Tear-off containers
Roofing Dumpster Rental New Bedford MA
Shingles are heavy and the biggest box is almost always the wrong answer. We size tear-off containers by squares and layers, and we set them where a crew can actually shovel into them.
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- Same-day delivery
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Roofing Dumpster Rental New Bedford MA across New Bedford and Bristol County
Roofing is the one service where the arithmetic is genuinely simple, so there is no excuse for getting it wrong. A square of asphalt shingle runs somewhere around 250 pounds for a standard three-tab and closer to 400 for a heavy architectural. Multiply by your squares. Multiply again by the number of layers coming off. That number, not the look of the roof, is what decides the container you need.
The second half of the job is placement. A tear-off runs at the speed the crew can move debris away from the base of the ladder, and on a narrow New Bedford lot with no side yard the container may be the only thing standing between a fast strip and a day spent wheelbarrowing. We would rather spend five minutes deciding where the box lands than have three men walking material sixty feet across a garden.
The arithmetic that sizes the box
Work it as weight, then check it as volume. A rule of thumb we use on the phone: roughly one and a half tons per 10 squares of single-layer architectural shingle, less for old three-tab, and add a full layer's worth for every layer underneath. Three layers on a 25 square roof is a serious load and it is not going in one small container.
- Up to about 20 squares, single layer — a 15 yard container is usually right
- 20 to 30 squares, or two layers — step up to a 20 yard
- Three layers, or a big complicated roof with dormers — plan on two pulls rather than one enormous box
- Cedar or slate — call us first, because the density is nothing like asphalt and the numbers above do not transfer
The tear-off sizing guide works through several real roofs if you want to check your own numbers before you call.
Why the biggest container is the wrong one for shingles
It feels efficient to order a 40 yard and only think about it once. With shingles it is not. You will hit the weight allowance with the container barely a third full, so you have paid for volume you physically cannot use, and the walls are high enough that shovelling over them from the ground is genuinely hard work. Big boxes are for light bulky material — framing offcuts, general construction waste, packaging.
For a tear-off, low walls and a swing door beat capacity every time. A crew can barrow straight in through the door on a 15 or 20 yard, which is worth more on the clock than any amount of headroom above the rail. If the roof genuinely produces more than one container's worth, take two pulls of the right box rather than one of the wrong one.
Placement, flashing and the autumn rush
On a tight urban lot the container often has to go on the street, which means a municipal permit and a bit of lead time. Where there is a driveway, we set the box as close to the eave as the approach allows and put boards under the rails so nothing marks the surface. Ask the driver to angle it if the drop zone is off to one side — it costs him nothing and it can save the crew an hour.
Metal is banned from disposal in Massachusetts, and a tear-off produces more of it than people expect: drip edge, step and counter flashing, valley metal, old vents and sometimes an entire porch roof. Pull it into its own pile as you strip. It keeps the load clean and it has scrap value. Autumn is our busiest stretch for roofing because everyone wants to be watertight before the first nor'easter, and ice damming in February writes next September's work list — book earlier than you think you need to.
Sizes
Which container for roofing dumpster rental?
Every service runs in all four sizes. Match the material to the weight allowance and the rest takes care of itself.
| Size | Dimensions | Capacity | Weight included | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Yard Dumpster | 12 ft long × 8 ft wide × 3.5 ft high | about 3 pickup truck loads | 1–2 tons | Small bathroom remodels, single-room cleanouts, concrete and heavy debris, roofing up to about 15 squares. |
| 15 Yard Dumpster | 16 ft long × 8 ft wide × 4 ft high | about 4–5 pickup truck loads | 2–3 tons | Basement and attic cleanouts, kitchen remodels, medium roof tear-offs, small deck removals. |
| 20 Yard Dumpster | 22 ft long × 8 ft wide × 4.5 ft high | about 6 pickup truck loads | 3–4 tons | Whole-home decluttering, flooring and siding jobs, large tear-offs, drywall and mud phases. |
| 30 Yard Dumpster | 22 ft long × 8 ft wide × 6 ft high | about 9 pickup truck loads | 4–5 tons | Full-house renovations, new construction, estate clearances, commercial fit-outs and demolition. |
| 40 Yard Dumpster | 22 ft long × 8 ft wide × 8 ft high | about 12 pickup truck loads | 5–6 tons | Large commercial fit-outs, industrial clear-outs, major renovations and high-volume light debris. |
Talk to a real person
Need roofing dumpster rental in New Bedford?
Call (508) 501-1638 and describe the job. You will get a flat price and a delivery time on the same call — most orders before noon go out the same day.
Mon–Sat 7:00am – 6:00pm · Sun by appointment
Answers
Roofing Dumpster Rental — your questions
How many squares fit in a 20 yard dumpster?
As a working rule, a 20 yard handles roughly 25 to 30 squares of single-layer asphalt shingle, or about half that if you are pulling two layers. Architectural shingle is heavier than three-tab, so shade the estimate down if the roof has thick laminated product on it. Tell us squares and layers on the phone and we will pick the box for you.
Why not just get the biggest dumpster for a roof?
Because shingles are dense. You will reach the weight allowance with a 40 yard container barely a third full, which means paying for space you cannot legally use, and the walls are too high to shovel over comfortably from the ground. Low walls and a swing door move a tear-off faster than capacity does. Two pulls of the right size beats one of the wrong one.
Can the container go on the street for a roof job?
Frequently, yes, and on the older streets there is often no alternative because the lots have no side yard at all. A street placement needs a municipal permit arranged in advance, so it is not a same-day option. Give us a couple of days of notice and tell us which side of the house the crew is stripping from so we set it in the right spot.
What do I do with the old flashing and metal?
Keep it separate. Metal is banned from disposal in Massachusetts, so drip edge, step flashing, valley metal, vents and any old metal roofing need to come out of the general tear-off pile. Stack it beside the container as you strip rather than trying to fish it out later. It has scrap value, and a clean shingle load is straightforward for us to tip.
When is the best time to book a roofing container?
Earlier than you think, especially from late August through November when every roofer on the South Coast is racing the first nor'easter. Spring is the second rush, driven by winter ice damming and wind damage off Buzzards Bay. We keep capacity back for live jobs, but a crew booked for a specific Tuesday should have the container booked for that Tuesday too.
Service area
Roofing Dumpster Rental across the South Coast
We run roll-off dumpsters out of our 1011 Church St yard across Bristol County and Plymouth County — from the triple-decker streets of the North and South Ends to the village lanes at Padanaram and Mattapoisett, and west on I-195 as far as Swansea. If your town is not on this list, call us anyway. We probably still get there.