Debris weights / Cardboard
EPA conversion factor · read 2026-10-20
Cardboard: weight per yard and dumpster size
EPA puts a loose cubic yard of cardboard at 106 pounds (0.1 tons at the figure). That is light enough that every size from 10 to 40 yards can be filled to the top and stay inside its published weight capacity, so cardboard is sized by volume.
- 1One cubic yard 106 lb
- 2Per 32-gal bag about 18 lb
- 3Fills level 10-yard and up
- 410-yard limit 10 of 10 yd
How much cardboard fits in each dumpster
| Size | Full box | Republic capacity | Yards before the low limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 yard | 0.5 t | 2–3 t | all 10 |
| 15 yard | 0.8 t | 2–3 t | all 15 |
| 20 yard | 1.1 t | 4–5 t | all 20 |
| 30 yard | 1.6 t | 6–7 t | all 30 |
| 40 yard | 2.1 t | 8–9 t | all 40 |
Because every size can be filled to the brim, the only question is volume: how many cubic yards of cardboard you have. A cubic yard is a 3 ft × 3 ft × 3 ft cube, and Republic counts 6 full 32-gallon bags to the yard. It weighs 4.6 times less per yard than mixed construction debris.
Worked loads of cardboard
| Loose yards | Weight | Smallest size that takes it | Fill |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 212 lb (0.1 t) | 10-yard, volume-limited | 20% |
| 5 | 530 lb (0.3 t) | 10-yard, volume-limited | 50% |
| 10 | 1,060 lb (0.5 t) | 10-yard, volume-limited | 100% |
| 20 | 2,120 lb (1.1 t) | 20-yard, volume-limited | 100% |
"Takes it" means the volume fits and the weight stays at or below the low end of Republic Services' published capacity for that size.
Taking cardboard to a town transfer station instead
For a small amount, a pickup run to the transfer station can cost less than a rental. One 8-ft pickup bed holds about 2.5 cubic yards (the conversion Stratham, NH and Sudbury, MA publish), or 265 lb of cardboard. At the 36 towns on this site that price construction debris, that load would cost from $0 in Merrimack, NH to $300 in Brookline, NH.
| Town | Published rate | One pickup bed |
|---|---|---|
| Merrimack, NH | $185 per ton (loads of 1,000 lb or less free) | free |
| Lexington County, SC | $35 per ton | $5 |
| Wilson County, NC | $43 per ton | $6 |
| Bismarck, ND | $50 per ton ($6 minimum) | $7 |
| Polk County, FL | $46 per ton ($10 minimum) | $10 |
| Henderson County, NC | $70 per ton (loads of 320 lb or less $10) | $10 |
| Davis County, UT | $46 per ton (loads of 10,000 lb or less $10) | $10 |
| Delaware Solid Waste Authority, DE | $80 per ton ($7.50 minimum) | $11 |
| Kern County, CA | $89.86 per ton | $12 |
| Greenville County, SC | $5 per cubic yard | $13 |
| Shelby County, AL | $14 per pickup load | $14 |
| Forsyth County, NC | $15 per pickup load | $15 |
| Dane County, WI | $63 per ton (in 500-lb steps up to a ton) | $16 |
| Thurston County, WA | $136 per ton | $18 |
| Chautauqua County, NY | $65 per ton ($20 minimum) | $20 |
| Raymond, NH | $0.077 per pound | $20 |
| Laconia, NH | $170 per ton | $23 |
| Strafford, NH | $25–$40 per pickup load | $25–$40 |
| Derry, NH | $0.11 per pound | $29 |
| Danbury, NH | $30 per pickup load | $30 |
| Durham, NH | $30 per pickup load | $30 |
| Larimer County, CO | $37 per pickup load | $37 |
| New Boston, NH | $0.14 per pound ($5 minimum) | $37 |
| Wellfleet, MA | $290 per ton | $38 |
| Pierce County, WA | $195.32 per ton ($39.06 minimum) | $39 |
| Milton, NH | $0.15 per pound | $40 |
| Marblehead, MA | $320 per ton | $42 |
| Scituate, MA | $340 per ton | $45 |
| Fairfax County, VA | $109 per ton ($49–$109 minimum) | $49–$109 |
| Stratham, NH | $30 per cubic yard | $75 |
| Sudbury, MA | $32 per cubic yard ($16 minimum) | $80 |
| Sugar Hill, NH | $45 per cubic yard | $113 |
| Newton, NH | $120 per pickup load | $120 |
| Canterbury, NH | $50 per cubic yard | $125 |
| Kitsap County, WA | $113 per cubic yard | $283 |
| Brookline, NH | $120 per cubic yard | $300 |
Most transfer stations take residents only and need a sticker; each town page lists the rules.
Materials of similar weight
Appliances (145 lb) · Branches and stumps (127 lb) · Carpet padding (62 lb) · HVAC ductwork (47 lb). Mixed loads take on the weight of their heaviest part, so a remodel load with shingles or tile in it should be sized as if it were mostly those. The guide to what you cannot put in a dumpster covers the items haulers refuse.
Source: U.S. EPA Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, Volume-to-Weight Conversion Factors (April 2016), row "Paper · Old corrugated containers, flattened" (EPA source note 4), read 2026-10-20. Size capacities: Republic Services size pages. Methodology.