15JUN
The Real Cost of Rubbish Removal
As Kiwis, it’s practically hard-wired into our DNA to complete what we consider basic DIY jobs around the home without any “intervention” from a qualified tradesperson. Apart from it being a badge of honour and something akin to a national pastime, we get to congratulate ourselves on the hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars we reckon we’ve saved by not calling in the experts.
But have you ever stopped to think about the REAL cost of doing something as seemingly mundane as rubbish removal? It’s not always as straightforward as you might think, and it could be stopping you from properly, cleanly removing rubbish from your property.
Challenges of DIY rubbish removal in Auckland
In Auckland, rubbish removal presents its own unique challenges. Access to the places you can legally dump your junk can be a logistical nightmare. How about working out the time you’ve spent transporting your laden unregistered trailer with its pair of Jockey Y-fronts tied to the over-extended load to alert the queue of irate motorists behind you on the motorway? And we all know the amount of traffic you’d fight through in Auckland is always going to add stress!
Then there’s the fact that not everyone has a car appropriate for removing rubbish; stuffing DIY waste, garden waste or any other rubbish into a small hatchback isn’t practical when you count up how many trips that might take to the landfill.
Debunking a couple of DIY myths
“It’s cheaper if I do it”
Let’s face it, there are better things you could be doing with your time on a Saturday in January than removing your own rubbish. In real terms, a trip to the “waste treatment centre” involves a number of steps. Here’s how a typical trip might play out:
- 7.30am – You arrive at the trailer hire place and sort out the hire of the trailer (30 minutes).
- 8.00am – Drive home to start loading (15 minutes).
- 9.30 am – 75 minutes after throwing the junk into the trailer you’re nearly on the road.
- 9.35am – Short pause while you think maybe you’ll keep that broken AFX slot car set and get it operational again (5 minutes).
- 9.55am – Locate and utilise that assortment of tarp straps and bungee cords you keep in the back of the garage and that always end up being too long or too short no matter what you’re packing (20 minutes).
- 10.00am – Back the trailer out of the driveway and nearly take out the neighbour’s fence (5 minutes).
- 10.45am – Arrive at the drop off depot with your junk in the pouring rain (45 minutes on a good day for most Aucklanders).
- 11.30am – Clean car and hose down muck out of the bottom of hire trailer (45 minutes).
- 11.45am – Trailer back to hire centre (15 minutes).
We’re talking 4-5 hours of your time and trailer hire to do a job you could have paid a fast efficient experienced junk removal company to carry out. Do you know what that time is really worth to you? This “what is my time worth” calculator may surprise you.
“I know all the great places to dump rubbish in Auckland”
Be careful with this. Many Aucklanders dump rubbish in all sorts of weird and wonderful places. It is against the law, for example, to dump electronic goods into an ordinary landfill. There are council by-laws regarding the illegal rubbish dumping and fines can be hefty. Not knowing the council rules is no defence and your well-intentioned actions to dispose of your household rubbish uninformed about the dos and don’t’s could be a costly and potentially embarrassing exercise. Even politicians can get into hot water doing it themselves. With the best intentions in the world, DIY can have its major drawbacks. So we suggest just getting a professional service to do it, and remove any headaches in the process!
11 more enjoyable things you could have been doing instead
- Watching your son’s (or daughter’s) soccer game
- Playing a round of golf (18 holes easily)
- Watching the All Blacks beat… well anyone really
- Whipping up a batch of cookies with your 5-year-old
- A ferry trip to Waiheke to sample the local wines
- A leisurely mountain bike ride at Woodhill
- Lunch out in Ponsonby/Wynyard Quarter/insert favourite cafe here…
- A bike ride to the Riverhead Tavern
- Collecting on the boxed trifecta at Ellerslie Racecourse
- Solving the problems of the world on the back porch with a mate and two beers
- A million other things that don’t involve a trailer and a whole lot of hassle
Hiring the rubbish removal professionals – it’s a no brainer
Hiring a professional rubbish removalist is an easy choice once you’ve added up the cost of your time, your legal obligations, your blood pressure and your enjoyment of life.
Realistically they know where to go, what to do and they’ll do it all for less money in less time than you have calculated in doing it yourself. We’re a nation of DIYers and we love our capacity to “muck in” and go the hard yards but there are some jobs that are best left to the experts for a whole raft of reasons that make logical sense.
Do you have rubbish to remove in the wider Auckland area? We’d love to help you out! Get a quote now, with no obligations.