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Posted By LisaW21 on 12/19/2022 9:53 PM
Thank you everyone for the advice. We are a 27 unit townhome community built in the early 80's. Garage clutter is not the issue. The size of many 2-car garage units in our community are too small for the dimensions of the 96-gallon trash can. Perhaps if the can was wider than it is deep, the can would work. It sticks out too far from the wall and encroaches into the space for vehicles. Those who have 2 vehicles would not be able to put both cars away. The 64-gallon has much better dimensions, so it does not encroach. When the community had the ability to use our own trash cans, every owner could shop for cans that worked for the space within their own garages. Trash companies are now forcing owners to use company cans with limited options on dimensions. It's almost as if these trash companies forgot to consider the differences in housing developments.
The amount of trash my family uses is no different than my single neighbor who uses the same amount of trash. The only difference is her unit can hold a 96 gallon can and my unit cannot because we have different sf. My garage can hold a 64 gallon, but I need one more to get to 96 gallons for my family usage. Two 48-gallon cans to be exact would be perfect. We are not a wasteful family and very mindful of our usage. We break down our boxes. Everything everyone suggests we do.
We do not have the ability for individual recycling in our townhome community. Contracts are all or nothing. I support recycling and equally was willing to open my check book so our HOA dues could cover that expense. We could all have one regular trash can and one recycling can. I thought it was a win/win for everyone. Recycling would increase our dues, so our community chose not to do it. The extra can I requested to have covered by the HOA still keeps costs lower than what our community was paying before. I did my research to find other companies. I presented them to the Board. The Board had no interest because they signed a contract with the new company. Ending a contract with this trash company, will also result in 25-dollar restocking fee per can.
Lisa,
We have the same issue with garage space. My HOA does not cover trash service but the private company we use provides recycling so we have one can for trash and one for recycling. We made space in our garage for both containers by parking our 2nd vehicle outside. Is that an option for you? One of our vehicles is an extended cab and has an extra long bed so it wouldn't fit in the garage anyway. In the Winter, we park it off site because we don't drive it much in the Winter. We are a family of two and our trash service allows for every other week pick-up at a reduced price. That has worked out beautifully for us. I have two children so I sympathize with your dilemma. When my children were living at home, we had more trash.
Some of my neighbors place their trash cans outside either on the side of the house or the space on the concrete next to the garage. It is allowed in my HOA and some of the neighborhood homes are townhomes.