiring a hauler for appliances and wet furniture
Get a written price per load, keep the fridge doors taped, and do not pay the whole job before the truck is full.
Sidewalks, ROW, and not blocking drainage again
Leave a walk path and a clear inlet. A blocked right-of-way floods the same house twice.
Volunteer debris crews: how to plug in safely
Work with a known crew, wear real shoes, and do not throw a stranger's unphotographed life away.
What the city or county will pick up after a flood
Houston and Harris County post debris rules after each event. Read this week's notice before you pile.
Where to pile debris so trucks can actually take it
Keep the pile on the right-of-way, off the inlet, and off the meter. Trucks skip junk they cannot reach.