Compare all five sizes
Dumpster Sizes in Detroit, MI — 10, 15, 20, 30 & 40 Yard
Five roll-off sizes, and the honest version of which one you actually need. The right answer is driven by what the debris weighs at least as often as by how much of it there is.
All sizes
Pick by weight first, volume second
Scroll the table on mobile. If your load includes brick, block, concrete, plaster and lath or a multi-layer tear-off, start at the 10 yard no matter how big the job looks. And measure the space before you pick a 40 — the original driveways on the pre-war grid in Redford, Hamtramck and Grosse Pointe Park are short and narrow, a good number of houses have no drive at all and only the rear alley to work with, and there is usually a porch roof, a low limb or the service drop the hoist arm cannot swing under.
| Size | Capacity | Footprint | Weight allowance | Holds about | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Yard Dumpster | 10 yd³ | 12 ft x 8 ft x 3.5 ft | 2 – 3 tons | ~3 pickup truck loads | Concrete, brick, block, plaster and lath, tile and soil — weight fills it first. |
| 15 Yard Dumpster | 15 yd³ | 16 ft x 8 ft x 4 ft | 2 – 3 tons | ~4 – 5 pickup truck loads | Single-room remodels, roof tear-offs to about 20 squares, garage cleanouts. |
| 20 Yard Dumpster | 20 yd³ | 22 ft x 8 ft x 4.5 ft | 3 – 4 tons | ~6 – 8 pickup truck loads | Full basement clear-outs, kitchen guts, multi-room renovations, porch demo. |
| 30 Yard Dumpster | 30 yd³ | 22 ft x 8 ft x 6 ft | 4 – 5 tons | ~9 – 12 pickup truck loads | Whole-home cleanouts, investor rehab guts, new construction, commercial work. |
| 40 Yard Dumpster | 40 yd³ | 22 ft x 8 ft x 8 ft | 5 – 6 tons | ~14 – 16 pickup truck loads | Bulky light debris: framing, siding, cabinetry, commercial and retail fit-outs. |
10 Yard Dumpster
Concrete, brick, block, plaster and lath, tile and soil — weight fills it first.
View this size → 15yd³15 Yard Dumpster
Single-room remodels, roof tear-offs to about 20 squares, garage cleanouts.
View this size → 20yd³20 Yard Dumpster
Full basement clear-outs, kitchen guts, multi-room renovations, porch demo.
View this size → 30yd³30 Yard Dumpster
Whole-home cleanouts, investor rehab guts, new construction, commercial work.
View this size → 40yd³40 Yard Dumpster
Bulky light debris: framing, siding, cabinetry, commercial and retail fit-outs.
View this size →The rule that saves people money
Weight, not volume, decides the size
This is the single most useful thing on the page. A container has two limits: how much volume it holds and how much weight a truck can legally lift and carry. For light debris you run out of volume first. For dense material you run out of weight first, and it happens far earlier than people expect.
Around Wayne County the usual culprits are plaster and lath coming off the studs at roughly two to three times the weight of the same volume of drywall, common brick off a chimney or a garage wall, broken concrete from a frost-heaved driveway, apron, porch steps or basement floor, and clean fill at roughly 2,400 to 2,800 lbs per cubic yard. Then there is the multi-layer tear-off — two or three courses of shingle still sitting on the original deck of a century-old house doubles or triples the tonnage — and the slate and clay tile on the bigger houses in Boston-Edison, Palmer Woods and Indian Village, which is heavier again. Any of these will hit legal transport weight in a container that still looks half empty.
So stripping the plaster and lath out of two rooms of a Grandmont-Rosedale bungalow does not need a 30 yard. It needs a 10 yard, probably twice. The same logic applies to a roof: tear-offs are weight-driven, and on the older stock around Corktown and the North End you are often pulling two or three layers, each one adding its full tonnage again — a 40 yard full of slate could never legally leave your driveway. Where the 40 does earn its keep is the opposite job, a detached garage teardown off the rear alley: all bulk, almost no weight, and the old-growth framing, the doors, the hardware and the scrap metal are worth pulling out first — salvage is a real market here, not a novelty.
Tell us the material and the rough quantity on the phone and we will size it properly. Getting it wrong costs us more than it costs you, so we have every reason to get it right.
How it works
From phone call to empty driveway
- 1
Call us
Tell us the project, your address and when you want it. Two minutes on the phone and you have a flat price.
- 2
We deliver
Our driver walks the drop, lays protection boards and sets the container exactly where you want it.
- 3
You load it
Take your time within your rental window. Keep it level with the top rail and we handle the rest.
- 4
We haul it
Call or text when you are done. We pull it, sort what can be recovered and dispose of the rest properly.
Choosing a Size — FAQs
Which dumpster size is most popular in Detroit?
The 20 yard, by a wide margin. It suits kitchen guts, full basement clear-outs, multi-room renovations and three-bedroom cleanouts, and it still fits a narrow pre-war driveway. The 15 yard is the next most common because it is the sweet spot for a single room or a single-layer shingle roof.
What size do I need for a roof tear-off?
For most Detroit homes on shingle, a 15 or 20 yard. Roofing is weight-driven, not volume-driven, so squares and layers matter far more than roof area. Slate and clay tile change the answer completely — they run several times the weight of a shingle square, so tile comes off into a small heavy can, never a big one. On the older stock around Corktown, the North End and Grosse Pointe Park it is common to find two or three layers still sitting on the original deck, and that doubles or triples the tonnage. Pre-1980 roofing felt can also contain asbestos, which stops the job until it is tested. Our roofing sizing guide has the full maths.
Is the 40 yard just the biggest and best?
No, and treating it that way is an expensive mistake. The 40 yard is a volume container for bulky light debris — framing, siding, cabinetry, garage teardowns, packaging and whole-house cleanouts. Put anything dense in it and you will exceed legal transport weight long before it is full. It also needs the most approach room and overhead clearance, which rules it out on plenty of narrow pre-war lots where the only way in is the rear alley.
Can I change size after I book?
Yes, as long as the truck has not been dispatched. If you describe the job and we think you have ordered wrong, we will say so before delivery rather than after. Changing on the phone costs nothing; discovering it at the scale house costs a great deal.
How much space do I need?
Roughly the container footprint plus working room, about 60 feet of straight approach for the truck and around 23 feet of overhead clearance while the hoist operates. A 10 yard fits almost anywhere; a 30 or 40 needs a real driveway, a usable rear alley or a permitted right-of-way placement. Look up before you decide — a porch roof, a low maple limb or the service drop into the house will stop the arm cold.
Services
What people put in them
Residential Dumpster Rental
Driveway and alley placement for basement, attic and garage cleanouts and remodels.
Learn more →Commercial Dumpster Rental
Scheduled and on-call containers for retail, restaurants, offices and property managers.
Learn more →Construction Dumpster Rental
Jobsite roll-offs and next-day swap-outs for builders, rehabbers and GCs.
Learn more →Roofing Dumpster Rental
Weight-rated cans sized by squares and layers, including multi-layer tear-offs.
Learn more →Roll-Off Dumpster Rental
10, 15, 20, 30 and 40 yard roll-offs delivered across Detroit and Wayne County.
Learn more →Same-Day Dumpster Rental
Call before the cut-off and we can usually get a container to you this afternoon.
Learn more →Talk to a real person
Not sure which size you need?
Tell us what you are clearing out and we will tell you the right size and the flat price to put it in your driveway. No forms, no waiting on an email — just call and we will sort it out in a couple of minutes.
Serving Detroit, Wayne County and metro Detroit · Mon–Fri 6:30am–6pm, Sat 7am–3pm