A remodel produces debris in two waves: the demo, then the trim-out scrap from new materials. The right box has to handle both, and the part that trips people up is weight. Tile and plaster are heavier than they look.
It comes down to the room and the materials. A full kitchen gut, with cabinets, countertops, flooring, drywall, and an island, usually fits a 20-yard. A single bathroom or a smaller kitchen refresh often fits a 10-yard. The 20-yard is the metro favorite for remodels because it handles the bulk of cabinet and drywall debris without towering over a driveway.
| Remodel scope | Box we usually recommend | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Single bathroom | 10-yard | Tile and cement board weight. |
| Two bathrooms | 10 to 20-yard | Combined tile tonnage. |
| Kitchen refresh, no flooring | 10-yard | Cabinet bulk. |
| Full kitchen gut | 20-yard | Volume of cabinets, drywall, flooring. |
| Kitchen plus a bath | 20-yard, maybe a swap | Stage it over the job. |
Remodel demand runs heaviest on the Kansas side. Overland Park and Olathe see a steady flow of kitchen and bath gut-outs as the first wave of master-planned homes ages into renovation. Those homeowners lean toward a clean mid-size box for the driveway and a driver who places it without scuffing a new concrete apron. We size and place with that in mind.
Because tile and old plaster behave like concrete, not like furniture. A bathroom looks like a small job, but the floor tile, the shower surround, the mortar bed, and the cement board behind it add up to real tonnage. A tile-heavy bath can hit the weight cap in a smaller box while the container still looks half empty, the same trap that catches roofing and concrete loads.
The lesson is to size by what the debris weighs, not just how much space it takes. A bathroom with a heavy tile tear-out often does better in a 10-yard with the included tonnage matched to the job than in a 20-yard you cannot fill without going over weight. Pre-war homes around Brookside and the older stock in Independence carry plaster-and-lath walls that are heavier than modern drywall, so an old-house remodel skews heavier than a newer one. Our weight-limit guide breaks down how the tonnage cap works.
Most remodels are not a one-day demo, so the box has to live on site for a stretch. The flat rate covers a 7-day rental, which fits a tight single-room job. For a multi-week or multi-room remodel, you have two clean options: a longer rental, where extra days usually run about $10 to $20 each, or a scheduled swap-out where we haul the full box and drop an empty one so work never stops.
Placement matters for a long job. We set the box on the driveway near your work entrance, on boards that protect the surface, so the crew carries debris a short distance and the street stays clear. A driveway drop needs no permit anywhere in the metro. In our experience, the homeowners who plan the box around the project timeline, rather than booking it for demo day only, avoid the mid-remodel scramble of a yard full of debris and nowhere to put it.
A 10-yard for a 7-day rental usually runs $250 to $350, and a 20-yard usually runs $350 to $450, both flat rates with drop-off, pickup, and disposal built in up to the included tonnage. A bathroom-only job often fits the 10-yard, and a full kitchen leans on the 20-yard. The flat rate is the all-in number for typical mixed remodel debris that stays under the weight cap.
The thing that turns a clean quote into a surprise is heavy tile pushing you over the included tonnage, where overage usually runs $50 to $90 per ton. That is why matching the box to the material weight matters as much as the volume. Extra days past the week run about $10 to $20 each, and haul distance to the farther suburbs adds a little. We quote the all-in figure before you book and walk through the swap-out option for longer jobs. See the FAQ for more.
A full kitchen gut, meaning cabinets, countertops, flooring, and drywall, usually fits a 20-yard dumpster. A small kitchen refresh or a single bathroom remodel often fits a 10-yard. The deciding factor is rarely volume alone. Tile, mortar, and old plaster are heavy, so a tile-heavy job can hit the weight cap in a smaller box even when the pile looks modest.
For most single-room remodels, one box for the 7-day flat rate covers the demo and the new-material scrap if you time it right. Multi-week or multi-room jobs often do better with a longer rental or a scheduled swap-out, so debris does not pile up in the yard. Tell us the timeline and we will stage the box to match the project.
Tile, mortar, and the cement board behind it are dense, like a mini version of concrete. A small bathroom can produce a surprising tonnage of heavy debris from the floor and shower surround alone. That weight, not the volume, is what pushes a tile job toward a 10-yard with the right tonnage rather than a half-empty 20-yard that goes over the cap.
On the driveway, close to the work entrance, on boards that protect the surface. A driveway drop needs no permit anywhere in the metro and keeps the box out of the street. If your only option is the street or right-of-way, most KC-metro cities require a permit that usually runs $25 to $100, and we flag that before the drop.
Most remodel debris is fine: cabinets, drywall, flooring, tile, fixtures, and lumber all go in the box. The exceptions are paint and finishes, old fluorescent tubes, and any appliance holding refrigerant, which need separate disposal. If you are pulling an old vanity light or a kitchen fridge, set the hazardous and refrigerant items aside and we will tell you what is prohibited before the drop.
Tell us the room, the materials, and your timeline, and we will spec the size, the included tonnage, and a swap-out plan if the job runs long. Driveway placement that protects your surface, disposal included.
Last updated: May 28, 2026.
