You’ve got a pile of soil, half a broken concrete pad, timber offcuts and all the plastic the new materials came wrapped in. Can you chuck it all in the same truck and call it a day?
Mixing the wrong materials can change where your load can go and what you’ll pay to get rid of it. In the worst case scenario, you could get all the way to the disposal site only to find they won’t accept it. So, before you book a truck or skip bin, it pays to know what you’re dealing with.
What Is Cleanfill?
Generally speaking, cleanfill is uncontaminated natural material such as soil, clay, sand, gravel and rock. What a particular cleanfill site can accept varies, so don’t assume something is cleanfill just because it came out of the ground.
If you’re using one of our Auckland sites to drop off your cleanfill, make sure to check out the Rock & Rubble cleanfill criteria before loading up.
What Is Hardfill?
Hardfill usually relates to construction materials like concrete, bricks, blocks, asphalt and rubble, although again, that may differ depending on where it’s being taken.
Hardfill can often be recycled if it’s kept clean; however, once timber, plastic and other rubbish get mixed through, it has to be treated as “general waste”.
What Counts as General Waste?
General waste is the mixed stuff that doesn’t fit into either the cleanfill or hardfill category. On a construction site, that could include timber, plastics, insulation, packaging and other building waste.
Demolition projects or sites that don’t have a clear plan for waste removal can lead to large amounts of mixed waste where you don’t know exactly what you’re dealing with. If in doubt, ask before you load it.
Can These Materials Legally Go in the Same Truck?
Putting materials onto the same truck isn’t the issue. The real question is what’s in the load, where’s it going and what that facility will accept.
For example, soil mixed with general rubbish can no longer be treated as a cleanfill load. If you’re loading things into the same truck, you’d need to make sure there was no cross-contamination, which is why it’s usually best to transport each load separately.
As a rule of thumb, keep cleanfill clean, separate hardfill where you can, and don’t add general rubbish to your load unless you know for a fact it’s ok with the site you’ll be taking it to.
Common Mistakes That Lead to Rejected Loads or Extra Charges
Most problems happen when a clean pile gradually becomes the dumping spot for everything else on site.
A few timber offcuts get thrown onto the concrete. Someone drops green waste into the soil pile. Painted or treated material gets mixed with demolition rubble. By the time the truck arrives, nobody is quite sure what’s underneath.
Sorting it at that point takes time, and sending it as mixed waste may cost more than separating it would have in the first place.
What to Do Before You Book
Rock & Rubble can help with cleanfill and hardfill disposal, skip bins, aggregate supplies and truck transport across Auckland and Tauranga.
We recommend always keeping your cleanfill, hardfill and general waste separated as you work, rather than dealing with it all at the end. If you’re unsure about a material, take a couple of photos and send them through to us in advance.
Ultimately, we’re here to help, so get in touch, tell us what you’re dealing with, and we’ll try to work out the best way to shift it.